Looking for some input ??

Mike H.

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Greetings all, my brother in law and I are going to build some tanks for my T.s and I was wondering, if we spilit the tanks down the middle with plexiglass does the peice that seperates the two T.s have to be non see threw?? what I am wondering is if the T.s see one another will it stress them out ?? or can they not see that far ?? I just want to make sure that they are built properly the first time so I will not have to disrupt them once they are in there..there will be no possibilty of one T getting to the other side...just wondering about them seeing each other...the other question I have is in the summer I have central air in my home and the T.s are in the basement...with the airconditioning on it gets REALLY cold in the basement..if I have to bump up the heat in the tanks what is the best way...right now they are at room temp..but I have the heat on so the temp is ok for now...any info would be greatly appreciated..

As Always Mike :?
 

da_illest

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Mike H. said:
Greetings all, my brother in law and I are going to build some tanks for my T.s and I was wondering, if we spilit the tanks down the middle with plexiglass does the peice that seperates the two T.s have to be non see threw?? what I am wondering is if the T.s see one another will it stress them out ?? or can they not see that far ?? I just want to make sure that they are built properly the first time so I will not have to disrupt them once they are in there..there will be no possibilty of one T getting to the other side...just wondering about them seeing each other...the other question I have is in the summer I have central air in my home and the T.s are in the basement...with the airconditioning on it gets REALLY cold in the basement..if I have to bump up the heat in the tanks what is the best way...right now they are at room temp..but I have the heat on so the temp is ok for now...any info would be greatly appreciated..

As Always Mike :?
i'm not positive on this but i know for sure that terrestrial t's don't have good vision.. i think they can only make out lights.. like when it's dark and when it's bright.. i think they can sense each other though, probably thru vibrations.. especially when you feed them, t's thump on the ground when they catch crickets..

about the heating.. try to use a heat pads and not lights cause they dry the t out.. better yet do what Diane S did (do a search on her posts) or get heat tape and put it across the whole tank.. heat pads are pretty economical...
 

JohnxII

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Hi I'm no expert as I'm relatively new to keeping T's. However, due to the above reason, I did quite a bit of reading recently. Most popular T books do not recommend using the divider method (unless you are trying to introduce a potential mate of course). While T's are mostly blind, they certainly can sense the other party by vibrations (and chemicals if you have vent holes on the divider). So I'd say make 2 medium/small ones instead of 1 large/medium one. Much easier during maintenance too!

Having said that, I've seen pix in this board showing two adult T's of different species living peacefully in such enclosure without apparent stress. So I guess it boils down to what you think is right and more convenient.

As for heating, if you only have the two T's in the basement, I guess it's more convenient to have a divided tank so they can share an under-tank heat pad. (I'm guessing you have two terrestrials?) Of course, keep in mind that only a portion of each side should be covered.

Happy building!
 

metzgerzoo

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I don't think it should matter if the divider is see through or not. Everyone I've ever known or heard of has used clear plexiglass to divide a tank. Using regular bulbs for extra heat can dry out an enclosure rather quickly, so if you went that route, you'd have to keep a closer eye on humidity levels, fill water dishes more often and spray more often. Diane S. does have a real good set up that she has for her Ts. She uses rope lights. She got them at Wal-Mart, they are red, so they don't disturb the Ts so much and they keep her tanks at a good 75 degrees. Of course there are many good methods for providing additional heat. Heat pads or strip tape work well also. Just a thought, if you're going to keep terrestrial Ts in the divided tank, make sure the plexiglass runs bottom to top so they can't burrow under it.
 

Sheri

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From everything I have read, heat is not required unless you plan to breed them. Youhave stated that you have air conditioning in the summer, but air conditioning is used to keep your home at room temp. which should still be around 20, regardless of season.
If your T's are not close to an air register, they should do okay without the heat unless you keep your home very cool. (plus, not using the A/C as much will lower your bills)...
 

Mike H.

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The concern that I have is that in the summer my basement gets very very cold...I would say 60 to 63 degrees...this is why I am a little concerned..there is no chance of moving them to a warmer part of the house either..so I just want to make the temps in the tanks a little above the 70 mark...

Regards, Mike :?
 

da_illest

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sheri said:
From everything I have read, heat is not required unless you plan to breed them. Youhave stated that you have air conditioning in the summer, but air conditioning is used to keep your home at room temp. which should still be around 20, regardless of season.
If your T's are not close to an air register, they should do okay without the heat unless you keep your home very cool. (plus, not using the A/C as much will lower your bills)...
yea but with the ac the top part of the house will be at room temp while the basement is much cooler.. it happens at my house.. with the ac on i freeze in the basement but with it off i'm cool and people upstairs burn!
 
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