When putting a heat mat in a large sulcata tortoise outdoor enclosure, you do not want to use a heating pad designed for glass aquariums. These can easily overheat and burn your tortoise.
You want to use a heating mat designed for an animal to sit directly on. The two most popular heating mats for large tortoises, like sulcatas, include the Kane mat and the Zoo Med Habitat Heater.
Kane Mat
Kane mats come in multiple sizes. They conform to UL and CUL standards and undergo rigorous testing to ensure safety.
These pet heater mats are easy to clean and made with durable materials to last years of use. They ahve a tough polyethylene cover that will hold up to messes and daily use. Kane mats are also energy efficient and constructed with a thermal insulation on the bottom of the mat to ensure the heat goes to your tortoise and not the floor. They are waterproof and weather-resistant.
Kane pet heater mats have a gentle heat that aren’t hot enough to burn your tortoise, but it’s still important to periodically check the temperature to ensure the mat functioning properly.
Kane Mat with Rheostat
The rheostat setting has a dial control that adjusts how much electricity flows to the heater pad, which controls how much heat the mat puts out. Once you set the dial, it stays on that setting, and continues to put out that amount of heat.
Kane Mat with Thermostat
The Kane mat with a built-in thermostat has a dial control that allows you to set the temperature. When the heat mat reaches the set temperature, the thermostat will decrease the amount of electricity going to the mat. When the mat starts to cool off, the thermostat will send more electricity to heat it back up to the set temperature.
Zoo Med 40-Watt Repti Therm Habitat Heater
The Zoo Med Habitat Heater measures about 18-inches by 18-inches. It’s lage enough that your large sulcata can lay on the mat. The Zoo Med Repti Therm heat mat has a built-in thermostat that shuts off when the heater reaches 119-degrees Fahrenheit.
You cannot set the Zoo Med Habitat Heater. Although the product is considered safe, you have less control when using this reptile heat mat.
The Zoo Med heater is a much cheaper option when compared to the Kane heater mat. Although, it may not be the best option, it will definitely get you by, if needed.
Tips Using a Heat Mat with a Large Sulcata
- Do not put substrate on top of the mat.
- Periodically check the temperature with a digital temperature gun to ensure the mat is not too hot and is functioning properly.
Placing the Heat Mat in the Sulcata Outdoor Enclosure
Screw the heater mat to the floor of the outdoor enclosure to prevent the mat from sliding and moving around and to prevent mess from getting underneath the mat.
If you don’t want your sulcata lying directly on the mat, screw the mat to the wall or the ceiling of the house. If you are using a shed for an outdoor enclosure, the ceiling may be too tall for hte tortoise to actually get the heat, so this is where the wall would work as an alternative.
