# Hedgehog Accessories - Set for winter?



## SiouxzieKinz (Oct 10, 2013)

I am so thankful for your posts on here regarding heat and set up and everything else. I am planning to pick up my hedgie baby next week and your information helped me to figure out what I should order.

Today, I'd ordered a Zoo Med AquaSun Dual Timer Custom 2 Outlet Timer Day/Night Timer Cycle, an R-Zilla Controller Temperature, 500-watt, one of those microwave snuggle disks, hand warmers (with custom fleece covers), Reptile T8 Strip Light Desert Fixture - 24" (on my 30" cage) to give him some daylight, Flukers 10in ceramic clamp lamp, and a Hagen 60 Watt Ceramic Heat Emitter. 

I think I'm set - could you reconfirm this is appropriate for a 30 x 18 wire cage in a home with an ambient temperature of 74 degrees?

Thanks!


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## sarahspins (Jun 25, 2013)

The light is probably overkill, but will work - you don't necessarily need a ton of light to maintain a day/light cycle. I am using a $15 LED strip from IKEA in my cage, the idea is just to make the cage "not dark" during the day, your hedgehog doesn't need a specific amount of light, and in general will avoid coming out while it's on 

I would suggest some sort of digital temperature gauge just as reassurance that your temperature is staying consistent with what your thermostat is set to.. plus it will help you monitor the temperature in the event that your power goes out. You can usually pick those up for under $10 - and it does not need to be a pet item, even the kind made for indoor home monitoring are fine (if it's the kind without a probe, you can just leave it in the cage, your hedgehog likely won't mess with it - I have this one in each of my cages and it works great, I don't think my hedgehogs even notice it's there, since it has never moved), and some will even keep track of high/low temperatures too, so you can have some reassurance that the temperature isn't fluctuating too much. That's mostly why I bought mine.

If your house really does stay 74 then the 60w heater is probably fine, but if you find that it's constantly on, or not able to maintain the temperature where you need it, you might need a higher wattage. Using a higher wattage CHE is usually not a problem (and your 10" reflector is rated for up to 250 watts) since the thermostat will control the temperature, so it means it is just on less often than a lower wattage CHE would be. I currently have a 100w set up in each of my cages and I'm considering putting in 150 watt bulbs for the winter, just to make sure they'll be able to keep the cages warm enough once it gets cooler since our house is typically in the upper 60's during the winter and I don't like running the heat more than absolutely necessary (I hate how dry it makes the air more than I dislike being cold).


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## SiouxzieKinz (Oct 10, 2013)

I had read reviews where the daylight timer tends to get "off" by a few minutes each day but since I am at school I wanted to make sure that the baby gets all the light he needs (my room is dark - like way dark - and in a part of the house where I have no windows as I live in a three bdrm condo). The master bedroom has the windows but that's not mine - bah humbug for roommates.  

I'm on the second floor so I have heated units above me and offices below me. I rarely have to run the heat which is great for the electric bills! I too, dislike the dry air of Colorado. This is why I will have my humidifier running as well. 

Thank you for elaborating on the temperature gauge. The thermostat that I ordered does have the probe attached but I do not yet have a separate, basic unit. The one you posted on Amazon is exactly what I was looking at! Awesome.


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