Insulating 40 gal. breeder

[Motob3000]

Hello,
Setting up a 40 gallon breeder tank for my african bullfrog. I want to minimize the amount of heat loss through the glass. I am looking for some type of thin insulation for the underside and back. I plan on putting some type of background up first and then covering with insulation. I will probably buy a piece of glass for the top or use a piece of lexan.

I currently use a 60w red bulb to warm my 5 gallon. I feel there is a lot of heat loss mainly because the light is positioned above the tank and the outside of the lamp is very hot. I was thinking of using a small fan to push air over the bulb and down into the terrarium. Surely, I can't be the first person to think of this and I was curious if anyone else has tried this and if so what results did you see? I think it is possible with a water heater, a 8x18 heat pad and a 60w bulb to heat the terrarium if it is properly insulated. My girlfriend has said twice now that she heard him croak in the morning. But, I am not sure if it is a male or female yet. Apparently, he only croaks for the ladies.

Thanks for all the help and information in advance.

B

[DonLisk]

Hi B

I guess I would have to ask what your room temps are since normal night temps should be around 70 degrees and day temps around 78 degrees.
Closing up the top will retain a ton of heat but will also increase humidity to levels probably too high for your frogs.

Usually closing up about 1/2 to 2/3rd of the top should be sufficient for retaining temps and not overdoing the humidity.
Something you'll have to monitor. Your also not going to want to close it right up completely since your frogs would rather some airflow.

I live in New England, pretty cold here, and my room temps are an average of 68 to 72 degrees while my tank with no heat source besides some compact florescent lighting is from 74 to 82 degrees over the day. Most of my tanks are 20 gallon vivariums set up vertical so the light has a ways to reach the bottom yet the basic lighting generates enough warmth to heat the tanks. When I need additional heat, adding a heat pad to the side of the tank will generate a few degrees of additional temp or adding a heat lamp bulb in place of the compact florescents will add a pile of added temp.

If you really decide you need to insulate, creating a background with Great Stuff Foam and some substrate is a huge insulation piece.
Installing a cut to fit piece of the foam type insulating sheet will also make a insulation barrier under the tank. I think the foam backgrounds designed for terrariums will also work as an insulation material if not going with a Great Stuff Foam type.

[Motob3000]

Don,
Thank you for the helpful information. I should have elaborated a little more. The fan would be a minimal size and it would be positioned above the lamp blowing hot air down. I would vent the tank on the top in some areas and test appropriately before adding the frog to the enclosure. I am not sure what kind of cover/top I am going to use. It seems I need two lamp housings a fan setup on one and a couple of flaps to regulate the temp. My Temps are pretty cold now and the room he is in is colder than most. That's why I use a 60w red bulb on a five gallon with a small heat pad. Temps are 87 during the day and about 75 at night. However, I will be moving soon. So, his new environment will need tweaking. Just wanted to focus on a cost effective solution that would minimize temperature loss. I think with a combo of heat lamp, aqua heater and heat pad I will be able to regulate his temps.

I never thought of using foam as an insulator but it certainly makes sense. Thank you for all your help. I will keep posting as I progress.

Thanks again.

B