Need help with deciding my winter chameleon care. :)

[Xyres]

So as winter approaches it is getting colder and colder so i need to start thinking about winter proofing. I am going to be buying a new UVB bulb in November as that's when I need to replace anyway, upgrade my wattage in my current heat fixture and maybe get another fixture for a ceramic bulb depending on how cold it gets in my house this winter. (First time here)

With that all said my main worry is that there will be a power outage that will last longer than I would like. As a man who works 8-10 hour days I would be heartbroken if my cham was without heat for hours at a time, and I would be very concerned about his health. Does anyone have any recommendations for staying safe in the event of a power outage while at work in the midst of winter? The second is keeping my misting water reservoir that I use for my mist king warm. What would work best to keep it heating during the winter? Just a regular fish tank heater? Anything else I might be missing for my winter care?

 

[reptilover]

If u have a generator on stand by thats best for power outages. What I do incase it happens while im gone is keep a low wattage bulb on all day with a higher wattage bulb hooked up but as backup while im home. I then heat the whole room to 80 degrees steady so if the power goes out it will remain warm much longer than if u have a high watt bulb and the room is at 60-65 degrees. When im home I switch on the high watt bulb and let air flow through the room. Cause im there to start the generator.

As for heating the water for the mistking its not highly recommended due to bacteria liking to grow in warmer water but I keep my tub of water next to that rooms radiant heater which keeps the water right at or a little above room temp (just enough water for the day) then its changed with fresh water when I get home
Good luck to you!

 

[ferretinmyshoes]

There are room thermostats that can send alerts to your phone if the temperature goes out of range. I might get one of those because I too work long hours so that will give you warning if the power goes out and the temp is dropping too low. When it gets really cold where I am I use a little space heater to keep the room temp up more than the rest of the house. That would keep the temp up for a little while if the power went out. I will be upgrading my basking bulbs soon too.

 

[fluxlizard]

There are room thermostats that can send alerts to your phone if the temperature goes out of range.

Do you know where to get such things?

After the fire in the lizard building this year, I'm super interested in this...

I wonder if they make a smoke detector that does the same thing?

 

[Xyres]

Alright, thanks everyone for your input. Has anyone heard of a heater that might work on the outside of a 5 gallon pail? Kinda like a belly warmer style heater? Also anyone have some input for increasing night time temps? Sorry for reviving an old post, just got back to civilization.

 

[laurie]

I live in northern Montana so I deal with sub zero temps and power outages every year. Can you tell me where you live and I can help you manage your chams in winter.

 

[Xyres]

I live in Kamloops, BC up in Canada. It doesn't get too cold here compared to the rest of Canada but -15 Celsius to -25 is not uncommon to be the average.

 

[kplatvoet]

I was looking at a bearded dragon site and they had 48 and 72 hour shipping packs - they said they would bring the temp up to 100 degrees (I'm trying to figure on emergency supplies for a Jackson a Panther and a bearded dragon) I think 100 would be way too hot for the Jackson- they are supposed to get to that temp and then cool down so the plan would be to use it for the beardy and then switch it when it starts loosing heat. I have zippered laundry baskets for emergency cages for the chameleons but I doubt they would transfer well so I'm thinking of square plastic buckets with vents for travel - if they need to actually leave the house - I want to get a big enough clear plastic tub to fit everything in that can double as a temp cage for the bearded dragon for if I get to someplace with electric that is not my house. I think it's overkill but we have been evacuated for flooding twice since I've lived here (25 years) and power does go off the heat stays on though so I hope I'll never need it -

 

[melble68]

Do you know where to get such things?

After the fire in the lizard building this year, I'm super interested in this...

I wonder if they make a smoke detector that does the same thing?

The Nest thermostat I believe does. They (Nest) also just came out w/ a smoke / CO combo detector. Very cool products that communicate via your wireless network and can be monitored with your iOS device.

nest.com

 

[pssh]

For short periods (like a day or two) you can use the shipping heatpacks. Even though they get to pretty high temps on their surfaces, you can just wrap them in a towel/cloth and put it into a shoebox (taped so it doesnt fly around) with the chameleon. Also put a towel/cloth in the box for the chameleon to hold onto.

I have an emergency "kit" next to each cage for just in case. There is a shoebox with a towel in it, a 72 hour heat pack (or two) inside, and some cloth to wrap them in. There is also packing tape nearby so I can grab it if needed. I would only use the heatpacks if the temp they were subjected to was lower than 50 degrees, also the 72 hour heatpacks dont get quite as hot as the 48s, so I feel they are safer. I also have some gardening gloves nearby so I can grab the more agressive chameleons quickly without hurting them or myself. This would hold you over if you needed to evacuate quickly and need to take them with you for a little while but dont have time to grab cages. Also, its important that the boxes are opaque as it allows the animals to fall asleep inside and hopefully be less bothered by all the chaos. I also have separate and species appropriate "kits" for my other animals (small animal carrier with blankie/heatpack/baggie of food for small and fluffies, crates with blankets/extra leash/food for dogs, etc.)

Otherwise, I would go with a generator and some of the fancy stuff that has been mentioned.

 

[junglefries]

nest

The nest thermostats are quite expensive for some people. anywhere from $200-400 depending on where you live. they showed them on 'this old house' episode, so i assume they are of the highest quality. i also remember hearing about them a year or so ago. supposedly they are awesome, & yes you can control them with an iphone. not sure about smoke detectors and phones , though.

 

[laurie]

Alright, your temps are about the same as mine. The only difference is I am home most of the time.

This is what I do. I have insluated shipping boxes set up close to my cages. For the insulated boxes I have a phase 22 for each box. The phase 22 will keep each box at 22 celsius, for 3 days. I stock 2 phase 22 's for each Cham. I have never had a power outage of over 3 days. I also keep water in a box so I can mist my chams. I do not mist in the box, the Cham comes out as I do not want wet boxes. I try to get each Cham out for some light each day but that is not always depending on temps. The thing that is bad is my chams do not get any, UVB or food during that time.

I know this might not be ideal but my chams don't freeze. If you have any question just shoot me a pm.

 

[pssh]

Laurie's idea is even better for colder areas and montane chams. Phase 22 panels are a good idea, they wont get hot, just a good room temp.

 

[fluxlizard]

(I'm trying to figure on emergency supplies for a Jackson a Panther and a bearded dragon) I think 100 would be way too hot for the Jackson- they are supposed to get to that temp and then cool down so the plan would be to use it for the beardy and then switch it when it starts loosing heat.

I've bred all these species and have a group of bearded dragons that goes back 20 years in my care.

Your panther is the one that needs heat. Surprisingly perhaps- but moreso than your bearded dragon. Short term down to 50 is OK for the panther, but he'll need to warm up some in the day time.

Bearded dragons and Jacksons can both go down pretty close to frost without harm as long as it is short term. I use 40 as a cutoff before I bring both species indoors. The dragons are more cold hardy in some ways because they truly brumate and go dormant and sleep. I've done quite a bit of personal investigation with a large group of bearded dragons this past decade about hibernation, working out how to keep them down all winter here (7 months) when I want and working out how to bring them into hibernation naturally outdoors before bringing them in and how long to leave them outside. I can tell you with a lot of confidence that if you put them in a cooler and the temp in the cooler doesn't drop below freezing, they should be fine short term. After several days, my concern would more be about food rotting in their cold guts than it would be about cool temperatures as long as the temps are around 50-60 degrees days, no lower than 40 nights. At temps in the upper 60s and above, the dragons should be able to clear their guts if they need to.

Jacksons on the other hand, are OK down near freezing short term but need to warm up some (50s and 60s short term for a few days is OK).

If the power outage lasts longer than the storm clouds- there is nothing so nice for lizards as south facing windows to warm up- especially bay windows. Many winter days when the sun is low on the horizon and shining in through the windows, our house iguana Norma is very hot to the touch just by using the sunlight in the bay window without another heat source. By enclosing a bay window mostly with something like pastic and tape (syran wrap? Garbage bags?) you can make a solar heat collector where you can put your lizards during the day time to warm up. By adjusting the airflow more and less with the plastic, you can control the temperature some.

You could put the lizards in coolers at night and hopefully keep temps above 50 at night and warm up in the window days.

Just some thoughts...

The nest thermostats are quite expensive for some people.

Thanks for the tips guys on the nest thermostats. Believe me the cost is much less expensive than replacing years and years of cages, lights, feeder insect colonies that pumped out enough to feed 10,000 insects per day when needed and ripping the building down to the studs, cleaning the studs, and rebuilding. I couldn't afford a contractor so I've had to do it all myself and it's still been expensive and discouraging. Some of the lizards were unique and no money can replace them. $200-$400 is cheap insurance compared to a lizard building or a home... I cannot imagine how hard this would have been if it had happened in my house.