It’s relatively easy to take care of a turtle, they don’t need too many things. But the things that they need are essential to them. And one of those things is a heat lamp.
Turtles need a heat lamp in order to survive. Since turtles are reptiles they can’t regulate their body temperature, so they have to rely on external sources like a heat lamp.
Every turtle needs a heating lamp, but not every turtle needs the same type of heat lamp. Some heat lamps provide more heat than others, and depending on the species of your turtle you might want a more powerful one, or a less powerful heat lamp.
What Temperature You Want for Your Turtle
So, all turtles will need a heat lamp, but not all turtles need the exact same temperature. So let’s take a quick look at what temperature you should be aiming for.
| Turtle Species | Temperature Farenheit | Temperature Celsius |
| Red Eared Slider | 90 – 95°F | 32 – 35°C |
| Juvenile Red Eared Slider | 95 – 100°F | 29 – 37°C |
| Box Turtle | 80 – 90°F | 26 – 32°C |
| Juvenile Box Turtle | 90 – 95°F | 32 – 35°C |
| Map Turtle | 75 – 80°F | 24 – 26°C |
| Juvenile Map Turtle | 80 – 90°F | 26 – 32°C |
| Mud Turtle | 90 – 95°F | 32 – 35°C |
| Juvenile Mud Turtle | 90 – 100°F | 32 – 37°C |
| Musk Turtle | 85 – 90°F | 29 – 32°C |
| Juvenile Musk Turtle | 90 – 100°F | 32 – 37°C |
| Snapping Turtle | 90 – 95°F | 32 – 35°C |
| Juvenile Snapping Turtle | 95 – 100°F | 29 – 37°C |
| Pond Turtle | 85 – 95°F | 29 – 35°C |
| Juvenile Pond Turtle | 90 – 100°F | 32 – 37°C |
| Cooter | 80 – 85°F | 26 – 29°C |
| Juvenile Cooter | 90 – 100°F | 32 – 37°C |
As you can see in the table above juvenile turtles (younger turtles) will need a higher basking temperature, so if your turtle is younger than 2 years old you will need a slightly higher temperature.
Now we know what temperature we need, but how do we obtain it?
The Wattage
Most heat bulbs won’t say “this is a 95°F bulb”, instead they will say that this is a 50-watt bulb or a 75-watt bulb.
This is because a 50-watt bulb can generate 75°F as well as 105°F. The amount of heat a bulb will give is influenced by the distance from the ground.
Here is a table showing what temperatures you should expect depending on the distance.
Depending on the room temperature you might get slightly different temperatures, but the difference shouldn’t be significant.
As you can see the closer the bulb is to the ground/turtle the more heat it will release. But there is a limit to how close you can get it. From my experience you shouldn’t get the bulb any closer than 4 inches, if you move it any closer there is a real chance that your turtle will get burnt.
As for how far away you can move the bulb, the answer is pretty far. As long as your turtle gets enough heat from the bulb, you can place it as far as you want.
Now I would like to cover a very important thing that I usually find on other sites and forums when heat lamps are discussed. The reason I want to discuss this is that it can be dangerous to turtles.
Alternatives to Heating Lamps
There are two alternatives: one of them is not that bad, and one of them is terrible. So let’s start with the first one.
Mercury Vapor Bulbs
Besides a heat lamp, turtles also need a UVB light. This basically means that they need two bulbs, one that provides heat, and one that provides UVB rays.
A Mercury Vapor bulb provides both of them. So the advantages are pretty clear, you save up space, and you have only one bulb to check, not two. But those are the only advantages, and they are not that impressive.
The cost of a Mercury Vapor bulb is the same as the cost of one heating, and one UVB bulb, so no difference here.
The disadvantage is that over time a few people complained that they explode. I don’t use one, so I don’t have any experience with them, so I have no idea if it’s true or not. In general, they have good reviews, but you will occasionally see a person who said that their bulb exploded. So my suggestion is to stay away from them. The advantages don’t make up for the risk.
If you don’t know too much about UVB light and why a turtle needs it you should check out this article where I explain everything that you need to know: Guide for Lighting and Heating a Turtle Tank and Basking Area
Heat Pads
Heat pads can be great for other reptiles, they are great for snakes and lizards but for turtles, they are just horrible. They don’t deliver heat in a way that is beneficial for a turtle, so they are basically no good.
Turtles need heat to come from above, not below. Due to the shape of the shell, heat coming from below will only be 35% as efficient as the heat coming from above. So in order for the heat pad to provide enough heat for a Red Eared slider who needs on average 90°F, it will have to reach almost 200°F, at which point it will be too hot for the turtle to sit on it.
My Recommendation
Considering the alternatives I would recommend you to go with a standard heat bulb.
I am a long-time user of the Exo Terra Swamp Glo Basking Spot Lamp. Depending on your needs you can choose between the 50, 75, and 100-watt options. Those bulbs will last a long time and they will produce enough heat for your turtles. Because I had no problems with them I didn’t feel the need to try too many other options since those bulbs worked great for me and my turtles.
For the lamp fixture, I use this one that allows me to put both the light the UVB bulb and the heating bulb in the same place. Right now I am using both slots for two 75 watt heating bulbs and it still works great.
Another product that I find very helpful is this timer. This timer will automatically turn the lights on and off at certain time periods that you will set. This way you will never have to worry about forgetting to turn the lights on for your turtle when you are leaving for work or school, this will make the whole process automatic. If you could purchase just one thing that could take care of the light and temperature of your turtle’s basking area this would be it. Here is a link to Amazon where you can check the pricing: US Plug Format, EU Plug Format.
Another product that I find very useful is an infrared laser temperature measurer. At first, it might seem a little over the top but it actually is very useful and it can be used for other purposes too not just for checking the temperature of your turtle’s basking area. It can also be used in the kitchen when you are making food, or to check the temperature in the room. Overall it’s extremely helpful and it can sometimes be fun to play with. And it’s not even expensive as you might have thought. Here is a link to Amazon to check the current pricing.
Now let’s go over the few remaining questions that might interest you on the subject.
Do Turtles Need a Heat Lamp at Night ?
No, you don’t have to keep the heat lamp on during the night. You should try to keep the heat lamp on for the same period of time the sun is up. This way you will simulate the same conditions from the outside.
But depending on where you live, winter days can be very short. So during winter, you should try to keep the heat lamp on a little longer than the time the sun is up.
What Can Happen if You Don’t Have a Heating Lamp
If you don’t have a heat lamp your turtle will definitely end up with health problems.
One of the most common things that can happen is that your turtle will catch a cold, which is something very serious for a turtle. A cold is a respiratory infection and it can be fatal for turtles if the infection is not treated, and the heating problem is not solved.
There are other bad things that can happen if your turtle doesn’t have access to a heating lamp, and most of them will put your turtle’s life at risk. The general idea is that nothing good can come out of it.
How Long Can Turtles Stay Without a Heat Lamp?
Despite the fact that heat lamps are essential for turtles, they can spend quite a lot of time without one. But long periods of time can have a negative effect on their health.
For a pet turtle, I would say that they can safely spend one week without a heat lamp, but any more than that and they could end up with health problems.
Related Questions
Do all turtles need a heat lamp? Not all turtle species bask, so not all of them will need a heat lamp, but all of them will need a UVB light.
Will something bad happen to my turtle if I forget to turn the lamps on? If you forget for only one day your turtle should be fine as long as you don’t do this again. Turtles can resist without light for some time but if you forget to turn the lamps on repeatedly your turtle will start having health problems.
Can you use a regular light bulb for a turtle? No, they don’t produce enough heat to replace a heating bulb, and they don’t produce enough UVB light to replace a UVB bulb.
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thank you for the very useful information, do all turtles need lights to heat themselves up?
Hello, I am glad you find the article useful. Yes, all turtles need a source of heat to light themselves, and usually light is a great source. The only exception to this are the sea turtle, there have been very few reports of seeing any kind of sea turtle basking. So all aquatic turtles and land turtles need some way to heat themselves up, and that is usually through basking in the light.
Hi should i have a heater for the tank so that the water can stay warm the the heat lamp isn’t on at night?
Hello Gianna, you should defiantly have a heater for the tank. The water in the tank should maintain it’s temperature regardless of the heat lamp. The heat lamp is there to warm the basking area, not the water. I hope this was helpful.
Do I have to leave the heat lamp on in the daytime during the Texas summer?
If the temperature outside is the same as the basking temperature of your turtle, there is no need to, but if this is the case make sure that your turtle has a place to cool down. Otherwise you should leave the lamp on.
My turtle is a Razored back musk turtle, I read that it is an semi aquatic turtle. I only have a uvb light at the moment (I just got the turtle) but I intend on getting a underwater heater. I’m just wondering if my musk turtle still needs to have a heat lamp and a basking area even with a underwater heater.
Both the water heater and heat bulb provide heat, but in two different areas. You need to have both.