The UK’s leading reptile magazine have once again singled out Vividarium as being the leading brand in terms of quality, craftsmanship, design and innovation, after reviewing their latest product releases, new for summer 2021.
Award winning pet and reptile author, wildlife filmmaker and editor of the Practical Reptile Keeping Magazine; David Alderton, gave the company high praise when he wrote the following article in his very popular herp magazine;
Vividarium launches stylish new enclosure and lighting system
Reptiles have always fascinated Les White, and he has gained more experience in keeping and breeding them than most people. He successfully ran one of the largest tortoise breeding set-ups in the UK, and during this period, he produced thousands of hatchlings, gaining a unique insight into the behaviour and biology of this group of reptiles as a consequence. This in turn led him to consider the way that hatchlings were being kept in the home. By this stage, the market had shifted noticeably from “garden tortoises” towards young captive-bred animals. People were having to rely on ordinary enclosed box-style vivariums with a glass front for their pets, but it soon became clear that this was not a healthy set-up for tortoise hatchlings, leaving them particularly at risk of dehydration or even overheating.
A new approach
“In those early days, I started thinking initially about creating a healthier and more natural environment for tortoises and reptiles generally,” Les explains. “This led me to coming up with a concept of what has now become known as a tortoise table. The idea was to create a more extensive floor area where a young tortoise could wander around, interacting more easily with its owner and being less at risk from dehydration. Heat and essential ultraviolet lighting would be supplied overhead, with a thermal gradient being established along the unit.” Taking this idea forward, Les created a flatpack design of tortoise table, which proved popular. “Yet I still wasn’t entirely happy,” he explains. “I felt in welfare terms that we’d created something better for young tortoises, but at the same time, even with different veneers, it wasn’t a particularly attractive set-up for the home environment. How could it be?”
Back to the drawing board
In Les’s mind, things needed to evolve further. Looking at the stunning array of different aquaria, particularly for marine fish and invertebrates that had become available since the turn of the century, he felt that in design terms at least, the reptile hobby had fallen far behind. “The set-ups for reptiles, and young tortoises particularly, which was my main focus at that stage, simply hadn’t moved on,” he says. Once more, Les thought about how he could offer something different. It led to the setting up of Vividarium, and the creation of the highly distinctive Tortoise Home, designed not just to accommodate young tortoises safely and successfully, but also to fit into a modern home where it would serve as a focal point in any room. Radically different in design, but created by someone who understood tortoises and their requirements, it is unsurprising that the Tortoise Home has since proved to be popular with the owners of young tortoises worldwide. It also was chosen as the Best New Pet Product at the PATS 2016 International Pet Trade Show, marking the first time that a reptile product has scooped this prestigious award.
The new Mini Log Habitat
Now Les has come up with a brand new and equally revolutionary housing product that has just been added to the Vividarium range. Called the Mini Log Habitat, it offers a flexible approach to housing, being suitable for a range of small amphibians, reptiles, insects or arachnids.
It is again made of lightweight polyresin, meaning that it can be washed thoroughly as required, and will never warp or rot. The exquisite realistic detail of the log is reinforced by the hand-painting, which means that every unit is unique. “Creating the Mini Log has been a major commitment,” says Les. “Every piece has basically required hand-tooling, and it’s taken literally years to get everything finalised as I wanted! It had to be truly realistic, resembling the cross-section of a log. I think it makes a fantastic-looking piece of room decor, whether in the home or your office, where it is guaranteed to provide a talking point!” The external measurements of the unit are 38cm (15in) in diameter and 33cm (13in) high. This affords an internal living space of 30cm (12in) in diameter and an internal height of 27cm (10.5in). Cross flow ventilation is obtained through combining a ventilation grill in the centre of the roof, with strategically placed mesh vents along the sides, hidden amongst the bark texture. A further design element is the unit’s cable access outlet, so that any plugs and cabling can be safely and neatly channelled, without the necessity of cutting off the plugs and rewiring them. Security to prevent unwanted escapes has not been overlooked either, with the Mini Log’s integral door lock feature, which has been cleverly disguised as a piece of bark. However, the entire door can easily be removed when required, for cleaning purposes for example, without having to unscrew any fittings, thanks to its amazing detachable hinges. It is the brand’s unique styling and attention to detail like this, combined with quality craftsmanship, that truly set Vividarium apart in the marketplace.
A new LED lighting system too!
The Mini Log Habitat has been designed to be compatible with the new Vividarium Micro Lighting Kit, which affixes very tidily to the back of this unit. The light is suspended over the stainless steel micro-mesh ventilation point, set in the top of the accommodation. The Micro Lighting Kit consists of three components, which can be purchased together (£59.99) at a 10% saving or individually. There is an adjustable lamp bracket (£26.99), which combines with a micro lamp miniature dome reflector (£26.99), and an accompanying micro LED white daylight bulb (£11.99). Although only using five watt of power, this bulb is very effective in terms of illuminating the enclosure, and features a standard E27 screw fitting. Also, unlike incandescent bulbs which use heat as a way of generating light, this bulb, being an LED, is much cooler when in use, making it ideal for these surroundings. The dome reflector has been specifically engineered to work with micro/nano bulbs. Its diameter measures just 9cm (3.5in), which makes it one of the smallest reptile light domes available, and with a ceramic E27 screw fitment, it is capable of handling bulbs up to 40 watts.
Flexibility is key
This reflector is designed to be used with the Vividarium adjustable lamp bracket, which will suspend reptile dome light fixtures safely above open-top or meshtop vivariums. The bracket is fully adjustable, both in terms of length and width, to suit most set-ups, and affords increased safety. This is because suspending the lighting above, rather than simply placing it upon the mesh top enclosure, will dramatically increase the air flow, allowing surplus heat to dissipate, thereby significantly reducing the possibility of overheating. The bracket is unusual in view of its versatility, in that it can be stuck on to glass vivaria using its supplied sticky pads, screwed on to wood enclosures, or in the case of the Vividarium Mini Log Habitat, it fits tidily and unobtrusively in a specially adapted area at the back of the log. However you choose to use the bracket, clips are supplied to hold the cabling, ensuring a neat and tidy result.
