I think a lot of it is going to depend on your individual tegu. We lucked out, and had no problem feeding ours in a Rubbermade bin from day one. I believed we used a 30 gallon, give or take. I never put the lid on while feeding, but I did clamp a light on the side, just so they could see what they were eating (it was a suggestion from a valued member that had a picky eater, and I just kinda used it from the get-go). My own personal main advantage to using a separate feeding bin was the ease of cleaning; ours (when we still had them) were EXTREMELY messy eaters, especially Oscar, and I couldn't even imagine trying to pick through all of their mulch to try and find every last bit and piece.
Speaking of mulch, cypress mulch is kind of like the Gold Standard if you can get it for cheap, as it holds plenty of moisture without rotting. You don't have to mix anything with it, though some do, using top soil, peat, orchid bark... basically anything that holds moisture well without going bad. Whatever you use, just make sure that the product doesn't contain any cedar or pine products, as I'm sure you are aware of being that you've kept reptiles for so long already.
Your temps sound great, and I love the fact that you've paid such close attention to your little guy's favorite night time temp. It cracks me up that you think 72*F is cold for a sleeping temp... it must be a Florida thing. My preferred temp to sleep in is about 55*F. Anyway, he'll be great even at 72*F; we had let our enclosure drop down to between 60*F and 65*F during the Winter, and they were fine. Never even hibernated. I would think you'll only need the ceramic heat emitter during the Winter, especially if ya'll have another one like last year.
So the "rule of thumb" for adult tegu enclosure requirements is this:
- Length should be 2x the complete length of the tegu
- Width should be 1x the complete length of the tegu
- Height should be 1x the complete length of the tegu
Basically, if you had a 4' lizard (which is an average size for a tegu) then the adult size enclosure should be 8' x 4' x 4'. This is one of the VERY hot topics of debate, however, as there are some who feel this is overkill. There are others who feel this isn't large enough. It ends up being the caretaker's preference. We had both of ours sharing a 4' x 2' as hatchlings, and they outgrew it within six months. These guys grow fast. Like, FAST (which is why, especially as babies, anything that isn't a whole prey item should be dusted with calcium powder). And a lot of them can be so incredibly active, what with the digging, burrowing, rearranging, exploring, etc., that I, personally, wouldn't want them to feel too cramped. But, once again, not everyone has room for a massive wooden box taking up an entire room in their house.
Overall, I think you're off to a FANTASTIC start, what with all of your reptile experience, and the varied diet that your hobbies can provide. Now all you need to do is get on gettin' those pics posted.
"Why do blessings always come in disguises? If I were a blessing, I'd run around naked."
0.1.0 Bearded Dragon; Spaz (aka "Monkey")
1.0.0 Bearded Dragon; Leonidas (aka "Jaba" aka "Fatty)
0.0.1 Ball Pythons; Lil' Bit
0.1.0 Argentine B/W Tegu; Bozski - *rehome*
1.0.0 Argentine A/A Tegu; Oscar - *rehome*
1.0.0 Ball Python; Moose - *rehome*
0.1.0 Bearded Dragon; Knuckles (aka "Kitteh"), RIP
0.0.1 Baby B/W Tegu; unnamed, RIP
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