Gathering Info for Big Day!

Hemberger":209pw1eb said:

I am a potential first time owner of a beardie! Trying to learn as much as possible and start off right. Going to the store today to purchase everything I need and hopefully put a beardie on hold till I get everything set up correctly. May be posting pics of the set up to make sure I am doing it correctly.

A couple questions:
1. On feeding live insects, I can buy in bulk to help with cost. How do you keep them alive for a month? <<<< It really depends what insects you have. I'll assume crickets as they are the most common feeder. Get a large plastic storage bin or tank with tall walls (you don't want any escapes) and a secure lid. Pile egg crates (not too close to the top) or other cheap disposable item to give them more surface area. Keep them at ~70F to keep them at about the same size,
or ~80F or slightly higher to make them grow. Give them carrots or potatoes for food and water, they will drown in standing water. I have also seen commercial cricket diets and water crystals,
but I don't have experience with those.

2. I am having a hard time seeing what it will look like with the lights inside the tank using the command hooks. Is the light off to the side of the tank and not top center? Can I see some pics of how you guys have your lights? <<<< The UVB should cover about 1/2 - 2/3 of the tank on one side to create a gradient.
I was planning on getting (for lighting):
Reptisun 10.0 T5 HO or T8 10% <<<< Go with t5. It is more powerful, gives you more options for where to mount it, and is easier to find fixtures for.
Reptisun 10.0 fixture <<<< If you go with t5 and a reflector (I think this one has a reflector) you can mount it above a screen, about 9" away from the basking spot.
For the basking light I was planning on the ExoTerra 50 W intense basking bulb or Bright White household bulb <<<< As long as it gives off heat basking bulbs don't really matter,
but I would suggest a halogen flood light with a lamp dimmer so you can adjust the power based on the temperature of the room.
Zoo Med Deluxe Porcelain Clamp 5 1/2 in 100wt <<<< That's good, but bigger fixtures can handle more watts and have better balance.
Does this sound okay?

3. What are the guidelines or advice on transporting the beardie around? In the car, do they need to be in a carrier?? <<<< To transport on short trips you can use any large bin or container, I use a duffel bag with a towel, if it is cold get heat packs.

4. We spray our lawn for weeds and put fertilizer on. Once the chemicals have dried and I've waited a couple days, should it be okay for the beardie to go into the grass? And for the driveway which is cement, if my hand can be on it without burning me then the beardie should be okay to walking on it during the summer months? <<<< If the driveway isn't too hot they can run across it, but if they are confined there you can create a shaded area. I don't have experience with chemicals on the lawn, hopefully someone else can chime in.


Thank you for any advice!

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traildrifterphalanx":aohlvd8e said:

You'll unfortunately need to take that reptisun bulb in for exchange. T8 and T5 refer to the bulb size, and by proxy the fixture needed. The reptisun 5.0 is a bulb meant for shade dwelling reptiles and will not have enough uvb output for a desert type. Please swap this to a reptisun 10.0 t8 as it sounds as though you have purchased a t8 fixture. So I am good on the fixture, but need the reptisun 10.0 t8 bulb?

I use 65w halogen flood bulbs in both enclosures and since my basking spots are about halfway up the enclosure for each, they're both at perfect temp and have room to adjust. I do not use a dimmer. Be sure to monitor temps with a laser temp gun or digital probe. I use a temp gun myself

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seandeangelis":3k972l38 said:

That fixture looks good, but if it has anything in front of the bulb you'll have to remove it. I've never used that for a lamp, but I don't see why it wouldn't work.

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