thinking about getting a beardie *update with pics!*

i have really wanted to get a bearded dragon for quite some time now, and im thinking in the next couple of months im finally going to make it happen but i have some questions. im no stranger to keeping reptiles ( ive had turtles for most of my life ) but this will be my first time keeping a lizard so i have some questions.
- UVB with all my turtles ive always used Mega Ray MVBs so i have no experience with T8 or T5 bulbs. if i go the MVB route are UVB florescents still required? would 1 MVB suffice for an enclosure that is 36x18x18? or would it be better to have an mvb and a t8 positioned to create a gradient?

- supplements - with my turtles i make my own Turtle "jello" which they absolutely love. making my own food allows me to better manage macro/micro nutrients and so forth, so i have never really used any type of reptile supplements before. with beardies being a totally different ball game, what would you guys recommend for supplements? also any advice on gut loading feeders?

ive always been kind of a DIY'er but with aquatics ive always been apprehensive trying to build my own 125 gallon aquarium because thats alot of water to clean up, not to mention damage to the property, but with a bearded dragon i think i can really flex my creative muscles and channel my inner DIY'er and create something really awesome. What type of materials would you recommend? are there certain types of wood to avoid? ive read that pine is a no no but what about poplar or oak? Also should an arid terrarium be sealed? is so what are some non toxic sealers to look into?

thanks for any and all help!

The Megaray would be good, with a gradient would be better

If your actually savvy with your feeding/supplementing I don't see how beardeds would be too much different, just read up and see if you can pull it off. I use the Repasy products currently. For gutloading most commercial diets don't hack it. Myself any many other focus on healthy feed (fresh produce) and supplement calcium with dusts, but there are some high calcium diets (and recipes for them) that will help boost the crickets up to 1:1 or close to.

Most people build out of plywood and seal it with epoxy resin, pond sealer or polyurethane. An arid enclosure should still be sealed, poops and spilled water will ruin it otherwise. If you plan to use substrate now or down the road sealing it extra important.

Awesome, thanks for the reply! looks like ill use a mega ray in conjunction with a fluorescent. What are some good brands for T8's and T5's? also, does your dragon like the repshay food? ive known some people in the turtle world that use the repshay turtle one and have good things to say about it. in regard to the calcium dust, avoid products with added D3 correct?

been hard at work on the viv in my free time. only a couple of more things to go, as well as designing the lid.

this is what i started with, just good ol' styrofoam
first coat of grout

after 2 more coats of grout, and about 5 coats of Polycrylic
cool side cave: have to cut some slate to fit the bottom of the cave
hot side cave : going to cut some more slate to fit this side as well.

let me know what you guys think!

Wow, that looks incredible!

Addressing your earlier question, Arcadia and ReptiSun make nice bulbs (both T5 and T8). If you're using a Megaray (and especially if you add a T5) I wouldn't use D3 supplementation. I use the Repashy multivitamin supplement and calcium supplement and like them quite a bit.

thanks cooperdragon!

im still not 100% sure on if i will be using both a megaray and reptisun. im leaning more towards just a t5ho with a bright white halogen bulb for basking, but like i said not 100 percent sure yet as i do like the megaray MVB bulbs. still trying to finalize all my plans 8)