Tank Won't Get Hot Enough?

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hanmb

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I have a 75 gallon NatGeo brand glass tank, and the temperature doesn't seem to be rising high enough. I am getting my beardie tomorrow (a 2-month-old baby), and I am running a test today to make sure the tank is ready to go when he/she gets here. I've had one 150 watt basking bulb, a 100 watt ceramic heat bulb (which has only been on for the past hour), and two 13 watt UV bulbs on the tank for about 4 hours now, and the temperature on the hot side of the tank isn't getting higher than 87 on the hot side (77 on the cool side). The room temperature is 72, the tank is next to a shady window, and the flooring in the tank is tile (if that matters).

How long does it take for a tank to fully heat up? How can I increase the temperature in my tank? Heat pads, more lights, portable heaters even?

Thanks for the help! :love5:
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
How are you taking temps? w/ a infrared heat gun ? stick ons? digital probe? The UVB's are coils? If they are I would ditch them -- they basically give off no UVB at all and are harmful --- I would get one good UVB a Reptisun 10.0 TUBE- either a T 5 or a T 8 - and get it only 2/3 of tank not the whole length of tank - you want him/ her to be able to get away from the rays --- as far as temps they need to be taken w/ a digital probe or a IR heat gun - best accurate temps --- get a accurate temp first - the 150 watt bulb should be enough - you need your basking spot to be 105-110 for a baby - cool side of tank needs to be 80's during the day and not below 65 at nite - the tile is great - the ceramic heater save and use for winter but it shouldnt be used for summer - I have a 120 gallon Zen Habitat and my ceramic heater is off now -- you dont want your whole tank heating up the basking spot is what you need to worry about and the cool side -
Karrie
 

hanmb

Member
Original Poster
KarrieRee":25om4vac said:
How are you taking temps? w/ a infrared heat gun ? stick ons? digital probe? The UVB's are coils? If they are I would ditch them -- they basically give off no UVB at all and are harmful --- I would get one good UVB a Reptisun 10.0 TUBE- either a T 5 or a T 8 - and get it only 2/3 of tank not the whole length of tank - you want him/ her to be able to get away from the rays --- as far as temps they need to be taken w/ a digital probe or a IR heat gun - best accurate temps --- get a accurate temp first - the 150 watt bulb should be enough - you need your basking spot to be 105-110 for a baby - cool side of tank needs to be 80's during the day and not below 65 at nite - the tile is great - the ceramic heater save and use for winter but it shouldnt be used for summer - I have a 120 gallon Zen Habitat and my ceramic heater is off now -- you dont want your whole tank heating up the basking spot is what you need to worry about and the cool side -
Karrie

I have the Zoo Med Reptisun 10.0 Uvb Mini Compact Fluorescent 13 watt bulbs. Is it extremely urgent that I get that big lamp before I get the beardie, or can it wait a couple of days? I am using stick-on thermometers, but I will be going to get a temperature gun tomorrow morning.
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Just get your UVB changed out as soon as you can - the temp gun is around $10 and get a digital probe too they are under $10-- shop pangeareptiles-- on line for UVB- unless you can go to PetSmart or Petco your choice what ever you want to do-- pangea has a fixture thats reasonable- you want to get a fixture that's not bigger than 2/3 of tank--- he needs to be able to get away from the rays--
Karrie
 

Claudiusx

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
I wouldn't rely on the stick ons at all. I've proven them to be off by 20-40 degrees in certain situations. You can see the tests I did on them at the top of this section, its stickied.

I agree, get a digital with probe end and measure your temps. The uvb can wait a few days, but temperatures really need to be right from the get go they rely much too heavily on proper temperatures for basically all of their metabolic functions.

Once you get a good device to measure your temps, you'll know if you're too hot, too cold, or within range.
The heat bulb isnt a red bulb is it?

And additionally, you should only need the che at night time and only if temps in your house drop below 60 or 65.

Good luck with your new guy, hope we will get to see pictures! :)

-Brandon
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
My advise is :
1) get the temperatures right for starters
2) move the UV globe UNDER the lid and take replace with a 26W UVB200 for now (needs to be about 8-10" from the basking spot ( if in a dome or nanohood), or if you have the cash , upgrade to a T5ho 12%UVB tube and good reflector hood (mount under the lid) and ensure one end is adjacent to the basking globe and about 12" from the basking spot.


Where and how (with what) are you currently measuring the tank temperatures ?
>>show us (photo).

Show us the tank ( photo ).

Tell us how far from the bottom of the basking globe to the basking spot ?
 

MrSpectrum

Gray-bearded Member
One word: Insulate

Folks are building enclosure decorations out of rigid insulation (something I don't agree with, but that's a different topic... ) Rigid insulation on 1-3 sides (and possibly the bottom to a lesser extent) of the tank will cut down considerably on the heat loss, raising the internal temperature. If you want to do a sculptured backdrop using rigid insulation as a base (despite what I just said), that would work too. You don't need to have pink or blue sides; you can place some type of photo between the glass and the insulation (e.g. landscape of the Outback where beardies are from :wink: ).
 
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