5x4x3ft enclosure in process

OrchardDragon

Member
Beardie name(s)
Urdnot Grunt
After an unfortunate 9 year hiatus of owning reptiles I'm finally getting back to it and just wanted to share the cage I'm building for the Beardie I'll be getting some time in April. Dimensions are as the title describes 5'x3'x4 (WxDxH) currently equipped with a solar-glo 125w for the left basking spot, 45w halogen flood on the right one with a zoo med 10.0 hanging on that side as well. I also installed a full spectrum led strip light for the plants (aloe and dandelion grown organically by me) while I'm still waiting for the tilandsia I ordered which I plan to do my best to glue into more hard-to-reach crevices on the styrofoam/mortar "rock wall". Also installed a "Sansi br30 30w led" for added brightness on a timer from 10AM-4PM. Left basking temp is 103-108 depending on where exactly I measure with the temp gun while the right one probably needs a dimmer since it fluctuates between 113 and 122 depending on which specific point I get the reading. Ambient temp is 85 in the upper half and 77 in the lower half with caves measuring between 71-74 degrees. Branches are collected from around the yard and woods treated with bleach solution and/or baking while being held in place by everything from expanding foam, mortar, silicone, and super glue depending on the piece. Hope you enjoy looking at it as much as I already do lol
 

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Claudiusx

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Hi there,

Welcome back to the fold. The tank looks great.

Just to verify your temperatures though, I'd pick up a digital with probe end and let it sit at your basking sites for 10-15 minutes to get an accurate reading. Your surfaces look pretty matte, but depending on what materials were in the mortar, and what you used to seal over it, your IR gun could be reading the temperature poorly (look up emissivity if you are interested). It's good to have a digital with probe end handy anyways, they can be found for 3 bucks on amazon, 5-10 at local stores.

Do you have a breeder in mind?

-Brandon
 

OrchardDragon

Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Urdnot Grunt
Thanks allot for both the compliment and the welcome!

I'll order the probe this weekend, thanks for the advice! In my prior 10 year experience of making these backgrounds for Beardies I sealed 1 of them but noticed that with 4-5 coats of thinset mortar mixed with sand (applied with a trowel and brush) I had 0 issues of it flaking even with climbing and digging activities along the substrate hence the matte-look.

Indeed, I've decided to get my dragon from Kevin Dunne at Dragons Den
 

OrchardDragon

Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Urdnot Grunt
Finally got the temperature probe and it looks like it really was an emissivity issue! Probe is steadily reading between 109.2-109.4 where the ir gun read 114-118 on the right basking spot while the left reads a steady 98.6 where the IR gun read 105.
Thanks again for the advice!
More pics to follow when the tillandsia finally get shipped/arrive.
 

Hazel_Basil10

Sub-Adult Member
Beardie name(s)
Hazel my female two year old beardie
The tank looks great! What size is the beardie? I have a baby and her tank is temporary cuz she is so little so I have a 25 ish gallon tank
 

OrchardDragon

Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Urdnot Grunt
Thanks!
Beardie will arrive some time in April and should be between 9-10 inches and will first spend 2-4 weeks in a much more simple 20 gallon tank for quarantine/growing him out a tad bit more.
 

Hazel_Basil10

Sub-Adult Member
Beardie name(s)
Hazel my female two year old beardie
Okay! I was just making sure because they do grow about 2 feet so they need some space to roam around. I was just making sure if it was permanent or temporarily:)
 

OrchardDragon

Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Urdnot Grunt
Yeah the big enclosure in the picture will be the permanent home once he's out of quarantine and about 12-14 inches. In my experience they tend to be allot more active given the space and multiple elevated climbing spots.
 

Hazel_Basil10

Sub-Adult Member
Beardie name(s)
Hazel my female two year old beardie
Yep! in order to keep themsleves happy, they need plenty of space and climbing spaces ya know!:
 

OrchardDragon

Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Urdnot Grunt
Pretty much done, just need to cut another wider strip of plywood (a straight cut would good this time lol) to cover the gap on the left sliding door.
 

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DorgEndo

Sub-Adult Member
Photo Comp Winner
Beardie name(s)
Devlyn
About the UVB, I think the 14% T5 by Arcadia would be a better fit. At 20" to 24" will go from UVI just below 5 to just above 3. 4-6 being peak basking spot for a beardie. For a 48" tall enclosure I think you'd want a stronger bulb

10.0 bulbs have a UVI of 3 and under past 18" or so from the bulb. Not 4-6 UVI which a beardie will need so your beardie will have to spend a lot of time very high up to make enough vitamin D3 for themselves.

And if I mathed wrong please correct me anyone because every UVB guide is so biased to say it's the best bulb ever, also my numbers were no screen between bulb and animal. If you have a Solar meter you can check the UVI yourself of course so ignore me if you've got that and can directly check the UVB output yourself
 

OrchardDragon

Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Urdnot Grunt
Thanks for the suggestion.
Given that most platforms are between 9 and 16 inches from the 10.0 tube, that it's not the exclusive uvb source as it's combined with a solar glo and I intend to dust feeders with a calcium+D3 powder I believe the D3 "problem" should be covered. Furthermore in my experience with captive bred and from what I've read about wild dragons they do tend to enjoy climbing tall-ish structures both to bask and oversee their territory so unless this beardie ends up an extreme outlier that too should be covered. Also the dragon will soon have an outdoor enclosure waiting for him so natural sunlight will be in the mix. When the time comes to switch the tube or he does end up being a ground-dwelling outlier I'll consider switching to the t5 from Arcadia.
 

DorgEndo

Sub-Adult Member
Photo Comp Winner
Beardie name(s)
Devlyn
Different solutions definitely work. I'm finishing up not quite as large, about 4'x3.5'x2.5' and went with a radiant heat panel instead of Solar Glo bulbs to add enough ambient heat with one heat bulb hot spot with the 14% UVB. Thankfully she uses the "tree" I put in for the perfect basking height

It'll be neat to see how your beardie uses the space. Even though they will still be a baby for a bit getting a huge space
 

OrchardDragon

Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Urdnot Grunt
Grunt seems to be enjoying the new space
 

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