travisgould
Member
Whats up guys? My name is Travis, and me and my girlfriend recently became the owner of a baby bearded dragon, and we wanted to get some advice about his/her enclosure (he/she is too young to be sexed... )as well as some general enclosure questions answered. So your help is very appreciated
Ok first off, embarrassingly enough, we fell victim to the "Beginners Kit". Embarrassing, but important to start with that so you guys know where we are coming from lol. We bought all of our stuff at Petco, and the employee who "advised" us about what to purchase and all the howto definitely led us astray. The kit did not warm the tank sufficiently (basking spot only reached about 85, "night light" left the tank so cold come morning that the poor little guy was clearly stressed and cold, about 60 degrees), and the tank itself was, on second thought, laughingly small (about 12 by 10 or so? 10L size). The lighting sucked, the fixtures sucked, the substrate sucked, and the value sucked. All around, it was a very eye opening experience. We quickly did all the necessary research and purchased all of the stuff ourselves, piecemeal.
So, I figured I would list the pieces of my enclosure and make sure I am on the right track, get some advice and maybe ask a few questions.
ENCLOSURE DETAILS:
Tank:
20L size, 30''x12''x12'' I know, not a 40g breeder but it was a great deal and we are fine upgrading later (he is very small atm, about 7 1/2 inches, which I think puts him at about 2 months old?
Lighting:
Exo-Terra 100W Intense Basking Spot (bulb) Basker, obviously
Zoo-Med 100W Ceramic Infrared Heat Emitter bulb
Reptisun 10.0 13W Desert UVB Bulb (not the tube)
I ordered a 24 inch Reptisun UVB tube to replace the current one because I feel it doesnt cover enough area. I also bought a fixture and plan on using command hooks to place it inside the enclosure. Am I right that a 5.5 inch dome doesnt cover enough area?
Lighting Fixtures:
Fluker's Mini Sun Dome (used for UVB bulb)
Fluker's Deluxe Clamp Lamp 8.5'' 150W rated (Used for the CHE)
Fluker's Clamp Lamp 8.5'' with Dimmer, 150W rated (used for the basking spot)
Other:
Digital thermometer with probe
Vinyl tiling from Home Depot for substrate. Basically linoleum but sturdier and looks nicer
Wooden log basking spot/hide
Fake Aloe plant
Water dish (which is now a salad dish because I saw on here that a water dish is unnecessary)
Spray bottle
Purified Water for said spray bottle
Rep-Cal Multivitamin
Rep-Cal Calcium with D3
I have ordered an infrared thermometer gun, and the new UVB bulb and fixture.
I am also wanting to buy a new fixture with a dimmer switch for the CHE for better control over the temperature, and looking into buying a timer for the lights.
QUESTIONS: Do you need to leave the UVB light on at night? Or should it follow the day cycle?
So...after all the headache of the oh-so-not-wonderful kit, I feel like we are on the right track. However, I want to make sure, and get some advice from some of the veterans here. What do you guys think?
Thank you for the time and consideration guys
Ok first off, embarrassingly enough, we fell victim to the "Beginners Kit". Embarrassing, but important to start with that so you guys know where we are coming from lol. We bought all of our stuff at Petco, and the employee who "advised" us about what to purchase and all the howto definitely led us astray. The kit did not warm the tank sufficiently (basking spot only reached about 85, "night light" left the tank so cold come morning that the poor little guy was clearly stressed and cold, about 60 degrees), and the tank itself was, on second thought, laughingly small (about 12 by 10 or so? 10L size). The lighting sucked, the fixtures sucked, the substrate sucked, and the value sucked. All around, it was a very eye opening experience. We quickly did all the necessary research and purchased all of the stuff ourselves, piecemeal.
So, I figured I would list the pieces of my enclosure and make sure I am on the right track, get some advice and maybe ask a few questions.
ENCLOSURE DETAILS:
Tank:
20L size, 30''x12''x12'' I know, not a 40g breeder but it was a great deal and we are fine upgrading later (he is very small atm, about 7 1/2 inches, which I think puts him at about 2 months old?
Lighting:
Exo-Terra 100W Intense Basking Spot (bulb) Basker, obviously
Zoo-Med 100W Ceramic Infrared Heat Emitter bulb
Reptisun 10.0 13W Desert UVB Bulb (not the tube)
I ordered a 24 inch Reptisun UVB tube to replace the current one because I feel it doesnt cover enough area. I also bought a fixture and plan on using command hooks to place it inside the enclosure. Am I right that a 5.5 inch dome doesnt cover enough area?
Lighting Fixtures:
Fluker's Mini Sun Dome (used for UVB bulb)
Fluker's Deluxe Clamp Lamp 8.5'' 150W rated (Used for the CHE)
Fluker's Clamp Lamp 8.5'' with Dimmer, 150W rated (used for the basking spot)
Other:
Digital thermometer with probe
Vinyl tiling from Home Depot for substrate. Basically linoleum but sturdier and looks nicer
Wooden log basking spot/hide
Fake Aloe plant
Water dish (which is now a salad dish because I saw on here that a water dish is unnecessary)
Spray bottle
Purified Water for said spray bottle
Rep-Cal Multivitamin
Rep-Cal Calcium with D3
I have ordered an infrared thermometer gun, and the new UVB bulb and fixture.
I am also wanting to buy a new fixture with a dimmer switch for the CHE for better control over the temperature, and looking into buying a timer for the lights.
QUESTIONS: Do you need to leave the UVB light on at night? Or should it follow the day cycle?
So...after all the headache of the oh-so-not-wonderful kit, I feel like we are on the right track. However, I want to make sure, and get some advice from some of the veterans here. What do you guys think?
Thank you for the time and consideration guys