Cleveland's Tank

[rclay]

well i posted my tank awhile back but never kept on it so it was locked
it's still viewable so i will post the link so you can see the beginning of it and then i don't have to re-type haha
viewtopic.php?f=34&t=110050&hilit=

well tank is almost done and i should be checking back here more often as my dragon is really starting to grow

well here is my tank at this current time,
still have a few little touches to put into it as well as a stand and regular tube light for the other half of it...

 

[dolcedragon]

Sounds like you had to put a bit of work into it. Lucky little guy with the big house!

 

[rclay]

yup the tank has come a ways from its original start
filled the cracks then siliconed the whole bottom, placed the tiles and also threw reptile carpet under the raised tiles on the one part of the tank...

i would still like to get some of those magnetic ledges and make him a basking spot going up the wall a bit
- haha just gotta becareful i dont over crowd the tank as im pretty good for doing that

other then that i need some extra tube lighting on the right hand side of the tank and i should be good

got the megaray 160watt almost 2 months ago and also have a ceramic heat emitter a little lower for extra heat
- tank still only reaches highs of 94 with all that heat???
i have the MVB 1ft above tank, actually a little lower since he can't reach the top of the tank.
i would like to say that megaray definately makes a difference, when i put it in my dragon became so much more active and explores often compared to my old coiled UVB that was terrible for them.
finally got him around to eating more even though its still not up too par with what it should be
i think he gets a pile of kale down and 15 crickets in a day, i believe it should be more but im working on it.
i'd really like his diet to be veggies one day and crickets the other. if i only feed him crickets then when the veggies come around he's usually not interested

any idea on how to get him to eat his veggies when i have them piled up in the tank?
he just leaves them there until they dry up unless i pick them up and hand feed them to him

 

[rclay]

well i have a custom stand being built by my father thats almost done.
just have to add the top

 

[rclay]

bump for feedback

 

[rclay]

since i ran into an error on my part with the megaray bulb and currently have it off i'm thinking of adding this Par38 flood bulb as recommended by Frances...
just wondering if the bulb below is a good one to use in this case

Rona Brand
Halogen reflector. 120 V. 90 W. PAR38 type. 1-piece floodlight. Medium base. Clear. Average rated life: 2,000 hours. For outdoor or indoor us

also when my dragon's eye is healed should i keep using the Par38 and just take out the Ceramic Heat Emitter?

please let me know ASAP so i know whether or not to go purchase the Par38 bulb

 

[acwood04]

I'd purchase that bulb and use it until you get another MVB in there. Are you measuring the temps on the cold side and on the hot side? also you should then measure the temp of the basking spot by putting the probe on the basking platform for about an hour..

 

[rclay]

i'm measuring both sides of the tank yes.

i was thinking of leaving the par38 bulb in when i get the MVB going again just for extra heat
the tank seems to take quite a bit to keep it heated
as for the basking spot, it's still a work in progress, the dragon has made two spots for himself to bask in but i haven't goto measure the temp on them yet as i don't have a probe type temperature gauge

 

[acwood04]

get a tempgun from tempgun.com. They are cool, and very accurate. I would keep a bulb, maybe lower in wattage if necessary next to the MVB to help control the heat, to make the light from the MVB appear of a warmer color. You should pair the MVB bulb with another incandescent or halogen bulb definetly.

 

[rclay]

well i went out to Rona and bought a 90W Par38 halogen flood lamp while i figure out how im going to hang the MVB at proper distance.
with Par38 my heat is constant at 85F in the tank and i set it on his log where he likes to bask so i may just keep the Par38 in at all times for a basking light.
not sure what the temp is on the actual like as i haven't found a temp gun locally yet

will keep updating my thread

oh... i also got my stand finished and the tank on it, what a task, tank is very heavy but all in all everything is coming together

* i may also be adopting another beardie that's going on 2 years old as my brother in law may not be able to bring him when he moves *

 

[rclay]

well i decided to go out and pick something up for Cleveland at Petsmart yesterday.
i know you guys may frown upon this purchase but hear me out first...

i went and bought some Calcium Glow In The Dark Sand for decorative purposes, i really wanted to add something more to the tank.
i know the sand is known to cause impactation but i was thinking since i don't feed my dragon in the tank unless it's green's by hand i'd be OK.
he does lick the odd thing that he's unsure of but doesn't randomly eat anything.
i've had him in the tank for 6hrs now and he licked once or twice when i first put it in but since then he hasn't bothered with it and really likes laying on the bit of sand under the Par38 light.

you guys think he still may start eating it and that i should remove it??
well let me know cause i plan on keeping him along time but it's sooo hard to decorate a desert reptilian's tank.
any other suggestions for decoration instead of the Calcium Sand let me know

here's some pic's of the sand and tank...

*i basically used the sand to bury the water dish, fill the cracks between the slate, fill under his little bridge and a spot to chill on under the light*

yay or nay?

 

[rclay]

can take more pic's if needed, just got a new digi cam :mrgreen:

 

[acwood04]

How long is he? Depending on his size I might wait till he gets a little bit bigger to keep the sand. Depending on how he is pooping you may be able to get away with it but I wouldn't risk his life if I didn't have to. I know when they are older the risk is less. Both my beardies are on tile. The bigger one has a sand box in her viv. I wouldn't use the calcisand, I use washed play sand in my sand box.

 

[rclay]

he's 11inches and almost a year old.

as for pooping i put him in the bathtub for a swim and he had no issues, i haven't seen him actually take big bites of the sand either.

i'll watch him for 24-48hrs and see what happens but maybe i will replace the calci sand with play sand.
i just like the white sand look but your definately right, i don't wanna harm him