Does this sound ok? (dimensions, substrate, heating)

[herpfreak]

I am getting an adult male Bearded Dragon this winter, and I think I'm done with the planning for his enclosure and heating. Tell me what you think.

I am going to build a wooden terrarium, 125 gallons, 72x18x16. I will use a tile substrate. On the warm side of the cage I will have 2 lamps; a UVB and a 60 watt CHE. The UVB will be on a 14-10hr timer and the CHE will be on all the time. I'm going to use the CHE because I got it for my Ball Python but it wasn't warm enough, so I got a 100 watt. Also, the temps in my house are too cold at night for a Beardie, and I can't leave the UVB on.

I will cover the lights with screen so the Beardie won't get burned, especially by the CHE which gets really hot.

What do you guys think? Also, what wattage should I get for the UVB bulb?

Thank you all!






P.S. I know some of you will say I should use a heating pad, but it won't work through the wood.

 

[Judah'sHuman]

I have a 250 watt Exoterra Ceramic heat emitter for a 55 gallon tank. I know this is ALOT for my tank but it is just right. I also had to put it in a dome fixture rather than the recommended wire cage fixture because all the of the heat was going up into the room, not down into the terrarium. I have pretty tall ceilings and It stays about 60 ish durring the winter in the room where Judah is, pretty cold. I tried a 125 watt it only got about 75 on the ground right under it. So you may need a higher wattage for that large of a terrarium. The brand I have recomends the 250 for tanks over 100 gallons. Now my set up is: I have a Mercury vapor bulb on one end and a regular 60 watt bulb on the cool end. So for you it maybe a a little warmer if you have another basking spot other than your UVB basking lamp. But I am pretty certain that you are going to need a higher wattage CHE. Your basking spot needs to be 100-110 deg the center shoudl be around 90-95 and the cool end should be 75-80. Also make sure you get a digital thermometer with a probe to take accurate temps, and test it out before you get him home. So your terrarium will be 16" high then? You should only need a 125 watt merc vapor bulb for that close of a distance. Or a Reptasun 10.0 floresent tube, not the coil lamps those are very bad. You'll want to make sure that he is at least 12" away from the Merc bulb and 7-8" away from the repta sun

Best Wishes on your new baby!
Stacey

 

[herpfreak]

I have a 250 watt Exoterra Ceramic heat emitter for a 55 gallon tank. I know this is ALOT for my tank but it is just right. I also had to put it in a dome fixture rather than the recommended wire cage fixture because all the of the heat was going up into the room, not down into the terrarium. I have pretty tall ceilings and It stays about 60 ish durring the winter in the room where Judah is, pretty cold. I tried a 125 watt it only got about 75 on the ground right under it. So you may need a higher wattage for that large of a terrarium. The brand I have recomends the 250 for tanks over 100 gallons. Now my set up is: I have a Mercury vapor bulb on one end and a regular 60 watt bulb on the cool end. So for you it maybe a a little warmer if you have another basking spot other than your UVB basking lamp. But I am pretty certain that you are going to need a higher wattage CHE. Your basking spot needs to be 100-110 deg the center shoudl be around 90-95 and the cool end should be 75-80. Also make sure you get a digital thermometer with a probe to take accurate temps, and test it out before you get him home. So your terrarium will be 16" high then? You should only need a 125 watt merc vapor bulb for that close of a distance. Or a Reptasun 10.0 floresent tube, not the coil lamps those are very bad. You'll want to make sure that he is at least 12" away from the Merc bulb and 7-8" away from the repta sun

Best Wishes on your new baby!
Stacey

Thanks a million, that was very helpful! Please excuse my ignorance, but what is a Mercury vapor bulb? Is it a brand of basking bulb? Is it UVB? As for the CHE, my 60 watt is left-over from my Ball Python. However, I will only need it at night to bump the temps up 5 degrees, since our house is usually 60 at night. Especially with the wood viv, I believe the 60 watt will be enough to raise it 5 deg.
Where could I find a digital thermometer with a probe? I couldn't find one at petsmart. How much did you pay for yours?

A week or two before I get my Beardie, I am going to set everything up and test out how all the heat elements work. If I need it hotter, I may end up getting another lamp of some sort.

 

[NegativeCreep]

I am getting an adult male Bearded Dragon this winter, and I think I'm done with the planning for his enclosure and heating. Tell me what you think.

I am going to build a wooden terrarium, 125 gallons, 72x18x16. I will use a tile substrate. On the warm side of the cage I will have 2 lamps; a UVB and a 60 watt CHE. The UVB will be on a 14-10hr timer and the CHE will be on all the time. I'm going to use the CHE because I got it for my Ball Python but it wasn't warm enough, so I got a 100 watt. Also, the temps in my house are too cold at night for a Beardie, and I can't leave the UVB on.

I will cover the lights with screen so the Beardie won't get burned, especially by the CHE which gets really hot.

What do you guys think? Also, what wattage should I get for the UVB bulb?

Thank you all!






P.S. I know some of you will say I should use a heating pad, but it won't work through the wood.

It all sounds pretty good to me. If it were me, I would increase it to a full 5x2x2, rather than 18", but it isn't necessary.

As for the UVB, check into getting a Reptisun 10.0, they are tried and true. Here is the cheapest online..
http://www.petmountain.com/product/fluorescent/504983/zoo-med-reptisun-10.0-uvb-bulb.html
Keep in mind that you should replace these every 6 months.

A Mercury Vapor Bulb is kind of like a flood lamp, but it emits great levels of UVB and heat. I have one being shipped to me now. They last longer, 12-18 months. This guy makes the best around.
http://reptileuv.com/
If you used a MVB, you may not need a CHE. Beardies need a basking spot, so you would need to have an additional bulb, if you only used a UVB strip and CHE.
Does that make sense?? :lol:

p.s. No one here will tell you to use a heating pad!

 

[Judah'sHuman]

I have to keep my CHE on all day otherwise the Merc bulb alone doesn't keep it hot enough in there. Merc bulbs actually need to be changed at lest every 6-8 months. Unless there is some type of brand that says otherwise. The UVB levels really decrease over time. I used mine for about 9 months (on accident) and Judah started getting slow and wanting to sleep. I thought whats going on? I thought I had put the bulb in, in Feb. Oh no it was Dec of last year! So I changed it right away and he perked right back up.

Now if you have another basking spot light (non UVB) besides the Repta sun this will keep the heat up. See I just have the Merc bulb and the CHE and the 60 watt household blub.

You can get a digtial thermometer at Walmart for I think I read $12 its in the section with all the other thermometers. I got mine at a local pet store. The one at walmart is what alot of people on here have and its a good one.

The Mercury Vapor bulbs that I buy are from Reptilesupply.com, Solor Glo from exoterra (these are the least expensive brand) if you buy 2, you can get them at I think $32 each, $38 if you buy them induvidual. These really are the best for UVB lighting. They go in a "screw in" fixture, so those dome lamps are pretty cheep like $12-$15.

 

[NegativeCreep]

I have to keep my CHE on all day otherwise the Merc bulb alone doesn't keep it hot enough in there. Merc bulbs actually need to be changed at lest every 6-8 months. Unless there is some type of brand that says otherwise. The UVB levels really decrease over time. I used mine for about 9 months (on accident) and Judah started getting slow and wanting to sleep. I thought whats going on? I thought I had put the bulb in, in Feb. Oh no it was Dec of last year! So I changed it right away and he perked right back up.

Now if you have another basking spot light (non UVB) besides the Repta sun this will keep the heat up. See I just have the Merc bulb and the CHE and the 60 watt household blub.

You can get a digtial thermometer at Walmart for I think I read $12 its in the section with all the other thermometers. I got mine at a local pet store. The one at walmart is what alot of people on here have and its a good one.

The Mercury Vapor bulbs that I buy are from Reptilesupply.com, Solor Glo from exoterra (these are the least expensive brand) if you buy 2, you can get them at I think $32 each, $38 if you buy them induvidual. These really are the best for UVB lighting. They go in a "screw in" fixture, so those dome lamps are pretty cheep like $12-$15.

You're right, I should specify that you should get 12 months from a MegaRay MVB. Their site says that people use them for 18 months, but they use a UVB meter. I checked around, and the folks from this forum and the creator of the bulb have convinced me that these are the very best MVB's on the market. I'm still so glad I didn't go with another..

My 40 gallon breeder stays perfect with a 100w basking bulb. 103 in basking area and 81 in cool side.
I also use the Accurite thermometers from Wal Mart. They have a probe, and measure both sides of your tank (with a very long probe wire) and humidity, as well. We have other thermometers, but we really like these.

 

[Judah'sHuman]

Wow thats cool! How much do the mega rays cost? WEll actually Ithink i saw one on Reptile supply when I was buying my last round. Think they were $45 ish? Heck it maybe cheeper since im buying 2 a year anyways. I know they are consitered to be the best, but I had no idea that they lasted that long! Thats great!

 

[Judah'sHuman]

Oh wait never mind I guess it was T rex ones. I just looked.

 

[NegativeCreep]

Wow thats cool! How much do the mega rays cost? WEll actually Ithink i saw one on Reptile supply when I was buying my last round. Think they were $45 ish? Heck it maybe cheeper since im buying 2 a year anyways. I know they are consitered to be the best, but I had no idea that they lasted that long! Thats great!

As far as I know, the only place to get the MegaRay is reptileuv.com
They say they are on backorder, but I spoke to the company (actually the inventor, how cool is that??) on Friday before I ordered mine, and he said that they had them in stock. He needed to get that off the site. With shipping they are $50 each. You can get something cheaper, but my UV strip has to go, and I am hoping it will help my baby's appetite. So, it's worth it to me!

 

[herpfreak]

When you are all talking about "digital thermometers with a probe", do you mean the instant ones where you touch it to a surface and it gives you the temperature instantly? Could someone please give me a link to a cheap but reliable one?

 

[Judah'sHuman]

Oh no, I think your thinking about the people kind that do that. I dont have a link or a pic, but as we mentioned the kind that Walmart has are about the size of a samll cell phone and it has a digtal read face. Then it has this cord with a probe. You lay the prob in the area and in about 45 min you get your accurate reading. again they have these in the regular thermometer dep at Walmart. Ill see if I can fin a pic Dianne I think posted a pic of it a few days ago

 

[Judah'sHuman]

Here we go! viewtopic.php?f=34&t=92670 paste this to your browser and it will take you to the page with the pic Dianne posted of it

 

[NegativeCreep]

Yup, that's the one! Every single reptile forum I have been on advises the same one, too.


You can get temp guns, that you point at an object for an instant temperature. They are the best you can get, but they are also quite expensive. I think I have seen them around a few places for as low as $25, but they can be a lot more for better products. My SO pointed one out to me at Lowes the other day for $60. One of these days, we will invest in one, but the digitals with the probes do the job just fine!

 

[herpfreak]

Here we go! viewtopic.php?f=34&t=92670 paste this to your browser and it will take you to the page with the pic Dianne posted of it

Awesome! I will totally get one of those. And for just $12!! I hope they have it at Walmart, because it wasn't on the website.