Is this enclosure okay?

[hazzaram]

As I posted before, I've been having trouble setting up an enclosure. My tank is 24 inches high and finding a platform high enough has been really hard! Styrofoam didn't work out for me. I attempted making a structure three times and then had to quit. It was too frustrating.

But then I found wire storage cubes I had sitting in the basement. There's a piece of slate on top with two bricks to make it steady and it's all open underneath. The ramp is going to be wrapped in fabric and stapled so my bd can climb it easier. There's a brick and slate cave at the bottom, holding up the end of the ramp.

I should mention, the uvb is stretched across the back, behind the heat lamp. The heat lamp is resting on screen but the uvb bulb is open. There's no screen covering it.

I'm going to keep working on the styrofoam stuff but I don't know how long it'll take me to finish it. Is this okay for now? I posted on another forum and someone said it won't work and it needs a lot of tweaking.

 

[hazzaram]

Now that I'm thinking about it... I think it'd be cool to get someone to build me a 'table' like structure so the cage is actually two levels with a ramp leading up to the second level. Not sure if that makes sense but it would double the space in there.

 

[CooperDragon]

What are the temperatures on the top of the platform? How far is it from the lights? You may not need to build up as high as you think. I can usually get proper temps from 19'' above the floor of my tank and proper UVB (using a T5 bulb) at about 12-14'' above the basking spot. That said, they like to climb so offering something to climb around on is usually good. I think the ramp you have may wind up being too steep. I suggest putting together a slightly lower platform and build a ramp to it that is less steep. You could use sticks from the yard (rinse them and bake them on low in the oven for half an hour or so to sanitize them first) or something similar. If you browse through some other posts in the enclosures section it may give you some ideas. You can get creative with the tank setup and there are a lot of good options.

 

[hazzaram]

What are the temperatures on the top of the platform? How far is it from the lights? You may not need to build up as high as you think. I can usually get proper temps from 19'' above the floor of my tank and proper UVB (using a T5 bulb) at about 12-14'' above the basking spot. That said, they like to climb so offering something to climb around on is usually good. I think the ramp you have may wind up being too steep. I suggest putting together a slightly lower platform and build a ramp to it that is less steep. You could use sticks from the yard (rinse them and bake them on low in the oven for half an hour or so to sanitize them first) or something similar. If you browse through some other posts in the enclosures section it may give you some ideas. You can get creative with the tank setup and there are a lot of good options.

Don't they need to be close to the uvb though? Can I have my dragon lower as long as the temp is right?

I'm not 100% sure what temp I'm aiming on. I just turned the lights on not long ago and my slate piece beneath is sitting at like 114. It is on a dimmer, but I haven't adjusted it at all. I can obviously have a lower platform but I don't know how far she can be from it...

 

[hazzaram]

What about this? Slate piece glued onto a (new) garbage can. There's a hole cut in it to make it a cave and a staircase made of bricks that is pretty sturdy. It gives a lot more room in the tank...

Basking spot is about 10-11 inches from heat lamp and uvb. I'll provide a temp once the temp settles again on the bricks.

 

[CooperDragon]

That looks decent but the bricks will take up a lot of floor space. What kind of UVB light do you have? There are different types that have much different effective ranges. For a tank the size of yours I recommend having a T5 bulb with reflector that runs about 1/2 the length of your tank. That will provide a really nice UVB gradient across the basking area and tank.

 

[hazzaram]

That looks decent but the bricks will take up a lot of floor space. What kind of UVB light do you have? There are different types that have much different effective ranges. For a tank the size of yours I recommend having a T5 bulb with reflector that runs about 1/2 the length of your tank. That will provide a really nice UVB gradient across the basking area and tank.

Again, it's just temporary. My sister's boyfriend is going to build me a nice wooden second level so this just has to do until then. Everything is stable so I'm okay with it for now.

I have a T8 hood fixture and a Reptisun 10.0 HO uvb bulb in it. It only covers half the tank

The temp on top of the basking platform is reading 94 so I might need to move up to a 150w bulb. I've read baby beardies like it a bit hotter.

 

[CooperDragon]

If it's temporary, it should be fine. Yes, I'd try to bump the temp at the basking spot to around 105 or so as long as it doesn't make the rest of the tank too hot. The bottom area to the far left should be down around 75-80 or so to provide a nice gradient. For the UVB, I'd mount that right over the basking spot. With a T8, you'll want it to sit about 6-8'' above the basking area for optimal output.