Lighting Help for Newbies (:

[mommacude]

You may also be able to hook the basking light to a dimmer to control output a bit. As far as UVB goes, having shade areas is a great idea. With the T5 if it's 12-14'' above the highest basking area it will be fine. At 12'' a T5 with reflector usually puts out 4-5 UVI which is a good basking level. As you move to the sides and further away from the bulb the UVI drops to lower levels which is good.

What a relief. Thank you! Now I can stop obsessing about his lighting and work on getting him to eat his veggies. That's another topic for another thread lol

 

[Nihilist]

I got the zoomed 22 inch bulb, 10.0HO, and 24 in hood but trying to set it and my basking area up is giving me difficulties.I have a 40 gallon breeder tank, 36 x 18 x 18. Is it OK for the basking area to be the dark side of the tank? I am currently using a ceramic,150 watt, bulb and the 24 in hood on the back screen of my tank, My screen is two pieces; a larger one in the back and a smaller on up front. I imagine it is set up that way so you don't have to move the lights every time you have to get into the tank, which I do multiple times a day. I could move the 24 in T5 hood to the front and have the basking area lit up but then I would be moving it back and forth a lot and I am worried about killing the T5 lamp/bulb. I also have a half dead Mega-Ray, 160 watt, mercury vapor bulb. The white light filament blew out on it, so only yellow light and a lot of heat.This would give me light on the basking side and no shaded area, except his home. His home is made to be put in a corner and is 9 inches away from the lights. Side note I recommend against buying Mega-Ray mercury vapor bulbs, first one I had blew out in about 30 days and the second one blew the white filament part of it out in 10 days. Yes I had it connect to a fixture that could support its wattage. So what set up would be best for my Bearded Dragon?
Thank you in advance

 

[CooperDragon]

Your T5 should be fine UVB wise. Do you have adjustable lamp stands for your basking lights? They are helpful, especially if you have a top opening tank. The Megaray bulbs are pretty high end. I'd talk to Bob Mac about them blowing out early and try to find out what's going on there. In the meantime, your T5 will provide plenty of UVB. I have a 36x18x18 with a 90w halogen flood light for basking and an arcadia T5 UVB light and it works really well.

 

[Nihilist]

I have an adjustable lamp stand for my basking light/ceramic bulb. I have it adjusted a little off the top of the screen so the temps don't get too hot. Is it OK to have the entire tank covered in light? If so I can go back to my half dead Mega-Ray bulb, it heats better and I can save my ceramic for when the Mega-Ray totally dies.
I will call the number amazon gave me for the Mega-Ray bulb again on Monday. The first time I called it was someone's cellphone number and the guy replaced my light no issue. I called twice after the second bulb blew and no answer so I gave up, my fault there but two bad bulbs and two times no one answering the phone kind of put me off.
I see that you are not using a cloth floor, actually seeing that a lot in pictures on this site. I was told at the store that Bearded Dragons needed cloth so their feet could grip onto it, and not to use sand for health and sanitary reasons.I am constantly washing my carpet because of smells and what he leaves behind after eating. Is there a better type of flooring to use other than carpet?

 

[CooperDragon]

The entire tank can be lit up, but you should maintain a temperature gradient and a UVB gradient so there is a hot/high UVB basking area and a cool/low UVB area with some shade available.
Bob from ReptileUV was injured recently and is recovering so that may be affecting response times. It's a small family business. I'd be sure to call during business hours (9a-4p EST) rather than off hours for best chance at a response or try via e-mail/website contact form.
I use ceramic tile for substrate because it's easy to clean and keep sanitary. It is just rough enough so traction isn't a problem. It retains heat well too. Non adhesive shelf liner also makes a good substrate because it's easy to keep sanitary. Carpet and loose substrate traps old food and poop and harbors bacteria which may cause illness.

 

[Nihilist]

The entire tank can be lit up, but you should maintain a temperature gradient and a UVB gradient so there is a hot/high UVB basking area and a cool/low UVB area with some shade available.
Bob from ReptileUV was injured recently and is recovering so that may be affecting response times. It's a small family business. I'd be sure to call during business hours (9a-4p EST) rather than off hours for best chance at a response or try via e-mail/website contact form.
I use ceramic tile for substrate because it's easy to clean and keep sanitary. It is just rough enough so traction isn't a problem. It retains heat well too. Non adhesive shelf liner also makes a good substrate because it's easy to keep sanitary. Carpet and loose substrate traps old food and poop and harbors bacteria which may cause illness.

Thank you very much, you have been beyond helpful. You have saved me countless hours trying to Google all my questions, and we know I would get about 50 or more different answers. Now I have to find some tile that will fit, I have not way of cutting it so this could be a challenge. I will email and call about the bulb, I did not know about him being injured. Like I said my fault I got angry and just blew it off.

 

[CooperDragon]

I picked up my tile at Lowe's in a 6 pack. They cut it down to size for me (18x18'') for free and now I have 3 sets of tile ready to swap out whenever they get dirty.

 

[Nihilist]

Thanks again, I will have to find the internal measurement of my tank. Wife got me a Zoomed 40 gallon starter kit. I'm pretty sure the inside measurements are slightly smaller.

 

[Nihilist]

...
Bob from ReptileUV was injured recently and is recovering so that may be affecting response times. It's a small family business. I'd be sure to call during business hours (9a-4p EST) rather than off hours for best chance at a response or try via e-mail/website contact form.
...

I called and talked to Andreas then Kara From Mega-Ray, both great people. Kara did a lot of trouble shooting with me and gave me a great amount of advice, in the end she is having a new bulb sent to me. My opinion of the Mega-Ray company has gone through the roof. They are great people at Mega-Ray, I think my first issue was I bought the bulb the Amazon/Big Apple Pet supply. Kara has set me up to go through Bob from now on and I hear he is healing quiet nicely and doing much better. Thank you for talking me into trying again, I now have a reliable source to buy my bulbs and better then great customer service to go with it.

 

[CooperDragon]

I'm glad you had a positive experience! The bulbs are very good quality. I'm also glad to hear Bob is doing better.

 

[FreddyG]

I recently got a baby bearded dragon and all im using for light is a 75w basking spot lamp and a 75w infrared heat lamp for the night time. I have a 10gal tank, is that a good set up? Im kind of low on money.

 

[ruben0311]

Hey Freddy, if youre low on cash but are able to take your beardie outside for some strong sunshine that'll compensate for not having the UVB for a bit, but you need to save up some money for a proper light set-up. remember that uvb will not pass through any type of solid material, including glass or plastic so make sure if you take him outside he is in the open or you can make something out of wire mesh so he wont run off on you, they are quick little escape artists.

 

[FreddyG]

Hey Freddy, if youre low on cash but are able to take your beardie outside for some strong sunshine that'll compensate for not having the UVB for a bit, but you need to save up some money for a proper light set-up. remember that uvb will not pass through any type of solid material, including glass or plastic so make sure if you take him outside he is in the open or you can make something out of wire mesh so he wont run off on you, they are quick little escape artists.

Thanks for the help Ruben

 

[luvalot]

I am hoping someone here may be able to help me.

I bought the Reptisun t5 10.0 and I also bought the Reptisun ballast. I currently have it sitting on top of my terrarium.

The top is mesh. The cage is 48x18x24. So it is 2 feet high. Is that enough UVB?

And if it not enough...how do I hang this one inside? I can not find any hanging things on it.

I also have a basking light which is the Exo Terra Intense basking Spot. It is 150W. I have a thermometer about 12" from it and it still does not seem that warm.

Thanks!

 

[CooperDragon]

I would build a basking area (log, branch, rocks, etc) up to within about 12'' of the UVB light for best output.