Lighting questions

[TJreptiles]

I'm planning on buying a 4' by 2' by 19" tall Viv soon. If the basking light is 12-15" above the basking area, what wattage bulb should I use? Or how close should the basking area be to the light? Thanks in advance. I'm new here and have not yet owned a beardie, but can't wait to own one. I'm glad I found this forum. I've seen so much useful information here.

 

[Goodtruant]

I would get a 75-100w basking bulb (assuming you're not using a MVB uvb bulb), and use a fixture with a dimmer on it. That way you can adjust it to get the right temp on the basking surface. Be sure to check it every once in awhile, and adjust as needed.

 

[TJreptiles]

Thanks! I plan on buying a temp gun for the temp checks. And I'll get the reptisun 10.0 for uvb.

 

[carlisv]

For the basking light you can use a plain old household bulb. Don't let pet shop folks convince you that you have to have a "basking bulb". It's just for heat, which incandescent light bulbs all give off, so you can get a 60, 75 and 100 watt CLEAR bulb (no "soft white" or "reveal") and just see which one works. We have an adjustable light stand that we can move up and down depending on the temperature in our house, so we have a $2 100 watt in there that works for winter but it's too warm in the summer so we change to a 75.

 

[TJreptiles]

Thanks for the advice, I'll probably go with the household bulb. I'll go to my local lowes and get some tile for substrate and get the household bulbs there. And it's the same way here. Hot and humid in the summer, cold and snowy in the winter. (WV)