New Beardie setup questions

[tmoore229]

Hi! I will be adopting a juvenile beardie who is currently being boarded at a vet for eye issues (they thought possible cancer but it's not). I want to make sure I have the right lighting in the right places. I have a 48L x 20h x 20d enclosure. I am planning on an Arcadia Pro T5 UVB 39W kit (44" long) installed under the hood. I also have planned on the basking light to be a 100W UVB/UVA basking heat light bulb UV Sun Lamp from Yauldsun.

1) with the T5, does the basking ALSO need to be uvb or is this tooooo much (should I get a "regular" basking only)

2) the T5 runs pretty much the entire length of the enclosure ensuring that he gets plenty of UVB - but again, is this too much and should I opt for a shorter light or just make sure I have hideouts and greenery allowing breaks from lights if he needs it?

I plan on a 12" distance from basking spot to basking bulb.

I will be using a ceramic heat emitter for night as my house (at least in winter) gets below 65 degrees.

ANY information, tips, tricks and help is GREATLY appreciated.

Also, I'm thinking this enclosure is too big for him now and plan on putting in a divider until he gets a bit bigger so he's not overwhelmed.

I do see that cilantro and dandelion greens are good for them to eat daily and am curious about planting some of those and some succulents in the enclosure to both add natural grazing and decor but also aid in humidity levels being maintained (I live in the south - naturally humid to begin with). Again, thoughts on this would be appreciated.

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[IAmAMirage]

Hi! I will be adopting a juvenile beardie who is currently being boarded at a vet for eye issues (they thought possible cancer but it's not). I want to make sure I have the right lighting in the right places. I have a 48L x 20h x 20d enclosure. I am planning on an Arcadia Pro T5 UVB 39W kit (44" long) installed under the hood. I also have planned on the basking light to be a 100W UVB/UVA basking heat light bulb UV Sun Lamp from Yauldsun.

1) with the T5, does the basking ALSO need to be uvb or is this tooooo much (should I get a "regular" basking only)

2) the T5 runs pretty much the entire length of the enclosure ensuring that he gets plenty of UVB - but again, is this too much and should I opt for a shorter light or just make sure I have hideouts and greenery allowing breaks from lights if he needs it?

I plan on a 12" distance from basking spot to basking bulb.

I will be using a ceramic heat emitter for night as my house (at least in winter) gets below 65 degrees.

ANY information, tips, tricks and help is GREATLY appreciated.

Also, I'm thinking this enclosure is too big for him now and plan on putting in a divider until he gets a bit bigger so he's not overwhelmed.

I do see that cilantro and dandelion greens are good for them to eat daily and am curious about planting some of those and some succulents in the enclosure to both add natural grazing and decor but also aid in humidity levels being maintained (I live in the south - naturally humid to begin with). Again, thoughts on this would be appreciated.

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First off, congrats on being a new beardie owner! Second, welcome to the forum! Third, lets get some people to help you out!
@KarrieRee is our lighting expert, she can help you figure that out!
@xp29, @AHBD , and @Chris. are experienced beardie owners who can help you out with basics!

 

[Chris.]

Hey, welcome and congrats on getting your first bearded dragon.
!!!Spoiler alert!!! You are gonna fall in love with them, they are just sooo amazing

Your tank is not too big, I started my two month old girl in a 60x30x30 tank that took her from baby to adult with no issue at all. Only you might have to feed them with tweezers or by hand at first so they don't loose their bugs und a bigger tank.

The basking light I have not heard of yet and honestly I would stick to the well known brands. They usually last longer and make a visibly nicer and brighter light.
Also too much UVB would be very hard to achieve. Personally I have a tube and a metal-halide-bulb (they need a brick and are a bit more costly but also the best money can buy right now) for both my dragons. In addition I have some plain dailight white LEDs in the tank.

Live succulents are great in the tank but they might get smashed or dug out, just be aware of that.
Succulents also won't affect your humidity very much, they don't loose a lot of water through their leaves, which is why they can survive those dry enviroments.
If you live in a humid place to begin with you might want to try to make the tank as arid as possible.

Let us know if you have any other questions, we are happy to help.

 

[KarrieRee]

Recommended a 24" uvb fixture you could go 36" but you want your dragon to be able to sit in the tank w/ out having to hide from it- distance 12-15 inches directly above the basking decor - you need a solid clear bright white basking bulb that keeps temps 95-100 surface basking taken w a digital probe thermometer-

 

[xp29]

I agree 24 is pretty good. I have a solarmeter to check uv output and the 24 can actually cause over exposure so a 48 inch for sure could. You want uvb at the basking height to be ideally in the 4.0ish range. My T5 Arcadia are 40 to 50 index at the bulb and are a year old. At 10 inches away they are still in the 7 to 10 index range. That's strong enough to cause eye issues or even cancer. If you go with a fixture the full length of your habitat it's imperative to give your beardie lots of place to hide from it.
Also with a good uvb tube you don't need extra from a mercury vapor bulb.
The best set up is to have your uvb and basking over lapping with multiple distances from the bulbs to pick from. Your beardie will move around and choose what he/she needs.
If your home is dropping that low at night for sure run the che.
As far as 12 inches from the uvb, without a meter to actually test the intensity of the light all you can do is guess. I know on mine at 12 inches I'm finally getting into the safe range but all 4 of mine are a year old now. I think with a new bulb I'd shoot for 14-15 inches distance.
Oh yeah welcome to the forum and congrats on your new beardie. Like @Chris said be ready for the best pet you'll ever have

 

[tmoore229]

Hey, welcome and congrats on getting your first bearded dragon.
!!!Spoiler alert!!! You are gonna fall in love with them, they are just sooo amazing

Your tank is not too big, I started my two month old girl in a 60x30x30 tank that took her from baby to adult with no issue at all. Only you might have to feed them with tweezers or by hand at first so they don't loose their bugs und a bigger tank.

The basking light I have not heard of yet and honestly I would stick to the well known brands. They usually last longer and make a visibly nicer and brighter light.
Also too much UVB would be very hard to achieve. Personally I have a tube and a metal-halide-bulb (they need a brick and are a bit more costly but also the best money can buy right now) for both my dragons. In addition I have some plain dailight white LEDs in the tank.

Live succulents are great in the tank but they might get smashed or dug out, just be aware of that.
Succulents also won't affect your humidity very much, they don't loose a lot of water through their leaves, which is why they can survive those dry enviroments.
If you live in a humid place to begin with you might want to try to make the tank as arid as possible.

Let us know if you have any other questions, we are happy to help.

Thanks so much for all the advice everyone!!! I'm changing the light to be a shorter t-5 and will have standard heat lights rather than the mercury vapor. I KNOW I'll have many more questions!

 

[xp29]

Thanks so much for all the advice everyone!!! I'm changing the light to be a shorter t-5 and will have standard heat lights rather than the mercury vapor. I KNOW I'll have many more questions!

Ask about anything you need to know. Everyone here is happy to help you and your beardie have the best life together that's possible

 

[tmoore229]

Ok. Here is my initial setup minus live succulents and 2 digital (probed) thermometer/hydrometer (one for each side). As suggested I went with shorter T5 and made sure the heat light and T5 overlapped. There is a 6” distance from basking spot to basking light and 10” distance from basking to T5. What could I improve on?

 

[ChileanTaco]

Live succulents are great in the tank but they might get smashed or dug out, just be aware of that.
Succulents also won't affect your humidity very much, they don't loose a lot of water through their leaves, which is why they can survive those dry enviroments.
If you live in a humid place to begin with you might want to try to make the tank as arid as possible.

I can agree very much! I use them, and I can highly recommend the plant named "golliwog" (scientific name is "callisia repens"). It is a succulent with small semi-hard leaves, is edible, survives/ grows under the temperature/light condition of a dragon's enclosure, has good nutrition, and is generally recommended for reptiles. My dragon eats it a lot (this is why I have multiple and switch them out, let them regrow on the balcony - because of technically this kind of plant is doing well in an enclosure, my dragon eats it so much that he's really grazing it down). And another plus: As it's a live plant, he has fresh greens all the time, even if what I serve as a salad might wilt during the day, or when we're not here a day or two.
Where to find callisia repens: It's quite common, should be available in garden centers. (Ordering online would work for sure, but not shipping around plants is better.) Before planting anything, I exchange the soil (= I re-pot it) and rinse off the leaves, and wait a week or so. Just to make sure any kind of fertilizers and such are gone.

 

[ChileanTaco]

To prevent plants from being dug out: Put stones around them. I collected some stones that have just the right shape (two large that are C-shaped each), but any stones wold to.

 

[xp29]

Ok. Here is my initial setup minus live succulents and 2 digital (probed) thermometer/hydrometer (one for each side). As suggested I went with shorter T5 and made sure the heat light and T5 overlapped. There is a 6” distance from basking spot to basking light and 10” distance from basking to T5. What could I improve on?

Your setup looks really nice. The only thing I would caution is the climbing wall on the back. If your beardie can reach the basking light from it or leap into the basking light I'd probably put one of those wire guards around it. I always worry about weird stuff like that though

 

[tmoore229]

Your setup looks really nice. The only thing I would caution is the climbing wall on the back. If your beardie can reach the basking light from it or leap into the basking light I'd probably put one of those wire guards around it. I always worry about weird stuff like that though

Better safe than sorry!!!!

 

[ChileanTaco]

Your setup looks really nice. The only thing I would caution is the climbing wall on the back. If your beardie can reach the basking light from it or leap into the basking light I'd probably put one of those wire guards around it. I always worry about weird stuff like that though

Agree! I have a similar climbing wall in the enclosure, but the lamps on top of a wide-hole mesh lid. Means: If they were inside the enclosure, I would use the wire guards/ cages around them. (Putting them on top of a wide-hole mesh lid was very much on purpose. I thought of the issue as well, and as the enclosure already had to be made with a mesh lid (opens from above), I put the lamps on top, but also then made the climbing wall so high that appropriate basking temperatures are reached.)

 

[tmoore229]

Agree! I have a similar climbing wall in the enclosure, but the lamps on top of a wide-hole mesh lid. Means: If they were inside the enclosure, I would use the wire guards/ cages around them. (Putting them on top of a wide-hole mesh lid was very much on purpose. I thought of the issue as well, and as the enclosure already had to be made with a mesh lid (opens from above), I put the lamps on top, but also then made the climbing wall so high that appropriate basking temperatures are reached.)

So 2 of these-1 for ceramic heat emitter and 1 for basking bulb. Correct?

 

[ChileanTaco]

@tmoore229
These are the correct ones, but normally you won't need a ceramic heat emitter unless the room your dragon's enclosure is in goes significantly below 20 °C during night.
Ceramic heat emitters (CHE) are a good way to provide extra heat when there should be no light, i.e. during night. Otherwise, not needed as dragons look for basking places by looking for light, so your dragon needs a basking space bright and (!) hot. For this reason, as I have a large enclosure, I have two basking lamps.
I would recommend buying a second basking lamp and using this, and keeping the CHE in case it gets cold in winter, or for other emergencies. (And if using the CHE, also use it with the wire cage.)