Quick question about UVB

[Chrismcnicholas]

I just got my reptisun 10.0 installed yesterday and I've read that you need to make sure your beardie can get within 6-8 inches of it yet on the box itself it says that it's effective up to 20 inches. If I have cut a rectangle shape out of the metal mesh on top of the cage for the light to filter through over the basking area will it still be effective 12 inches up?

 

[Sapphire]

My beardie's UV light is about 13" away from him and he's fine.

 

[GoFast]

I just got my reptisun 10.0 installed yesterday and I've read that you need to make sure your beardie can get within 6-8 inches of it yet on the box itself it says that it's effective up to 20 inches. If I have cut a rectangle shape out of the metal mesh on top of the cage for the light to filter through over the basking area will it still be effective 12 inches up?

You will still get usable UV through the mesh. Your goal should still be 6". Even though there is UV down to 20" doesn't mean that there is enough.

Also is your reptisun a tube or a compact?

 

[Chrismcnicholas]

I just got my reptisun 10.0 installed yesterday and I've read that you need to make sure your beardie can get within 6-8 inches of it yet on the box itself it says that it's effective up to 20 inches. If I have cut a rectangle shape out of the metal mesh on top of the cage for the light to filter through over the basking area will it still be effective 12 inches up?

You will still get usable UV through the mesh. Your goal should still be 6". Even though there is UV down to 20" doesn't mean that there is enough.

Also is your reptisun a tube or a compact?

It's a tube, I'll have to run out to petco to see if there is anything i can get that will get her up that high in the enclosure.

 

[GoFast]

I just got my reptisun 10.0 installed yesterday and I've read that you need to make sure your beardie can get within 6-8 inches of it yet on the box itself it says that it's effective up to 20 inches. If I have cut a rectangle shape out of the metal mesh on top of the cage for the light to filter through over the basking area will it still be effective 12 inches up?

You will still get usable UV through the mesh. Your goal should still be 6". Even though there is UV down to 20" doesn't mean that there is enough.

Also is your reptisun a tube or a compact?

It's a tube, I'll have to run out to petco to see if there is anything i can get that will get her up that high in the enclosure.

No need to spend money; nature is your friend! Find a nice looking stick/log or rock around your house. Just make sure you clean it really well and there aren't any bugs.

 

[Chrismcnicholas]

I just got my reptisun 10.0 installed yesterday and I've read that you need to make sure your beardie can get within 6-8 inches of it yet on the box itself it says that it's effective up to 20 inches. If I have cut a rectangle shape out of the metal mesh on top of the cage for the light to filter through over the basking area will it still be effective 12 inches up?

You will still get usable UV through the mesh. Your goal should still be 6". Even though there is UV down to 20" doesn't mean that there is enough.

Also is your reptisun a tube or a compact?

It's a tube, I'll have to run out to petco to see if there is anything i can get that will get her up that high in the enclosure.

No need to spend money; nature is your friend! Find a nice looking stick/log or rock around your house. Just make sure you clean it really well and there aren't any bugs.

Well I moved some stuff around for her but she's not much of a climber so I may still have to figure something else out.
http://img84.imageshack.us/i/10061013330501.jpg/
She just seems to want to hang out under the wood for some reason
http://img696.imageshack.us/i/10061013341601.jpg/
Is there any reason she would want to hide out under there? I've picked her up and moved her twice now and she just goes right back in. Maybe she's just sick of me fussing with her.

 

[GoFast]

She looks ok. Just give her some time to get used to it. Within a couple of days, she'll be climbing

 

[Chrismcnicholas]

She looks ok. Just give her some time to get used to it. Within a couple of days, she'll be climbing

I have another quick question, I've been using a CHE lowered down into her cage to keep her basking spot at the right temperatures. Today i had to pull it out because of the new set up and set it on top the temperatures on her basking rock have been anywhere from 94 to 99 which I'm not sure if that's high enough (i'm using a digital thermometer with the probe ON the basking surface). Do you think a bright white basking light would be able to heat better from a further distance? From what I've heard the CHE's are only good at keeping the tanks temperature up overnight as the heat disperses more.

 

[Sapphire]

Yes, a bright light would probably be a better choice. I just use a halogen flood bulb from walmart.

She may be hiding a lot because the weather is getting colder and she's getting ready for brumation? My beardie has just been laying around for a couple weeks now, being far less active than usual... A lot of people seem to be having this happen, even in beardies that aren't "old enough" to brumate yet.

 

[Chrismcnicholas]

Yes, a bright light would probably be a better choice. I just use a halogen flood bulb from walmart.

She may be hiding a lot because the weather is getting colder and she's getting ready for brumation? My beardie has just been laying around for a couple weeks now, being far less active than usual... A lot of people seem to be having this happen, even in beardies that aren't "old enough" to brumate yet.

I've read about brumation and I don't think it's that she just seems....lazy. But it could just be her getting older I've heard that happens as they get older. Also I've been wondering since i have a really strange tank (18 inches wide, 4 feet long, 2 feet tall) would it be easier for me to get a 40 gallon breeder? I've heard lots of good things about those.

Went on a midnight run to the grocery store and picked up a halogen light to try tomorrow for temps, i'll update with results

 

[Sapphire]

I've read about brumation and I don't think it's that she just seems....lazy. But it could just be her getting older I've heard that happens as they get older. Also I've been wondering since i have a really strange tank (18 inches wide, 4 feet long, 2 feet tall) would it be easier for me to get a 40 gallon breeder? I've heard lots of good things about those.

Went on a midnight run to the grocery store and picked up a halogen light to try tomorrow for temps, i'll update with results

I don't think a 40 gallon breeder would be better than what you have. 40 gal. tanks are 36" long, 18" wide, and 16" tall. So you'd actually be robbing your beardie of an entire 12" of space lengthwise and 2" of height, and giving him nothing extra in return. If you think it would be easier for you to set up lights and everything in a 40 gallon breeder, then I can see why you might switch, but if you've already got everything set up for your current tank there's no point in spending money on a 40gallon and moving your beardie into a smaller space.

 

[Chrismcnicholas]

I've read about brumation and I don't think it's that she just seems....lazy. But it could just be her getting older I've heard that happens as they get older. Also I've been wondering since i have a really strange tank (18 inches wide, 4 feet long, 2 feet tall) would it be easier for me to get a 40 gallon breeder? I've heard lots of good things about those.

Went on a midnight run to the grocery store and picked up a halogen light to try tomorrow for temps, i'll update with results

I don't think a 40 gallon breeder would be better than what you have. 40 gal. tanks are 36" long, 18" wide, and 16" tall. So you'd actually be robbing your beardie of an entire 12" of space lengthwise and 2" of height, and giving him nothing extra in return. If you think it would be easier for you to set up lights and everything in a 40 gallon breeder, then I can see why you might switch, but if you've already got everything set up for your current tank there's no point in spending money on a 40gallon and moving your beardie into a smaller space.

Oh okay, fair enough. I had picked up a 100w bulb last night and that got too hot (almost at 120 after 30 minutes) going to go pick up a 50w and try that.

 

[GoFast]

When it comes to enclosures for bearded dragons, always think in terms of square footage instead of volume.

The more floor space you have, the better.

 

[Chrismcnicholas]

Got the 50w in there and her basking spot is sitting at 108 and varying as high as 109 which is good correct? I've been thinking about building a shelf so she can get closer to the uv light. She really despises climbing and hasn't even made an effort to get up near the uv.

 

[GoFast]

Got the 50w in there and her basking spot is sitting at 108 and varying as high as 109 which is good correct? I've been thinking about building a shelf so she can get closer to the uv light. She really despises climbing and hasn't even made an effort to get up near the uv.

108-109 is pretty good. I would check in a coupe of hours again to see how much it went up.

You certainly can do that. Just make sure that she can't get too close to the basking bulb and make sure the temps on the shelf aren't too hot.

Try to make your shelf, or whatever you use, in a way that allows her different options so she can choose how much heat/UV she needs.