i just picked up the 4 ft tank ive been crappin on about and i need help with what lights that i need and hot it needs to be in cirtain areas of the tank and at night. the lights is the parts that confuses me so any help would be much loved!
also if you could tell me temps in celcius would be awsome. as you all know i live in australia so i need lights i can get here.
There's no need to be offended. People have more than likely not responded because we don't have the answers you are looking for. You need to take into consideration, that the majority of us don't live in Australia and have NO idea what type of lights you have access to, and the lights you do have access to. You would be the one to have that knowledge, not those of us that live in the United States. Also, we don't use celcius temperatures - again that would be on you to convert the temps.
There is a wealth of information on this forum about temps and lighting. All you have to do is use the search feature. Also, you didn't give any relevant information about how old your beardie is. Beardies need different temps at different ages. For example, a younger beardie needs a higher basking temp than an adult. The exact measurements of your enclosure would also help. You just said 4 foot - how wide and high is it?
Don't get upset if no one answers your post right away - I can assure you it's not intentional!
the tank is 4 ft on the mark and 1 ft wide and 2 ft high. my bd is about 5 months old and is male.
and what is an mvb light?
i just got a light that has 7% uvb and uva combined also is calcium sand good to use because i want to make it look as natural as possible without using tiles or newspaper.
i will be putting rocks in so keeping his nails down wont be a problem.
if somone could at least tell me the genral temps even if it is in farenhit or what ever it is you use. i really REALLY need help.
At 5 months, the basking spot should be 105 - 110 F, the cooler side 80 - 85 f and the general ambiant temp on the hot side mid to high 90's.
I would not use any kind of sand as they lick alot and tend to ingest the sand, which can cause impaction. Impaction is basically constipation but can be devastating and even lethal! Other alternatives are tile ( i use slate tiles), non adhesive shelf liner or paper towels.
An MBV light is a light bulb wich emmit both UVB and UVA, what brand have you got? There are many brands, and many of them can be harmful to your beardie. Im not an expert on this as i use repti-sun 10, a UVB strip with a seperate basking bulb. I think the best brands are solar Glo and Mega ray.
-------------- UVB strip
O basking bulb
This is how i know to set one up, this way the proper gradient is achieved, i think you would just put your bulb at one end, and thats it??
Sorry to babble, but hopefully i have helped a little??
Sorry you did not get the answers you were looking for. As the above poster said, it is not intentional that your post was not answered right away. Many members will not answer a post if they do not know the correct information. I will try to help you as best I can.
For your UVB light....the 7% gives off low uvb emissions and may not be enough uvb for your little guy. I don't know if you can return or not, but there are much better uvb bulbs out there. I don't know what exactly you can get over there, but I will tell you the ones we use here that maybe you can find online. The ReptiSUN 10(Not ReptiGLO 10) is one of the best fluorescent tube uvb's. An MVB(mercury vapor bulb) is UVB and Heat in one bulb. If you want to get a mvb, there is Megaray, T-Rex and Solar Glo(all great mvb's). If you went with a mvb you would want the 100W and your beardie needs to be no closer than 12" to that bulb. If you use a fluorescent UVB(such as the Reptisun) your beardie needs to be 6-8" from the bulb.
As for your temps, since your beardie is still young....your temps for the basking spot should be 105-110 degrees F(40-43 degrees Celsius). Your temps for the cool side should be between 80-85 degrees F(26-29 degrees Celsius). Your beardie needs to be 10-12" from his basking light.
Are you measuring your temps? What type thermometer are you using....a digital thermometer with a wire and probe or an infrared temp gun are going to get you your most accurate temps.
The sand as a substrate is something we try not to reccomend, due to the risk of impaction to your beardie. There are other subtrates that would be much safer, such as slate tile, reptile carpet or non-adhesive vinyl/linoleum or paper towels.
I hope this helps!
If you have any other questions...feel free to ask :wink:
I just read your last post. The UVB you are using...is it a fluorescent tube? If so, that does not put out heat, you must also have a basking bulb. You mentioned a bulb that only puts out heat....is it a CHE(ceramic heat emitter)? Those are only used at night if the enclosures temps drop below 65 degrees F(18 degrees Celsius).
most of us just use a normal household bulb, Beardies thrive under bright white light so they are perfect! (and cheap) The only reason i use the exo terra bulbs is i have a 90 gal enclosure so need a higher wattage bulb to get the proper temps.
During the 12 hours of 'day' you need a decent UVB output, and a normal light to make a basking spot, At night, if your house gets below 65F you can use the CHE to keep the temps up, ideally at 70-75f