UVB help

[Figgs&Syrax]

Hey so I got this beardie, 12-13 inches head to tail and I'm guessing he's 6 months. Will he last till Christmas for a long uvb bulb? Is this one ok? https://a.co/d/c3gikCS

 

[ChileanTaco]

Stones and branches are expensive so I’ll try to find some good pieces. Please post ideas you have.

I suggest getting stones and branches from outdoors. At least stones should be possible to get that way, branches likely (depends on where you live).
For a branch: Can you go hiking and is it allowed to take something? Also, if you, by any chance, live on the countryside or know somebody, or are using a neighborhood mailing list/ app, you could ask if somebody is about to cut trees in their garden. While I lived with my parents on the countryside, exactly that was my source for branches and twigs.
If buying in a store, you would have to look around. I can't give recommendations for stores as I live very likely not in the same country as you (I live in Chile, and bought my dragon's branch from a tiny aquarium store).

What I made for my dragon is a climbing background, basically a fake stone wall with places to climb, lie down and hide. You can see it in pictures of my enclosure. It takes a bit of time to make (not overly, a lot of that is drying time), but if you are interested I can let you know the instructions. Maybe you consider it as an upgrade after some time.

One suggestion:
To not constantly buy new decor with a growing dragon, I personally considered decor that works for a small and a large one. Like e.g. a branch bit enough he can sit on it even as an adult.
If you're using a hammock (I don't do so), get one that is large enough for an adult dragon.

Substrate: I personally use natural substrate instead of a mat, but here options depend widely. There is nothing bad about using a mat. I personally like, and have very good experience with, natural substrate similar to what is found in an animal's natural habitat. As I luckily live in a desert, I can get (clean, good) natural sand for free and that works very well, also is not dusty (which other kind of sand might be). It just looks like the sand you can buy e.g. from Zoomed. As you likely won't be able to get such sand just from outdoors, so would have to buy it and replace (= throw away) it regularly to keep it clean, I suggest to maybe over time when you can afford it cover at least parts of your dragon's enclosure in some natural substrate like the natural desert sand offered by Zoomed. As a benefit I personally see that with such a substrate the ground can be shaped instead of just being flat, and the dragon can dig. For example, there is a slope down to hides my dragon uses, so they are more like a burrow with that.

 

[Figgs&Syrax]

I suggest getting stones and branches from outdoors. At least stones should be possible to get that way, branches likely (depends on where you live).
For a branch: Can you go hiking and is it allowed to take something? Also, if you, by any chance, live on the countryside or know somebody, or are using a neighborhood mailing list/ app, you could ask if somebody is about to cut trees in their garden. While I lived with my parents on the countryside, exactly that was my source for branches and twigs.
If buying in a store, you would have to look around. I can't give recommendations for stores as I live very likely not in the same country as you (I live in Chile, and bought my dragon's branch from a tiny aquarium store).

What I made for my dragon is a climbing background, basically a fake stone wall with places to climb, lie down and hide. You can see it in pictures of my enclosure. It takes a bit of time to make (not overly, a lot of that is drying time), but if you are interested I can let you know the instructions. Maybe you consider it as an upgrade after some time.

One suggestion:
To not constantly buy new decor with a growing dragon, I personally considered decor that works for a small and a large one. Like e.g. a branch bit enough he can sit on it even as an adult.
If you're using a hammock (I don't do so), get one that is large enough for an adult dragon.

Substrate: I personally use natural substrate instead of a mat, but here options depend widely. There is nothing bad about using a mat. I personally like, and have very good experience with, natural substrate similar to what is found in an animal's natural habitat. As I luckily live in a desert, I can get (clean, good) natural sand for free and that works very well, also is not dusty (which other kind of sand might be). It just looks like the sand you can buy e.g. from Zoomed. As you likely won't be able to get such sand just from outdoors, so would have to buy it and replace (= throw away) it regularly to keep it clean, I suggest to maybe over time when you can afford it cover at least parts of your dragon's enclosure in some natural substrate like the natural desert sand offered by Zoomed. As a benefit I personally see that with such a substrate the ground can be shaped instead of just being flat, and the dragon can dig. For example, there is a slope down to hides my dragon uses, so they are more like a burrow with that.

May I see pictures?

 

[ChileanTaco]

May I see pictures?

Yes, here they are:

https://www.beardeddragon.org/threads/tacos-tank.269005/

The thing in the background is the climbing background (later down in the thread, I have added a similar thing to the left). In the thread, I've also described how I made it.
To summarize how to make that background: MDF plates, then styrofoam boards (was just packing material) which I nailed on the MDF plates (nails through the plates, then sticking the styrofoam on it). Then I used one can of construction foam and covered the syrofoam and MDF with it, shaping it roughly like stone. After the construction foam expanded and hardened, I cut away what was too much. I then covered everything in two layers of tile glue/ grout (no normal glue! that's a material similar to concrete), were I mixed sand into the second layer. Finally, I glued the background into my dragon's tank using aquarium-grade silicone, with which I also sealed all around to prevent insects from crawling behind.
This was in total some work during four weekends in a row, but only 1 - 2 hours each time. It just needs to dry out after each step, thus it took some weeks. For building it, one doesn't need to "be an artist", as the result is always somewhat stone-like, naturally looking.
The result is durable, and this is also what is used in zoos, museums with live animals, or other professional reptile setups.