Which enclosure to buy ....

[rince]

Hi,

my name is Dennis and I am absolutely new to this forums, but not to the idea of taking care of a dragon...
I am really struggling with selecting a proper enclosure. My handyman skills are non existent and I would prefer to buy an enclosure.
I do use an ExoTerra PT2614 (36"x18"x24") for my geckos, but I am still not sure if an enclosure of this size would be appropriate
for a dragon. As I understand it, it is the bare minimum and I would prefer to give a little more space.
I certainly do like the ExoTerra products, but unfortunately it is the biggest available size from them. So I was wondering if some of you may
point me into the right direction in finding a proper enclosure for a single bearded dragon.

Thx all,
Dennis

 

[macdaddy]

hey,

a beardie needs floor space. the height of the tank really isn't important, as your beardie won't really climb the way geckos do (as far as i know...lol) so i know that a lot of people build their own, but for me it wasn't really an option to build one so i looked on kijiji (you know, the free classifieds site) for a used fish aquarium. i currently have george in a 40 gallon aquarium (which i paid $30 for) with a mesh screen lid, you can buy them at the pet store if the aquarium you get doesn't have one. most people say that a 40 gallon tank should be a bare minimum, but i just found a nice 55 gallon tank for cheap so i'll be moving george to it in the near future. i recommend an aquarium tank over those exoterra ones. i was sucked into buying one when i bought george, and from my experience there was hardly a temp gradient so it was nearly impossible to have proper temperatures for him. thats just my experience, i don't know if other people have dealt with the same thing. just my 2 cents.

good luck

 

[rince]

Thank you mcdaddy for your reply. If I remember correctly a 40gal breeder tank is the same floor space like a PT2614. The PT 2614 is only a little higher.

I was looking into http://www.customcages.com and they offer a 48"x36"x24" or a 60"x24"x24" that could be interesting.
Does anyone have experience with any of their cages or can at least give me a recommendation which of the two cages is more suitable from the dimensions?

Thank you in advance
Dennis

 

[sunkist]

I have a 40 gallon breeder for one of my largest guys and he's got plenty of room to love around. They are deeper in depth - front to back - than a 55 gallon fish tank which I have my smallest guy in.

I have one of my other guys in a LARGE homemade tank and I swear he only uses 30% of the tank so I'm thinking of tossing it and taking him down to a 40 gallon breeder.

 

[rince]

Thank you for your feedback. Well that seems encouraging, maybe a PT2614 is not to small after all then ...

 

[corpsman8404]

i was mixed on this too. i really like the exoterra cage as well but i wish that it was as big as the 55 gallon breeder.....so i did a mix of the 2. i got the 55 gallon breeder tank then i bought 2 of the back ground panals for the exo terra 24x18 it ended up being around 40$ i think then glued them to my 55 gallon breeder. you will have to trim the panals a lil bit but not too much and its not difficult in anyway. so it will be not only cheaper and bigger then the exoterra tank but it will look just as good!

cost
55 gallon breeder of craigs list
$50
panals
$40
screen lid (if yours dident come with it)
$25
total cost
$90-165

exo terra xxl size
cheapest ive seen it
$220-$300+

 

[rince]

Thank you corpsman, that is actually a really nice idea. I think I have to make up my mind how much those front openings are worth to me.
I used a normal tank with screen lid for one of my gecko setups a while back and I hated it, because I felt like disassembling the whole setup every time I wanted to feed the little guys, or to clean, since i had to remove all the light fixtures and stuff.

On the other hand if you buy a PT2614 and you buy a dual top for the lighting and a normal canopy, you are running big bugs, as the dual top is as expensive as the terrarium ...

Ok, thx again, a lot to think about I guess I will have to decide between your solution corpsman and a cage from http://www.customcages.com.

Dennis

 

[crickest]

If you are interested in a glass aquarium, the best pricing I've seen is from glasscages.com

You might have to wait for delivery, since they deliver to areas of the country, but they do have a 48 X 18 X 17 aquarium for $115.00. I was going to buy one from here, but ended up converting an old desk into a viv.