worried abt beardie not getting enough heat

[spikey_the_beardie]

I have recently bought a 40-gallon tank for my bearded dragon and I'm worried that he isn't getting enough heat since the average temperature for a bearded dragon is 100°F and he is getting 85°F. I have a ZooMed mini combo deep dome dual lamp fixture with a ZooMed Repti Basking Spot Lamp that has 100W. Right now I'm trying to find a ReptiSun UVB 10.0 with the right size that fits in the dual-lamp since I bought the wrong size. If he isn't getting enough heat, what can I do to fix this? Here are a few images about the topic.

 

[spikey_the_beardie]

Do you guys know any lamps that can hold up to 150 watts?

 

[hdochow]

i don't personally. i've never used a dual dome, and have only ever used 100W bulb at the highest. (the "petco special" dual dome i was given when i rescued henry went straight into the trash because i could tell too high of a bulb had been put into it. the wires were melting.)

 

[spikey_the_beardie]

Look how much the temperature has increased when I placed the 75-watt bulb with the 100-watt in the dual dome lamp.

 

[hdochow]

how long did you have the probe there for that reading? you're so close to where you want to be! at this point see what your dragon does. if he avoids that spot it is too hot (and then drop down to 150W total as kerrie suggested, now that i understand how the dual domes work). if he likes it i don't think you need to change anything else for the heat aspect of the tank.

 

[spikey_the_beardie]

how long did you have the probe there for that reading?

I left it for 50 minutes. Right now it's 103.1 degrees and it's still going up which is a bit concerning since I don't want to burn my beardie so I might buy a 50 watt bulb and place it on the dual dome.

 

[hdochow]

ok yeah that's gonna wind up being too hot. so you either keep your 100W and buy a 50W, or keep your 75W and buy another 75W. you're gonna need another bulb either way and both combinations will be 150W combined.

 

[hdochow]

and this is exactly why we suggested getting the probe thermometers last week before trying different bulbs. temp is really trial and error because there are so many factors to it. uvb is much easier to nail down.

 

[KarrieRee]

Your temp is good at 101- most older dragons like temps 95-100- if it continues to climb and he won't bask there for long drop to the 50 watt-

 

[spikey_the_beardie]

Alright then. I'm going to leave the basking lights on until 7pm to see how high the temperature goes. I'll buy the 50-watt bulb on Tuesday since I'm going to be pretty busy tomorrow and won't have time to go shopping.

 

[hdochow]

sounds great. then if the 100W and 50W are still too high, you can use the 75W and 50W.

 

[spikey_the_beardie]

Okay, so the temperature right now is 105.6. Is this considered too high or normal?

 

[KarrieRee]

Okay, so the temperature right now is 105.6. Is this considered too high or normal?

It's normal but your dragon may not like it that hot- you can drop to the 50 watt see what you get for temps-- then if it's still to hot drop the 100 to 75 - trial and error - shoot for 95-100

 

[spikey_the_beardie]

Alright then. I'll let you guys know when I buy the 50 watts bulb.

 

[spikey_the_beardie]

Okay I bought the 50-watt bulb and left it on for 2 hours (5pm to almost 7pm) and the temperature right now is 100.6.

 

[hdochow]

awesome! sounds like you've hit your mark. now just to see what it does with a full day tomorrow instead of just a couple hours.