# Bearded Dragon Cage Setup...



## mattakaspeeedy (Apr 26, 2010)

Hey all, im new and planning on getting a bearded dragon soon and have bought everything and read everything i need however have 1 question. In my tank can i just have a repti-glo 10.0 UVB Fluescent tube and a ceramic heat emiter ? Is that all i need in terms of heating and lighting ? And the uvb tube stays on for 14 hours a day and then goes off, is that right ?


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## adfel (Apr 26, 2010)

In our beardies enclosure we have the UVB on for 12 hours a day. We have the ceramic heat emitter on thermostat which is working around the clock and then we have a small spot bulb next to the ceramic lamp which comes on in for 4 hours at the middle of the day to basically replicate the hottest part of the day. I think it's set to come on at 10am and go off at 2pm. We were advised by an avid breeder that we should try and replicate our day time as much as possible so the UVB comes on at 7am and goes off at 7pm. Hope this helps


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## moose (Apr 26, 2010)

I would be very careful about the temp in your hot end vs the cooler end, if it gets too hot the dragons need somewhere to retreat too. 

Some people have basking spots as hot as 45 degrees but allow a cooler end of low 30's.

UVB Lighting as you have obviously worked out is very important, and 14 hr days are good.

I tend to stay away from Heat emitters for Dragons as they like to "Bask" under a bright light as opposed to a heat source but remember this is just my opinion and im sure there are other people out there using them with good results.

Cheers

Moose


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## mattakaspeeedy (Apr 26, 2010)

Main reason i wanted to use a heat emitter is because my missus doesnt want a light bulb on throughout the night. (Fussy woman but i love her). Anyways if i have 2 es holders could i put one as a light heat heat bulb and have it running through the day 7am-7pm and then the other a heat emitter and have that running from 7pm-7am. Would that work ? Just hook them up to there own thermostat each and a timer each ? Would that solve my problem ? thanks for all help so far...


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## babba007 (Apr 26, 2010)

There is no need to heat beardies at night. I asked the same question recently and the overwhelming response was to turn all heating and lights off at night.


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## mattakaspeeedy (Apr 26, 2010)

Everyone has told me to leave it on all night because there is still a cold side on the oppisite side. Also what temptreture do you guys have your thermostat set for in your beardi cages ?


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## dixilizards (Apr 26, 2010)

Where will the enclosure be kept? if in the house, very few houses will get too low for beardies. We have all the lights (heat included) on all our dragons turn off at night.

Aim for a hot end of 35 degrees on the ground and a cold of about 20-24 on the ground, the basking spot should be closer to the heat source and therefore should be somewhere in the vacinity of 35 - 43 degrees.

If you find the dragon is always on the hot end, the cage is too cold and if they are always on the cold end, the cage is too hot.


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## adfel (Apr 26, 2010)

mattakaspeeedy said:


> Everyone has told me to leave it on all night because there is still a cold side on the oppisite side. Also what temptreture do you guys have your thermostat set for in your beardi cages ?


 
People all have their own opinions of how an enclosure should be set up and all you can do is take the information given and make your own choices.... Whether you have the heat on at night or not is ur own choice.... I personally like to keep it heated at night as I am in NSW and it can sometimes get quite cold at night and my beardie is in a 4ft enclosure which has a cold end.... I use a ceramic heat emitter as its puts out heat and I don't have a light going on and off during the night... And I also have a coloured heat light which comes on for a few hours in the middle of the day as that is when my beardie likes to bask in the sunlight.... But these are my preferences as they suit me and my beardie is quite happy set up like that....


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## TriggerFish (Apr 26, 2010)

I recently entered the world of Beardies as well. I have a light bulb for heat and light and a UB light going during the day. I also have a ceramic fitted for night. Canberra gets very cold at night so heat is required for the little ones especially from what I understand. I run the night heat on a thermostat to make sure it doesn't drop below about 20C while my guys are still so young.

Basically what it sounds like is you want to run a similar set up to what I am using. I have to say that my Dragons are going great so far and can recommend the approach you are looking at. People in warmer climates of the country may not need to worry about night time heating, but, when it hits -6 to -8 at night, I will sleep a lot better knowing my Beardies are snug and warm.


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## moose (Apr 26, 2010)

Matt,

As Said take everyones opinion and make your own choices.

As you said you could use light/heat emitter combo on different thermostats but then that gets exspensive.

I only use Uvb and a basking Light during the day, at night time during winter i use a nocturnal heat globe as the temps here can get to below freezing.

And ironically i now dont use a thermostat on any dragon enclosures, but i am only able to do this through experimentation with different products and cage designs. 

My hot end is about 40 and the cool end at about 24, with a gradient in between, allowing the dragons to choose their perfect temp.

Cheers

Moose


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## mattakaspeeedy (Apr 26, 2010)

Hmm so far im thinking of having a basking light bulb for the day 7am-7pm and then a heat emitter for the night 7pm-7am. A thermostat is only about $50 and it only a once off thing so it wont be that bad. Does this sound alright idea ?

Anyone else have any other opinions or suggestions ?


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## moose (Apr 26, 2010)

Sounds good to me!

If you are going to use a heat emitter and thermostat i would suggest a pulse proportional thermostat off it, it will increase the life of your Heat emitter.

Cheers
Moose


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