Blue tongue essential supplies + questions & queries

[bugbug]

Hey! I'm considering getting myself a blue tongue skink but there's so much conflicting info on care! I had a baby one as a kid (until my mum let him go) & the care seemed so much simpler back then (although I guess I wasn't quite old enough to do my own research).
I'm not sure on some of the supplies I need
#1 do I need a heat mat AND heat lamp? or will just one be sufficient? I live an hour south of sydney if the climate makes any difference. If I need both, how many watts?
#2 what kind of uvb globe do I need? any brands you would warn against?
#3 Is this enclosure (largest size) acceptable? Keeping animals on wood kinda weirds me out for some reason
https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/REPTILE...var=441473809883&_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649

thanks!

 

[Reg casey]

Hey mate i just got a blue tongue myself i did alot of asking around so as far as i know u have a uv 5.0 globe or u can have a tube... heat bulb or heat mat one or the other not both as it will need one side to go to be cooled down... i made my enclosure out of ply and perspex holds heat really well... my setup is a 5.0 uv globe and a 50 watt red globe for heat and i have an eco tech timer/thermostat to control times and temp..substrate i have the coconut husk stuff 2 hidings a log and 2 plants along with a water and food dish
[doublepost=1526380200,1526380059][/doublepost]My enclosure is 900mm wide by 600mm high by 450mm deep... it is good enough for a juvenile for now but i will eventually go wider and not as high... 1200 by 450 by 600 would be alot better if u can get that

 

[azzmilan]

1. Go heat lamp, heat mats are very inconsistent and can lead to accidental injuries with your animals. Aim to get one basking side of your enclosure to at least 32c . This will dictate what heat lamp you need by the placement of your heat lamp ( as directed on packaging)

2. UVB 5.0 is ideal. I have never had any problems with different brands so I can't answer that.

3. Long term your enclosure should be as big as you can provide and considering the monster sizes some of these guys can reach , around 3 foot would be good.

I am not sure what conflicting information you may be seeing as most of the blue tongue caresheet information I have seen seems to be quite consistent , with perhaps only one or two tidbits of information.

Sounds like you really need a guidance to help you and I would highly recommend Keeping Blue Tongue Lizards by Grant Turner as it's very simplistic and accessible as well as gives you a general basis of all information and you really can't go wrong.