40 Gallon Zilla Critter Cage Breeder tank.

[Scotty]

I just purchased this and moved my Baby beardie into this tank. I have 2 under the tank heaters from zoo med one a 40 gallon size and the other a 10 gallon tank. Now. My concern is I am using a ZooMed 75 watt basking bulb. It came free as a bonus with the new fixture. But will this be hot enough for the size of the tank? My probe thermometer says 73 degrees on the cool side and at the hot side the other thermometer reads 96 degrees. My beardie is 1 month and a week old. Thanks.. Btw. I know the enclosure is a tad large, but it has always been hand fed since in my care for a little over a week now. Small crickets, a mealworm here and there and then also it loves peas.

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

You shouldnt need the under tank heaters especially since I saw in another thread that you use Playsand substrate...it holds heat...currently our Mungi is in a 40 galllon breeder and in order to get his basking temp up to 101-105 proper range we use a 100 watt ReptiSun bulb...keeps his basking spot right and during the day his cool side at 80-82 degrees...we have a 2nd 25 degree bulb over his eating platform but its florescent and only to provide light because we keep the live video stream on all day. 9a-9p...he also has his florescent tube uv light...at nite all lights out and as long as his enclosure doesnt drop below mid 60s it all good and actualy helps him sleep more soundly. We do have a CHE on standby in the winter just in case
Personally if I were you I would take back the under tank heaters and invest in probe thermomters or if you already have those then toward proper lighting

Hope that helps!

 

[Germ]

If it is on sand, a 5 week old BD should not be on any particle substrate. It sounds like you will need a hotter bulb. I agree with Buddha on the under the tank heaters, they are not necessary, other than possibly for night heat, should it be absolutely necessary because your night ambient room temps drop below the mid to low 60's F.

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

As a side note am not sure how old or big you Baby is...if he is still a juvenile his basking spot should be a little higher like 110 degrees..this can be accomplished by using the setup I mentioned and raising the basking spot up a little
I can not however stress to you enough that digital thermometers with probes are a necessity with the tank you purchased....its the only way to get accurate temps in a tank so if you dont have them get them and be sure to place the probe directly on your basking spot and also in the coolest spot to get things right

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

Thanks for pointing that out Germ...I missed the age of his Baby...Yes please if he is only 5 weeks old get the sand out of the enclosure..there are plenty of safe substrates for baby and juvenile beardies...sand is NOT for youngsters...Only Adults and over 11 inches in length;-) No particulate substrates should be used at this time for your baby.

 

[Scotty]

Thanks for pointing that out Germ...I missed the age of his Baby...Yes please if he is only 5 weeks old get the sand out of the enclosure..there are plenty of safe substrates for baby and juvenile beardies...sand is NOT for youngsters...Only Adults and over 11 inches in length;-) No particulate substrates should be used at this time for your baby.

I don't have sand in his enclosure. I have sand already, to put in when he is older. But he has green cage carpet for now. And yes I have digital probe thermometers.

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

Awesome Scotty...you are doin just right then! Sorry for my confusion Try the higher watt baskin bulb and you should be able to get the temps up right and I would still trade in the undertank heaters..can use that money for the new basking bulb and your set;-)

Have a great nite!

 

[Scotty]

Awesome Scotty...you are doin just right then! Sorry for my confusion Try the higher watt baskin bulb and you should be able to get the temps up right and I would still trade in the undertank heaters..can use that money for the new basking bulb and your set;-)

Have a great nite!

I definitely will!! I paid 25$ for that heater lol should I get a 100 watt basking bulb or a 125? I don't want to bake him but I dont want it to be too cold either lol

 

[Germ]

The type & wattage of heat bulb that you will need will depend on many variables, such as your normal ambient room temps, distance from the basking spot to bulb, density of the screen and the list goes on. The only thing that will tell you if a bulb is working & hot enough is an accurate thermometer. We all have to play with types, wattages, distances & relative orientation of the heat bulbs until we find that right combination that will give us the temps needed.

It is also up to you if you want to pay exorbitant pet store prices when equivalent or better bulbs can be found at a local hardware store for less than half the price that will do as good or better job.

Personally, I use regular Philips Halogen Flood type bulbs purchased at Home Depot in all of my enclosures. Cheaper to buy & run, more heat per watt, brighter whiter light, superb penetration\radiation into the enclosure. A 50W halogen flood will put out more whiter light, as much as or more heat than a 100 watt spotlight. A 75W Halogen flood will put out more whiter light, as much as or more heat than a 150 watt bulb. Any White or Clear incandescent type bulb of sufficient wattage to give you the temps required will do the job very well. An overpriced Pet Store acquired Bulb, is not necessary.

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

I would.try a 100 watt...that is what we use and it is in a deep dome reflector..believe the dome is a ZooMed Deep..sits right on top of the screen but I have a custom light rack that I build for all our tank enclosures that it hangs from...made from pvc pipe and allows the lights to be raised or lowered...as I said our 100 watt rests directly on the screen...you will have to experiment a little...I havr found tho that most pet shops will exchange lights so if you try the 100 watt for a couple of days and decide you need to go 125 then take it back...might wanna ask them when you go buy it but the stores here have never had issues with me doing that.
The reason I cant tell you exactly which will work for you is it is partially dependent on your house temps...we keep our house about 72 to 74 degrees in Summer ..the room that Mungi is in is not directly air conditioned but the doors stay open so it does get cool...stays about 75 to.78 degrees in there and since these breeder tanks have screen tops it lets out a lot of heat so the higher wattage bulb compensates.
The new enclosure that I.will have him in in a couple of weeks is enclosed so I.wont need as big a bulb...also as far as basking bulbs go you dont have to necessarily use the pet store ones...halogen flood light bulbs that can be purchased at home depot and the like work great....I would recommend you starting with the ReptiSun tho....halogen floods will require more testing because they put out much more heat at lower wattage and I.cant tell you where to start with that on the breeder tank.
Thoroughly confused yet? Lol
Try the ReptiSun 100 watt for a few days...if temps still wont get in right range then adjust...might be as simple as raising the basking spot a few inches or raising the light a little if too hot.
Takes some close observation in the beginning with these lil dragons but once you get things set up correctly for your conditions then its a piece of cake!
Hope this helps!

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

Lol....as you can see Germ and I think very alike...he has had more experience with the halogens than.I.have so if you decide to try that definitely go with his suggestion on wattage...Mungi's new enclosure will have a phillips halogen...they are much more efficient and cheaper in the long run and I definitely like the fact that they offer whiter light for our dragons but they will be an experiment for me too so I was only recommending what I.know works when recommending the ReptiSun

@Germ...been meaning to ask you if there is any difference in the Phillips Halogen and the Phillips Halogena bulbs? Both are available here and I.havent been able to find clear info on the difference if any.

 

[Germ]

Halogenas do not put out the same heat or light as the Halogen. You can generally tell by the Lumens rating on the box. I only tried the Halogena once & it was quickly replaced by the Halogen .

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

@Germ...Thank ya,Sir...I was kinda figuring there was a difference...saw the different lumens but then had read on net that it was just an advertising thing and that the output of both was in actuality the same..thanks for clearing that up for me and since you have the experience using them both I am.gonna stick with the real Halogen.
Time for me to hit the rack...have a great rest of your evenin,Germ and thanks again!

 

[Germ]

recommending the ReptiSun

Do you mean a Zoo Med basking bulb? I haven't run across a basking bulb called Repti-Sun , I always thought that was a UVB moniker. Maybe I should open my eyes ... . Let me know if I should look harder - lol

 

[thorn]

Right now I have a 90 watt Phillips Halogen flood light and it's not hot enough. I need to upgrade to like 125watt and move him closer to the light too. I'm having trouble getting his basking temps over 103 in the daylight and as soon as the sun sets the temp drops to like 85.

 

[Germ]

There is definitely something wrong with this picture. Exactly where & what with are you measuring your temps, what type of thermometer. Would you please post pics of your setup, showing the lighting arrangement & thermometer.

When I use a 90Watt Philips Halogen Flood in my 90 Gallon enclosures above a coarse screen, directly below the bulb at the floor 22" away, the temps reach 100+F & is much more than enough to give me my cool side temps in the 12 cubic foot enclosure. I generally use a 75 Watt in there, that does the job quite nicely. A 40 Gallon breeder is approximately 6.5 cubic feet. I find it very difficult to believe that a 90 watt Halogen will not heat a 40 gallon breeder when the floor can not be any further than 16 inches from the screen, unless you live in an igloo .

Do your room temps drop that drastically when the sun goes down ?

In my other enclosures with a 75W halogen pointed diagonally at an angle towards the basking spot, I get basking temps of 110 at 16", this is without a screen though. At 11-12" with a 50W.

Please post pics.

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

Yes please post pics of your enclosure/ lighting set up because Im a little befuddled too...thought you said that you were using the 75watt bulb that came with your setup but perhaps you have changed out since initial post...also where are you placing the probes on in your enclosure...one should be directly on the basking spot...I can tell you for fact that placed even a couple of inches away can give a much different reading...I have one place at Mungi's basking spot as well as about 3 inches away from it specifically as a experiment and can tell you that readings are about 5-7 degrees different between them.
Also if you have your enclosure, tank type especially, placed beside a window that the sun shines thru then your temperatures will drastically fluctuate depending on how much sunlight is coming into the tank. There is a.window behind Mungi's tank at present but we keep the blinds closed specifically because the direct sunlight made it impossible to level off his tank temps..opted for.closing that window off and.opening the shades across the room...he can still have an outside view but no.direct sun shining through the glass of his tank...after making that adjustment was able to level off and get his temps right easily and.quickly

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[ThDude]

I use a 100watt halogen bulb for my 40gallon breeder tank and its more then enough for my tank, i have to keep it further away from his basking spot just to keep the heat down to the right temps.

a90watt should not be that much less then mine so adjust the distance of the bulb from the basking spot, also if you have a screen on your tank that will effect how much light and heat is getting in.

 

[Germ]

@ Buddha - What about my question about the reptisun above, do I have to look harder

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

@Germ...was reading thread on startin roach colony and just saw your question..lol...and I had missed that earlier...You are correct..it was my miss statement..the basking bulb that is in Mungi's enclosure right now is a ZooMed 100 watt Repti Basking Light...not ReptiSun Basking Light..I recently had to replace his ReptiSun UV light and still stinging in my head from the 60 bucks I had to.shell out for that at the local pet shop because it went out suddenly and I didnt realize I didnt have spares left in my stock so not enough time to order as I usually would do..lol...thank you again for the correction..I certainly do not want to give out misinformation

Also on the note of UV lighting I am curious on your view of tube verses coil...I have used coil types for some applications in past with some of our other reptiles and in the beginning used them with Mungi...have since changed to tube for him tho because a while back was reading a couple of online articles stating the dangers of the coil type to specifically bearded dragons having to deal with the length of the light wavelengths and potentially causes blindness in beardies over time...at the time I read these I had noticed a change in Mungi's behavior where he appeared to be having trouble seeing his crickets during feeding and would literally bump into walls on the chase or give up totally and just not go after them...I started researching and came across that info...immediately changed to tube type and within a week or so he didnt have issues with zeroing in and nailing his feeders nor has he had any issues since...I am not trying to raise alarm unnecessarily but am just curious as to your experience or knowledge on the subject!

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