Heating a 4x2x2 enclosure

[Killa J]

Hi, brand new bearded dragon owner here. I agreed to get one for my son for his birthday without doing enough research, so I’m going with a new, correctly appointed enclosure. I’m most likely getting a Zen 4x2x2, but also considering one from Maximum Reptile as well. Right now, I have a juvenile in a 20g long tank, and it takes a 50w halogen and a 50w Arcadia heat projector to get the basking temps right. When I get the larger enclosure, what should I use for heat? I plan on a 34” T5 UV and the LED light strip from Arcadia for light, so I’d prefer something that doesn’t light up for heat. The area of my house where the enclosure stays in the low 60s at night when it’s cold out.

 

[morgan6123]

I have the 4x2x2 zen enclosure and I love it! To heat mine up I use a 100w halogen bulb and a 100w ceramic heat emitter at night, since the room my beardy is in also gets down to the low 60’s at night during the colder months. Sometimes I use the CHE during the day too depending on how cold it is in the room. I hook my lights on the top of the inside of my enclosure, I tried putting them on the screen but it just would not get warm enough in it. Good luck!

 

[Sadie]

Hi, brand new bearded dragon owner here. I agreed to get one for my son for his birthday without doing enough research, so I’m going with a new, correctly appointed enclosure. I’m most likely getting a Zen 4x2x2, but also considering one from Maximum Reptile as well. Right now, I have a juvenile in a 20g long tank, and it takes a 50w halogen and a 50w Arcadia heat projector to get the basking temps right. When I get the larger enclosure, what should I use for heat? I plan on a 34” T5 UV and the LED light strip from Arcadia for light, so I’d prefer something that doesn’t light up for heat. The area of my house where the enclosure stays in the low 60s at night when it’s cold out.

I have 2 Zens -- I use a Exo Terra Intense 150 watt plus a 75 watt as well at the moment - on the basking side I use a piece of decor that offers different heat gradients on that side as well w/ temps averaging from 90's to 110 and taken w/ a digital probe thermometer - in the center of the tank is a 75 watt basking bulb behind the UVB which keeps center of tank 90's - I also use a 100 watt CHE ONLY ceramic heat emitter NO light in the winter when temps get below zero that keeps my tanks 70 at nite -- that is placed in the center of the tank --- I watch those temps during the day and usually haft to shut one or both off the 75's if temps get too warm and they often do if the temp outside is warm -- temps in the tank will go by the room temp --- the Arcadia 34" will be plenty I use a 24" in my 2 tanks - I am posting a pic of one of the tanks

 

[Killa J]

Would I be better off putting the basking spot in the center of the enclosure?

 

[Sadie]

Would I be better off putting the basking spot in the center of the enclosure?

It's up to you- if you can get the uvb and basking lamp together there then that's good

 

[Bailey]

Mine takes a 100W Repti-Basking bulb placed 6" above the basking decor. It heats their basking spots to about 95-100 degrees.