Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am thinking about setting up a cage and purchasing a bearded dragon. I know you need to UVB strip light, but is a regular light bulb good enough for the basking spot or do you need to buy those $10 bulbs from the pet store?

I suggest getting a basking bulb from somewhere besides a pet store, specialty shop. Typical household bulbs, usually "flood" or "spot" styles, work perfectly fine.

As far as what wattage you'll need, that depends on your setup, too many variables for me to begin guessing. Generally speaking, I believe a 45-watt is about the norm. However, to save me the time & hassle of trying different bulbs I generally get a 65 or 75 watt bulb and install a dimmer switch on the cord so I can adjust the output. You can get a rheostat from a pet store that comes prewired to where all you have to do is plug in your light.

A word of caution on bulbs: Some of the PAR floodlight bulbs have a clear section in the middle. Avoid these as there isn't any diffusion in that area and it can burn your dragon.

You can use the PAR style or the IR (indoor reflector) style of flood or spot bulbs, it doens't matter, in my opinion.

Have a good one!
HH
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Due to political correctness run amuck,
this ol' hillbilly is now referred to as an:
Appalachian American

I agree that you shouldn't spend the 10$ or so and choose from the plethora of light bulbs at the pet store.

I buy regular household lights (not the energy efficient kind, they don't give off enough heat) at either 75 W or 100 W. This depends on the size of the tank as well as how many lizards. I would suggest getting an undertank heater to held add to the ambient heat, and then getting an overhead light for heat as well. That way, at night, you can turn off the lamp but still have enough heat for your lizard at night near his sleeping spot.

First sentence was supposed to say "TO choose from the plethora of light bulbs". Sorry lol. Don't buy the bulb at the pet store pretty much.