Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ok, that question sounds funny b/c I'm not sure if "wattage" is a word or else I would have used it. (Hey, it's late!) Anyway, I'm keeping two 5-7 inch babies in a 20 gal tank with 2 grapevine branches that allow them to climb up high, about 3-4 inches away from the top screen. I have a Repti-sun 5.0 for UV requirements & am using a 100-watt Day-glo bulb right now, but I am not sure if that is too hot (like when they are up top) or not hot enough (when they are below) or if I should get a 150-watt or a Halogen bulb or what? I'm also using a 75-watt Night-glo bulb for nighttime. Should I keep that on during the day too and/or get a 100-watt instead? What do you all recommend? PS, My thermometer is not reading which might be why I can't figure this out on my own, but I just ordered a new one.
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Danielle
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1.0 Chinese water dragon, 0.3 leos, 1.0 adopted iguana, 0.0.2 beardies, 2.0 green anoles, 1.0 blue anole, 2.1 bettas...

Well you def want to get a therometer and check temps before you put your babies inside the tank. You can get a regular one at Lowes or Home Depot for like $2 that will work okay until your other one arrives, but it's dangerous to not know the temps just in case it gets too hot (which can be deadly) or to cold (which can cause sickness.)

A 100watt bulb should be fine for one end of the tank. A 20Long will give them plenty of room to get away from the heat if they get too hot, but if it's a 20High then you may have problems with the heat gradient. It really depends on the ambient room temps of your house though... just make sure they ahve a basking spot of 115 degrees or so and ambient cage temps in the low 90's with a cool zone in the 80's and you should be good to go.

I would not put the night bulb on during the day, the 100w should be fine unless the room is very cold. At night the temps can drop safely down into the 70's so the night time bulb is not needed unless it drops down below that. You don't want it to stay real hot at night, they need a natural drop in temps to make them comfortable.

Goodluck with your new babies, that's pretty exciting you got some coming. Make sure to dust their food well with supplements and offer veggies & greens along with the crix and to mist them with water several times a day (babies get dehydrated real fast) and you should be set.

Post some pix if you got any when they come!

brandon
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Dragons by Nature

This is the only pic I have so far, I just got them today (actually since it's after midnight, I mean yesterday). I will post more pics when the sun comes up & they are awake... they have really cool colors already & are only 5-7 inches. I haven't even had them for 24 hours yet so I have many questions. I'm also going to redo the tank a little bit & maybe use paper towels instead of repti-sand.

Ok, so where in Home Depot do I look for a thermometer? I mean what aisle or department? It was hard enough for me to find a striplight fixture for the UV bulb even after I asked. LoL. I'm one of those girls who don't below anywhere near a hardware store! I swear the salespeople make fun of me when I walk by.

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Danielle
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1.0 Chinese water dragon, 0.3 leos, 1.0 adopted iguana, 0.0.2 beardies, 2.0 green anoles, 1.0 blue anole, 2.1 bettas...

Cool, a 20Long is much better for dragons... not only is it longer to get the heat away from, but not quite as high which brings the UVB and lighting closer to the dragon.

Tank looks great, that is a very nice looking setup. Yea, you will want to replace the sand in my opinion at such a young age. The paper towels will be much safer and you can monitor their stools fairly easily for the first few weeks. You also don't have to worry about sand impaction especially on their veggies.. at a tiny age that could cause some problems. That particular brand of sand is pretty debatable which I won't go into here, but playground sand sifted through a screen or strainer is a good way to go (and cheap) for dragons over 12" or so. I prefer paper for younger or smaller dragons and even for larger dragons.

Lol, ummm... i believe it would be under home gardening.. the one here has them on a side isle next to the digital therometers.. but i am sure wal*mart or kmart will have them.. it doesn't have to be digital they are just quick and easier.. for right now just a regular one will work.. something cheap and easy to get. i would get two. one for hte hot end and one for the cool end. the digital works good to go back and forth quickly and monitor the basking spot as well.

Feel free to email me if you have any questions. Forum has good info to a lot of times... you can do a search for certain things and/or read other posts about topics.. the more opinions and info you get the better I think... then take that info and apply it to your situation. I think that works best (as long as you follow the basic proper setup care.)

Congrats on your new beardies. That's very cool.. the babies are a ton of fun and they look great. Im off to bed 4am here I need my beauty sleep. lol (Quiet Cheri if you read this).

brandon
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Dragons by Nature

she didnt even get to electrocute herself wiring the fixture like i did!
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proud mama to:
1.0.0 ball python (mr snake),0.0.1 albino florida kingsnake (CK),1.1.0 leopard gecko (sebastian and vilma),0.1.0 colombian rainbow boa (luce),1.1.1 bearded dragon (kaipo, dulce, and kellen), 1.1.0 colombian redtailed boas (adam and eve)

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Dragons by Nature

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proud mama to:
1.0.0 ball python (mr snake),0.0.1 albino florida kingsnake (CK),1.1.0 leopard gecko (sebastian and vilma),0.1.0 colombian rainbow boa (luce),1.1.1 bearded dragon (kaipo, dulce, and kellen), 1.1.0 colombian redtailed boas (adam and eve)

okay.. that's not funny at all but LOL. Hey don't feel to bad... my brother spliced the end of a heavy guage extension cord and left it laying on the garage floor with the two wires exposed and just laying on the ground...

Needless to say, when i turned on the light to see in the garage the wires when hot and i walked across the floor barefoot, didn't see the wires, stepped on them barefoot and my whole body shoook for like 3 seconds before my momentum took me off the wires.. lol. kinda sucked so i feel your pain!

brandon

P.S. No more wiring advice from me.. lol
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Dragons by Nature