Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok, i have a 48 inch repti glo flourescent light, a 75 watt duramax bulb witha clamp lamp, carpeting, a 50 gallon tank, uth, themometers, hydro meter, and something for him to climb on, i'm wondering if there is anything else i'll need before i get one. and also, according to the thermometer when it is stuck to the side of the tank right next to the heat lamp it says that the temp is around 90 f. yet when i put it on the basking stick it gets up to about 150 degrees, which of these should i be going by? would it be best to go get a 60 watt duramax instead, or just get a normal bulb
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0.1.0 leopard gecko
0.1.0 rudis chameleon
0.0.1 white's dumpy treefrog
0.0.1 house gecko (currently missing)
1.0.0 rabbit
0.1.0 dogs
1.2.0 cats
2.0.0 goulian finchs

You do need to measure the basking point (the area closest to the bulb where the dragon will sit) 150 is way to hot! Try for 110 for a juvenile or 100 for an adult.

Also, what kind of thermometer are you using? If it's one of those dial type from the pet store,, throw it out. They are by far, inaccurate. Next time you at a pet store, look as several of them on the rack. You will see several temps but they should all read the same.
Get either or a digital thermometer with a probe (in/out thermometer) They run about $10 from Wal-Mart. Or, a IR temp gun. These are nice because you can go cage to cage & check temps at all points of the cage, instantly. (they read surface temps which is better when trying to get proper basking temps.)
They run $20 - $75. Check the Radio Shack flyers in the paper, they go on sale for $20 all the time. Pro Exotics has one for $35 I believe.

Good luck.
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Joel R

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