Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey there, Im planning to make my own aquarium and i have a question,

would something 50"x20"x15" (LxWxH) be suitable for 1 adult male?

i wanna mnake one like that and section of pieces of it as he grows (every 1 ince he grows etc...)

i heard that u shouldnt have ur UVA/B bulb mor ehtne 1 foot away but all the aquariums ive seen its like 20-28 innches away

so if my uva/b bulb was right ontop of the cage would that be fine?

also if its 3 sides plywood (sides back) and one side glass (Front) would that be o.k.?

thanx

oh and the bottom would also be plywood and the top would be mesh

and i wanna use a heat bulb (one that doesnt give of light) because im gonna use a thermostat to keep the temp up and i wouldnt want a bulb turning on off all the time while the thermostat regulates temp

while hes young im gonne use reptile carpet for the flooring but once he gets his full size (and uses all the aquarium) im thinking of switching to finely sifted playground sand (washed)

or would it be ok to use calci-sand?

the guy at the pet stre said it would be o.k. but i dont trust thos ppl (they had sand in a adult panther cham's AQUARIUM! sigh...)

thanx again

bulbs and light: there is a general rule about light you may want to know about called the "inverse square" like this:

if a light gives off 4 foot candles at of light 1 foot, when moved to 2 feet it covers 4 sqaure feet with the same light but now each square foot gets 1 foot canndle. this is mostly about visible light, short wave light (UVA,UVB) is more effected by distance and material than visible light.

so plan ahead, you may want to custom mount some lights, also use 2 different kinds of light. for example a long tube and a Mercury vapor bulb for creating a hot basking area with extra UV.

as for materials.... wood can be ok.

some things to think about:

Cleaning and Water

while a bd is not a "wet" herp you do need to clean up.

you may want to check out the laminate sheets used in making custom counter tops. you can attach it to plywood with standard adhesives for use in bathrooms and the like and have a smooth clean interior that is water proof and easy to clean.

also if you use an off white shade then it will help make the inside "Brighter" by reflecting some of the light.

do make sure to use *NON TOXIC* types of Glue, resin, paint and so forth. if you want to use a wood finish there is a marine grade poly-urithane that you can use, if can give a very good wood finish that will be safe and will not let the wood get mould or fungus. but you must allow plenty of time for vapors to dissipate when any glue, vanrish or other chemicals have been used. often you need to allow 3-5 days for the process of curing to finish. check the product carefully.
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i wouldnt use sand yet. you said he's a young beardy, and sand could be hard on his disgestive system. use paper towels untils hes full grown just to be safe. then, you could get a premium play sand at home depot for cheap. its really fine and works great.

thanx alot

i do have a finish which is non-toxic

and im gonna use silicone to connect the glass, its the same stuff used in just about everysingle aquarium

and im using reptile carpet (the "grass" version) until he gets his full age (13 or so months) and is using all the cage, then im gonna add washed sifted playground sand and take him to the vet (my petsmart vet can take kare of lizards) every month to make sure there is no impactation

don't use the calci sand. It's not safe for any reptile of any age.

You shouldn't have to use a thermostate to keep the temperatures in the tank the same all the time. There should be a drop in temperature at night anyway, and having it the same temperature all the time may be more distressing than anything. Daytime temps should be around 85-90F air, basking 95-115F on top of basking area. Cool area should be around 75-85 F. Nights should cool down to about 65-70 F. The only time you would need heat on at night is if your house temperature drops below 65F (drops to 60F once in awhile is alright, but too low will be a risk to your dragon's health).

What really needs to be regulated if the amount of light per day. For most days, it should be 14 hours daylight, 10 hours night, unless you want to induce brumation or bring a dragon out of brumation.

You deffinitely need a UVB producing light. The tube florescent style lights need to be at 8"-14" from your dragon's basking spot to be most effective. The Mercury vapour bulbs have to be at least 18" above the basking area, too close and they can harm your dragon. I have my UVB tube on a duo florescent fixture (like you would see in a workshop) suspending from the roof of the cage (part I left solid wood, to allow this) so it's about 10" from the basking spot.

I would be carefull about using a heat bulb that doesnt give off light. Beardies seem to not to so well when they dont have a bright basking spot. They dont eat as well and get sluggish

calcium sand is evil

Amen on the light!

I often call BD's "Solar Powered" due to the connection to light and how VERY VERY important it is.

keep a BD in a room that is not bright and it will sleep.

and if the light is too strong in one area and not enough in the rest of the area they get all funky with that...

it's like they need to see a "BRIGHT SUNNY DAY" when you want them to wakeup and be active. if you have say a spot at one end of a tank and no strong backgound lite on the rest of the tank and or the room is too dark and they see it's dark they sometimes just don't like it and go to sleep.

My BD watches the living room window to see if the sun is out.
he realy can tell and is much more active if the living room window is open... and he is like 25 feet from it.
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