Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have an extra 150F ceramic light bulb but am hesitant to use it in case of over heating but my cage does not seem to be heating up properly it sitting at about 86F. But I dont want to over heat my babie beardie either. NEED HELP AAAAAHHHHH

150F? are you trying to cook it? try out the light outside of his cage and test the temperature. possibly invest in a tempgun. (best decision i ever made) At 86F the beardies body is not doing a good job at fighting off bacteria. This is the problem with pet stores and sickly beardies, not enough heat. Especially at a young age, the temp should be around 120F. Maybe your heat lamp won't actually get to 150F. Try it out and if that doesnt work, stick a 100Watt bulb in his heat lamp for the time being. The cool spot of ur tank should be 86F. How big is ur tank by the way? you wouldn't want to put a heat lamp that reaches 120F if you just have a 10Gallon. The basking spot should be 120F and the cool spot should be 86F possibly cooler.
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*~*Erin*~*
0.1 Jazmin -leopard gecko- April 17, 2004 -needs a new home, I'm going off to college- interested?
0.2 Tiki and Tahlie -bearded dragon- July 18, 2004 -high oranges-
Blaze -bearded dragon- March 20, 2004-August 22, 2004 *~*Rest in Peace*~*

It's a 20 gallon and he's about 6inches. I have a thermometer in there and I have a 50 and 60 watt on him right now. My 150 watt was for my iguana (RIP) she died of old age. And I dont want to cook him that's why I posted the question So I'll try the ceramic bulb and hopefully it wont fry him or get to hot cause it is old.

a 150w bulb is a little high for a 20 gal tank. I used to use a 75w bulb to heat the basking spot for a 35 gal tank. A good digital thermometer with probe or temp gun is the best way to measure the surface temperature of the basking spot. Buy a 75w from the hardware store and try that instead of a 50 and 60 watt bulbs y ou have now. If the temp isn't quite right, rise or lower the basking spot and/or the light itself. For babies, the basking temp should be 100-115F, air temp about 85F and cool end somewhere near room temperature or around 70-80F
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PHLdyPayne

Are you trying to raise the heat of the whole cage or just one part? There should be a gradient so that your dragon can regulate it's temperature.