Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I've purchased a 75 gallon tank for my bearded dragon...it is 48"x18"x24"...the substrate is ceramic tile...the temp of my home is 75 degrees...I have a screen top...
still working on getting the right light for the right temp...
trying spot lights and flood lights...starting to feel like he'll never move in...
any suggestions on a good type of rock to get for basking spot...had two...took days cleaning and drying to be on safe side,only to find neither retains heat well...

A friend of mine gave me a very large but very nice piece of red sandstone type rock for my Bearded Dragon.

To make a long story short, the thing is large and heavy enough that I had to keep a CHE radiating onto it all day and all night for it to do what I wanted. If I shut all the heat sources off it would take too long the next day for the rock to heat up again.

Now that I leave the CHE on 24/7 the rock does an excellent job of distributing heat around the cage. I have lights that bring the total temp up to suitable basking levels.

But, my cage has a solid top with a false-ceiling. Even though it's about the same ventilation as your cage I'm able to reflect some of that heat back into the cage.

You may have to modify that screen top. If you're not using tube-type bulbs you could cover most of it with aluminum foil. You could still do that with the tube bulbs but it won't work as well.

>>I've purchased a 75 gallon tank for my bearded dragon...it is 48"x18"x24"...the substrate is ceramic tile...the temp of my home is 75 degrees...I have a screen top...
>>still working on getting the right light for the right temp...
>>trying spot lights and flood lights...starting to feel like he'll never move in...
>>any suggestions on a good type of rock to get for basking spot...had two...took days cleaning and drying to be on safe side,only to find neither retains heat well...
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Current snakes:

0.2 Gonyosoma oxycephala - (Silver/Yellow)

3.3 Gonyosoma oxycephala - (Green)

2.1 Gonyosoma janseni - (Black)

3.3 Gonyosoma janseni - (Black & Tan)

I currently have a rock that works great but he'll soon outgrow it...I have no idea what type of rock it is...we built the screen top to open in sections for ease of access...I'm still trying but guess I need to finsd a propwer rock...since the height of rock can affect basking heat...I was thinking a spot light might work for the basking area and a flood light to help keep the rest of the tanks temps at proper level...

I never heard of a rock retaining heat. Once you shut off the basking light they start to go down to room temp.
All rocks will get to temp that your spot basking light brings that area to. You can go to a garden place or rock style place to find what you want. Even cement hollow cinder blocks are fine for dragons to bask on.

>>I never heard of a rock retaining heat. Once you shut off the basking light they start to go down to room temp.

Some rocks are better able to absorb and retain radiant heat. In fact they tend to vary dramatically. It can make a difference, even enough that night-time temps never reach room temps.

When I added my large rock it totally changed the gradiant in the cage.

A month or so ago someone put some clay flower pots in their Vision cage and noticed the cool side increased by 8*.

It's fun to play around with, at least for a science-geek like me
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Current snakes:

0.2 Gonyosoma oxycephala - (Silver/Yellow)

3.3 Gonyosoma oxycephala - (Green)

2.1 Gonyosoma janseni - (Black)

3.3 Gonyosoma janseni - (Black & Tan)

I would reccomend slate or bricks thats what i use seems to work well.

Derek

I have used rocks for yrs and that never occured to me. I only use like 3 different types with broken large pieces of cement cinder blocks for my skinks basking areas.
looking back on it tho I do think my cinder blocks do retain heat better than my slate rocks.
Just never thought about it. Thought all the same.

Okay, go walk barefoot on the concrete sidewalk anywhere in the country when it's stayed around 90 durin the day... you'll burn your feet if you dont haul it! lol.. but seriously concrete is just a form of rock... yes it will lose heat once the heat source is gone but if you heat it up it will absorb some and help radiate it out vs all the heat waves bouncing out.
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-Chris

The reason mainstream thought is thought of as a stream is because it's so shallow. -George Carlin

A fool doesn't learn. A smart man learns from his mistakes. A wise man learns from the mistakes of others. Which one are you?

My Website
N. American Rat/Corn snake care sheet I wrote
Information on substrates

Current snakes:
0.1 Licorice Stick Black Rat (Lola)
1.0 Black Rat (Frankie)
0.1 Texas Bairdi (Rosa)
0.1 Blue Beauty (Brunhilde)
1.0 Green Tree Python (Monty)

Yes that makes sense. My cinder blocks used in my skink tanks do hold heat well. I never thought thee was a difference in rocks untill read it here.