New baby bearded dragon setup

Question
QUESTION: Hi Tracie,
Ive got a baby bearded dragon coming in around 10 days so I'm trying to get my tank ready. I have a 40 gal breeder(3' long 1.5' wide and 16" tall). I plan to put a piece of wood in the middle to cut it in half until he gets older. I have a 150 watt house bulb, white not colored, in a 150 watt ceramic base lamp. Should I switch that to an actual basking bulb? I know they have a much more defined spot as opposed to the all over light of the normal bulb. I'm getting a 24" ReptiSUN 10.0 for my UVB but I'm not sure what to put it in? I have a screen top on the cage and Ive heard that can reduce UVB quite a bit and with the cage being 16" tall how should I get it within 8" of the dragon? If I use a "UVB tube controller" I can have it inside the tank otherwise Id have to have a branch at least 8" tall to enable the dragon to get close enough. Also I'm worried that without the screen it will be hard to maintain proper heat since it rises through the top unhindered. Ive considered mounting a fixture for 2 tube lights to a piece of wood that would sit on top of the cage. It would be just wide enough for the fixture so airflow would be fine. In this case I would use the reptisun along side a regular bulb in the 5000k range  to simulate daylight. Would this be optimal? Again in that case Id need an 8" tall basking spot to get the dragon in proper range of the UVB. I already have tile for substrate and am starting a colony of dubia roaches. Will he be able to eat the nymphs as a staple? I have reptical without D3 and also a calcium/vitamin with D3(specifically for BDs) for dusting. Oh and I have a digital indoor/outdoor therm for temps. The probe is in the basking spot and the unit itself tucked away on the cold side. That way the "inside" temp will be the reading on the cool side and the "outside" temp would be from the probe in the basking spot. The basking spot is around 95-102 depending on the AC(which we run quite a bit) and the cool side is around 78-82. Please let me know what you think in general and more specifically how I should handle the UVB situation. Thanks in advance for your help!

ANSWER: Hello Mark,

Great you are getting his home ready for him before he comes home.  
The 40 gallon breeder is perfect sized for him.  No, the white house bulb is perfectly fine, the CRI on those is usually high. So no need to get an expensive basking bulb.  Halogen bulbs work really well also, & they get hot too.
The digital probe thermometer should be reading those temperatures just fine, so they are good where they are. So, overall the temperatures will be great for him.  
All of those options for mounting your Reptisun 10 tube bulb are workable.  Yes, the screen does filter out quite a bit of the UVB so if you do mount it on top of the screen it is vital to get him within 6-8 inches from the UVB light.  Using a daylight fluorescent tube bulb 5K alongside the Reptisun 10 would work very well.  Remember that the tube bulbs need to be replaced every 5-6 months to maintain optimal UVB emissions.  
If you could mount the UVB underneath the screen, that would be great but that may be difficult.  You could even cut a hole in the top of the screen if you wanted to.  I doubt that you will have a whole lot of trouble keeping the temperatures optimal though.  
The tile is super, much safer than sand & easier to keep clean also.  The dubia will be fine as a staple, no problem at all.  Great that you are starting your own colony of them.  You could  probably use phoenix or butterworms for him to supplement his dubias, also.
The Repcal calcium without D3 is fine, he will need that 5 times per week.  The vitamins with D3 only use that 2 times per week.   

Great job researching & getting his home ready for him before he come home.

Let me know what you decide about the UVB light, since you have several options.  You can post a picture of the tank as well when you are all done, too.  Also, one of your new little one when you get him.

Tracie

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks for answering so quickly! It sounds like I'm off to a good start and thats comforting. One last question for you.

I've been looking at a UVB controller and I'd like your opinion on it:  

http://lllreptile.com/store/catalog/reptile-supplies/light-fixtures/-/exo-terra-

The only 2 things I'm not sure about is how I would hang the lights and how to add a reflector to the UVB(I read it can almost double output) but assuming I can figure those out this seems to be an ideal system. It can hold 2 lights and has a timer built in. Plus the larger 40 watt means I can upgrade should I get a bigger enclosure down the road.

I'll be sure to post pics of all when its done.

Thanks again,

Mark

Answer
Hello Mark,

No problem, you are doing great!  :-))

The controller should work fine, it is a very good ballast which helps increase the overall UVB from the tube bulbs.  I think you should use a reflector, in combination with the electronic ballast it would help a lot.
That will be great, so you can upgrade to a larger tank later on.  
You can also go to a mercury vapor bulb as well, once you get a larger tank.  
Definitely a picture of the finished tank would be great!

Tracie