heat lamp and fixture question

Question
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Followup To
Question -
Hello I have heard that you can use normal household light bulbs as the heat sorce, is this true? also can the light be put in a reptile fixture that lays flat over the top of the tank(the one that holds a single bulb)?
Answer -
Hi,
thank you for your question.
Yes, you can use a normal household lightbulb for the basking spots. A 70-100 W bulb is sufficient but shouldn't be placed on top of the tank because then most of the heat would be absorbed by the glass.
I hope I was of some help
Jennifer



Hello Again, I was wondering if I could use a normal household side table lamp(on its side on top of the tank,with a metal pie plate to point the light into the tank, the bulb woudn't be touching the screen on top) to hold the normal household light bulb to provide heat just like one of the pricy reptile ones? I would only be using the table lamo for two weeks until I can get the proper reptile one.

Also do bearded dragons jump? as I will have a piece of hardware cloth(closly woven wire) on top of the tank and wouldnt want him to get out, he will have a basking area that is about nine inches from the top could he get out?


Answer
Hi,
for two weeks the lamp you plan to use will be okay.
Bearded Dragons can jump very well, I've seen mine jump about 15 inches to climb onto our couch. Maybe you should get something else as a lid, but then you may have a problem to ensure ventilation. Is there any possibility to insert ventilation openings into the sides of the tank? Then you could use plexi glass as a lid and weigh it down somehow.
If you cannot do this, you should definitely weigh down the screen lid so that the dragon cannot push it off and escape.
I hope I was of some help
Jennifer