Habitat - Indoor :: Basking Area opinions and help...

[bredsun]

So here is the basking area I just built for my 6 baby RES.




They have only hung out on the ramp a little, and only the runt has made it up to bask at the top. It's only been a few days so I'm not too worried, but I was wondering if anyone had an opinion on how I can improve and what they think of the setup.

The water is about 78 degrees and the basking area is about 8 degrees warmer.

[bredsun]

The ramp and bottom are made of egg crate covered in golf green carpet.

[auto119]

what size tank do you have?

[PcBuilder14]

Also what kind of bulb is that? A UVB or a heat bulb, because you need both/
For a UVB bulb you need a 5.0 UVB and around a 60-75 wat heat bulb depending on tank size.

[bredsun]

Its a 55 gallon tank and it's only a UVB. It seems pretty warm though. If you think I need both then whats the deal with the heat bulb?

[marisa]

UVB lights are flourescent and really doesn't give off that much heat. It would be good if you checked the temp with a thermometer---put it under the light where they'd bask and leave it there for about 20 min, then check the temp. You want the basking area temp to be in the range of 88-90F. Use a wattage that will get it somewhere in that range (or adjust the distance of the light from the basking area).