light setup for beardies in 4 foot aquarium?

[Danster]

Hi, I have a rescued eastern beardie that is only handfeeding; got hit by a car and his lower jaw was badly injured. He is feeding well now, although only from my hand, and it looks like national parks & wildlife are going to let me keep him as he is not feeding himself. I have him in a 4 ft aquarium, which is almost 2 ft high. I know the fluoro 10`s are only effective with within 30 cm; so i have tried to make his basking spot higher to get him closer to the UV. i cant really mount the fluoro lower, as the hooded light fitting sits on top of the tank. I would love some ideas for a heat/light setup for a 4 x 2 ft aquarium, as I want the best for this big fella. Also now he has settled in on getting him a female companion; would love a nice inland beardie but is it a good idea to keep these together? I know that inlands like it a bit warmer in their environment. What would be the youngest female I could put in with him; he is fully matured almost 22 inches long? Thanks so much guys; hope these aren`t silly questions just want the best for my beardie.

 

[Chris1]

good to hear hes recovering well and u get to keep him!!!


if you plan to get him a friend, they will most likely need to be housed seperately anyway, so be prepared with another cage fro when things start to go horribly wrong,...

also, u can cross breed easterns and centrals, but why would you want to? best to stick with the species u already have if ur planning to breed.

re lighting, i only provide heat in my cages, they get UV in sunning cages outside, or on screened windowsills. few hours a week seems to be plenty,...