# Convert fishtank for bearded dragon



## julie.p (Jul 9, 2010)

To save on cost i have a Aqua One 980 that i thought i could convert to house a baby Bearded Dragon. The lady at the pet shop said i would just need to replace the fluro lights for a reptile type and add a ceramic heater which i thought i could have hubby attach a hook for it to hang from. Also i would get the glass people to make some vent holes in the glass. Apart from the obvious of having to access it through the top, does anyone else have any thoughts on this idea. I have enjoyed my fish but ready for a change and also it looks nice on its own stand etc.


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## imginy (Jun 14, 2009)

I have tried this before and have to say fishtanks make really bad vivs for bearded dragon its so hard to get the temps right and near on impossible to get temps correct during winter months.
It would be a lot better for the bearded dragon if you got a wooden viv : victory:

They do make nice feeding tanks for feeding beardies in but thats about it


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## Welsh dragon (Oct 27, 2009)

What if you either bought or made a rock background covering both sides and the back . would that make it easier for keeping the temps regular? I remember someone on here who bought a glass viv and thats what they done and I think he found it much better for keeping temps up.


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## shadesg53 (Jun 29, 2010)

*dragon tank*

I keep my Beardie in a converted fish tank and all is well.

But as said before just make a Nice background for the sides and the back to keep the heat in and it should be ok. :2thumb:


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## Kiel (Aug 20, 2009)

aside from the temps, the obvious issues would be:
size - standard fish tanks are rarely large enough for an adult beardie, they also tend to be built for height to some degree, wasted space for a beardie really.
lighting - the UV would be mounted in the hood i assume, this would likely be too far from the animal for real benefit
ventilation - beardies can put up with low ventilation better than quite a few other species but it's still far from ideal.

I can see why you're wanting to do it, I love the look of glass tanks too, but the requirements for the animal have to come first.

If you can work out ways around these problems (mounting the UV light further down in the tank for example) then go ahead, but it certainly needs more consideration than just swapping the bulbs over and sticking the beardie in.

good luck whatever you decide.

EDIT:

after quick googling, is this the tank you have? AquaOne 980 Aquarium, onlineaquariumstore.com

if so that's 98 W x 60 H x 47 D cm
which makes it just over 3foot long, 1.5 wide. in MY (just my own, people may disagree) opinion, this would not be suitable for an ADULT beardie.

but then i have mine in a 5x3 ft viv on his own heh...


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## Haggis (Jun 7, 2010)

they already said in the first post its for a BABY bearded dragon

fishtanks are fine to use, i used one and kept the temps fine but this wasin the summer i will be getting a big wooden one soon aswell so the tank was just a temp

if you can sort everything on it to make sure your BD gets everything he need then go for it


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## Kiel (Aug 20, 2009)

i missed that, but still, they don't stay babies for long


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## lee young (Oct 14, 2009)

It will be fine for the first 6 months to a year, just make sure the baby can get within 6-8" of the UV tube, either hang it down the back of the tank or build up some branc
hes so he can get near the top.

You will eventually need a 4ft x 2ft x 2ft wooden viv though, probably in less than a year, so make sure that you have the room and resources to deal with that.


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## Jaffali (Apr 12, 2010)

lee young said:


> You will eventually need a 4ft x 2ft x 2ft wooden viv though, probably in less than a year, so make sure that you have the room and resources to deal with that.



Sorry, hope you don't mind me jumping in on this thread, reason being I am thinking of doing this too. My fish tank that I have is 4ft x 2ft x 2ft. Would this be alright to keep a baby beardy in?

thanks


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## Kiel (Aug 20, 2009)

depending on the size the bearde grows to, airflow, position of UV and Gradient Temps it would be fine.


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## julie.p (Jul 9, 2010)

Thanks everyone for all your thoughts, it gives me heaps to go by. Thanks


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## lee young (Oct 14, 2009)

Jaffali said:


> Sorry, hope you don't mind me jumping in on this thread, reason being I am thinking of doing this too. My fish tank that I have is 4ft x 2ft x 2ft. Would this be alright to keep a baby beardy in?
> 
> thanks


As long as everything is right temps/humidity wise then yes. The problem is that it is very difficult to maintain good temps in a glass tank, wood is such a better insulator than glass that it helps absorb any peaks or troughs in the temperatues.

You need to keep an eye on moisture levels too because obviously a glass tank has less ventilation than a purpose built viv, and prolonged periods of high humidity are bad news for beardies.


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