# Bearded Dragon heat mat.



## Youth (Dec 30, 2010)

Do I need to put my heat mat on a thermostat? I have a thin layer of sand over the top of it, I'm just concerned about it burning him? 

Thanks.


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## C4RL (Jun 9, 2010)

It's always advisable to use a thermostat with any heat source as to get the correct temperatures required and to stop over heating.
Hope this helps
Carl


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## dickvansheepcake (Jul 8, 2009)

You shouldn't really use a heat mat for a bearded dragon at all. Why are you using one, for night time heat?


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## roddy mac (Dec 10, 2009)

dickvansheepcake said:


> You shouldn't really use a heat mat for a bearded dragon at all. Why are you using one, for night time heat?


 
as above......

they need a basking spot so you should be using a basking bulb you still need to use a stat ... not a heat mat unless its for at night even then i'd use a blue night bulb


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## Youth (Dec 30, 2010)

Well.. Long story short, I brought a Juvenile Starter Kit from Pets at Home. I've seen some people on this forum with similar problems, the equipment they supply struggles to reach optimal temperature. It's a glass vivarium. I do have a 150W heat lamp with a basking spot for him. Some guy in [email protected] - He didn't work there - was telling me he has owned a lot of bearded dragons and I should try a heat mat to raise the temps. It's worked wonders, and Izzy seems to love lying on the sand above the heat mat. My heat lamp is on a thermostat but do I really need to buy another one to monitor the heat mat? I've read all over the internet and never encountered anybody who's had problems from using a heat mat :/..


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## dickvansheepcake (Jul 8, 2009)

Youth said:


> Well.. Long story short, I brought a Juvenile Starter Kit from Pets at Home. I've seen some people on this forum with similar problems, the equipment they supply struggles to reach optimal temperature. It's a glass vivarium. I do have a 150W heat lamp with a basking spot for him. Some guy in [email protected] - He didn't work there - was telling me he has owned a lot of bearded dragons and I should try a heat mat to raise the temps. It's worked wonders, and Izzy seems to love lying on the sand above the heat mat. My heat lamp is on a thermostat but do I really need to buy another one to monitor the heat mat? I've read all over the internet and never encountered anybody who's had problems from using a heat mat :/..



A heat mat is not suitable for bearded dragons, and is a danger to them especially when not on a stat. There are a lot of horror stories of dragons being burnt from lying on heat mats.
Bearded dragons are designed to take in heat from above. So they can sense heat coming from above them but not heat that is coming from below them so well. If a dragon lies on a heat mat for too long, they can heat up too much but will not sense it, this is when they start to burn.

If your set up is not suitable and isn't holding the correct temps then I'd suggest sorting a new one, not using equipment that isn't suitable and can be a danger. At the very least buy a mat stat and fix the heat mat to the side of the tank, not on the floor. 

By having an un-statted heat mat on the floor you are putting your dragon at risk.

With a 150watt bulb I'm guessing your basking spot should be ok and it's just ambient temps you're needing to raise, so a heat mat isn't suitable for that anyway.
Out of interest, what are the temps in the tank?

Jenny


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## stevemusson (Oct 16, 2010)

You're definately better off using a ceramic heater with a guard for night time heat and bulbs for basking spots. In my 4ft viv I have a 100 watt ceramic heater on a stat which is on 24/7 and 2 60watt spotlights for daytime heat. I had to experiment with the positions and wattage for a bit to get the gradient right though. They can burn themselves on heatmats because they heat the substrate and not the air


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## jools (Apr 4, 2009)

As Jenny says - what are the temps in your tank - at the basking spot and also the cool side.
TBH I HATE those starter kits - they are rubbish. For an animal, like a beardie, that needs high temps the glass vivs are a disaster. What I would suggest is that you try to insulate the tank for now by using polystyrene or cardboard. This should increase your cool side (ambient) temperature. If you need additional heat for night (it can safely drop down to 60F at night) then a statted heatmat on the side of the viv will help. 
As your beardie grows it will need a larger viv anyway - so get a wooden one. This will actually save a lot of money long-term in reduced heating costs. A 75Watt bulb is usually sufficient in a 4 foot viv.


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

Youth said:


> Well.. Long story short, I brought a Juvenile Starter Kit from Pets at Home. I've seen some people on this forum with similar problems, *the equipment they supply struggles to reach optimal temperature. It's a glass vivarium. I do have a 150W heat lamp with a basking spot for him*. Some guy in [email protected] - He didn't work there - was telling me he has owned a lot of bearded dragons and I should try a heat mat to raise the temps. It's worked wonders, and Izzy seems to love lying on the sand above the heat mat. My heat lamp is on a thermostat but do I really need to buy another one to monitor the heat mat? I've read all over the internet and never encountered anybody who's had problems from using a heat mat :/..


 
sounds like your thermostat probe for the heat bulb is in the wrong place. Unless you got an 8ft viv a 150watt bulb won't have any problem getting the temperature up.


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## Youth (Dec 30, 2010)

I know the starter kits are bad, I did mention that. But I only found out this forum existed after I brought my setup and beardie. I did a lot of research before hand but never came across anybody with problems. At the end of the day I'm buying a product which should be fit for purpose when it actually isn't. Anyway - Temps: Hot end thermometer is reading from my bearded dragons head height (about 2 inches off the floor) is reading around 92 degrees. Her basking spot is around 105-110 degrees. Her cool end thermometer (also at head height) is reading around 75-80. She seems to be very happy and has improved a lot from when she was in the pet store. They were feeding her over-sized locusts and she seemed to not like human contact at all. Now she will happily sit on me and explore me for as long as she can


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## stevemusson (Oct 16, 2010)

The advice about insulating the glass and putting the heat mat on the side is an excellent idea. When I got my first beardie 10 years ago they sold me a similar set up and he's 11 next month and still going strong lol! So it can work. He has a heat lamp etc. nowadays though. What you find is a lot of misinformation on the web but you just find out as you go along what works best for your dragon (I followed advice and unfortunately lost my first silkback after only 6 weeks recently) hope you enjoy them as much as I do


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## Youth (Dec 30, 2010)

stevemusson said:


> The advice about insulating the glass and putting the heat mat on the side is an excellent idea. When I got my first beardie 10 years ago they sold me a similar set up and he's 11 next month and still going strong lol! So it can work. He has a heat lamp etc. nowadays though. What you find is a lot of misinformation on the web but you just find out as you go along what works best for your dragon (I followed advice and unfortunately lost my first silkback after only 6 weeks recently) hope you enjoy them as much as I do


Yes I will most likely do that. Thanks for the reply, do you still use the set up you got when you first brought him? Yes I noticed that a lot of the information is contradicting and it's hard to know what's what. Sorry to hear about your silkback, it sounds like your beardie is doing much better. I hope it all goes well for you.


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