LIGHTING

Bearded dragons are diurnal, meaning they are active during the day and sleep at night. The circadian Rhythm and activity levels depend on good bright light and a period of darkness for night. The use of colored bulbs is not recommended. If heat is needed at night, a ceramic heat emitter that produces no light can be used. More on those in HEATING.  A lot of behavior problems are due to poor husbandry, or poor conditions with light, heat, temp. These are fixable before a problem arises.

                                             UVB

One of the most important bulbs you can have is one that produces UVB. Without UVB a dragon cannot absorb nutrients from food, can develop MBD, and have numerous other problems. UVB can be produced by a fluorescent tube type bulb or a mercury vapor bulb. LED is becoming an option but is still unproven. A good linear tube light is recommended. The coiled compact UVB bulbs are not a good choice because the light is concentrated in a narrow beam that can harm the dragon. A linear bulb comes in two sizes, a t8 and t5. The t8 is fatter and the t5 is more powerful. A t8 cannot go through mesh and must be installed inside of the enclosure. Glass and plastic also block UVB, so a window nearby is not an option. These bulbs will come in different intensities as well. A 5.0 is more tropical, a 10.0 is desert and the lowest that is recommended. 12.0 and 14.0 are also readily available. The more intense the output, the farther away it can be from the basking area. 
10.0-usually 9"-11" on mesh and 14"-17" without

14.0-usually 10"-12" on mesh and 14"-18" without

Mesh blocks up to 45% of output and the best way to test is with a solar meter. These are expensive and another option is a uvb card. It color changes according  to uvb output. The UVB bulb should be at least 1/2 of the enclosure length, starting on the warm side.

Mercury vapor bulbs are another option for UVB and they combine heat with UVB. Problem is that are pricey, expire in 6 months, and have too narrow a beam to cover 1/2 the enclosure.

UVB bulbs expire in 6 to 12 months. The problem is they still produce light, just no UVB.  
Basking bulbs and heat bulbs produce visible light along with heat. Most if not all of your heat will come from the light bulbs so that leads us to heating. Remember dragons love light and if your tank is still too dim with the proper wattage bulb, a led light can supplement with little heat.

 

 

                                     HEATING

All lizards need a distinct day and night cycle to maintain their natural rhythm. Nighttime temps can drop to about 50, but ideally, they should be kept at 60-75.

Dragons are a basking type of lizard meaning they use heat directly from an overhead source that mimics the sun. There must be a temperature gradient in order for the dragon to regulate body temperature. They need to be able to escape the heat even though high temps can be tolerated. They can and will overheat. Yr basing bulbs should be on one side or the other in order to create a temperature gradient. Basking surfaces can be made from stone, tiles, branches, or logs, but stay away from most plastics or adhesives as they can fume when heated. Stone absorbs more heat than stone, but both are good options. 

Basking bulbs should be about 10"-14" from the basking surface. If the bulb (which should be checked with a temp gun) needs to be closer to the animal, then a protective shield should be on the fixture to keep from causing burns. Its best to use a high wattage bulb to create the necessary heat for your dragon. The wattage = heat output. To make the basking area hotter the area can be raised or wattage increased. Same for cooler, less wattage. The bulbs can also be put on dimmers to make it custom. Be aware though that halogen bulbs provide hotter temps at lower watts. I just remember how flammable they were and tend not to use them. 
If supplemental heat is needed a long with the bulbs, or nighttime is too cold, a CHE, or ceramic heat emitter can be used. These are heat bulbs that produce no light and can also be dimmed. Using a temp gun a nice temp can be achieved using both bulbs and the bulb can stay on all night if it helps make the temps right. Having a temp gun is essential to create proper ambient temp and gradient. These should be used in addition to the digital thermometers in both ends of the enclosure. 

CAGE TEMP                                  HUMIDITY
warm side: 78-90 ambient               30%-40%

basking: 95-110

cool side: 68-75

night: 60-75