55 Gallon Tank Setup Questions and Suggestions

[parker_roo]

Hey everyone! I recently took advantage of Petco's $1 per gallon sale, and bought a 55 gallon tank! Now that I have my hands on one, I will be spending this summer setting it up. But I do have some questions before I start, and I am asking for your feed back and suggestions on what to do.

First of all, for heating my tank, I am going to use an Ultratherm UTH. But what size will I need for this? I plan on insulating the Ultratherm, but I don't know what size will keep it up to the proper heat.

Next question, for people who have setup their own 55 gallon tanks, about how much substrate did you use? I am planning on buying bags of play sand, and mixing it with EE. I already have about 3 bricks of EE, will I need more? And how many bags of play sand will I need?

That is all my questions for now, but as I go along, I am sure I will have more to ask. Thank you!

[CallaLily]

The 6x47" if you want to keep it above the substrate line. They also have an 11x47" one if you don't mind it dipping a little below the substrate. This is probably what I'm going to order for my 75 eventually (a 55 is the same length and height, just narrower).
It's always recommended to get the largest size you can fit on the outside back, all or mostly above the substrate line. You may need to insulate it too. Unless your house is always very warm, then you may get away with a smaller one and no insulation.

[CrabbySquirrel]

I setup a 55 gallon just last year - If I remember correctly, I used 3-4 bags of play sand (since it's so cheap, I would get 4 just to be safe), 1 EE brick per bag. I got the 11x47 Ultratherm that CallaLily mentions above and it just meets up with my substrate line. I also would highly recommend a false bottom - I have pictures somewhere here on the forum if you want me to link it (and there are other people who have documented theirs with pictures as well - just do a search on "false bottom" and you should get some good posts on it)

Good luck - congrats on the 55!

[Kleinerhejhog]

I used one bag of sand with one brick of ee too, that seemed to work pretty well. I used three of each, which gave me eight inches of substrate. I'm thinking that I probably should have used three and a half of each so that there's still eight inches after it settles some. Just something to think about. I personally think a false bottom is well worth the time, just for the peace of mind.

[parker_roo]

Thanks you everyone one for your input! I actually have already started on my false bottom, I just need to find the time to finish it... And I better hurry, because everyone is currently up now from molting. I will probably be purchasing the 11x47 Ultratherm. But quick question, is the Ultratherm Seed Propagation Mat, 11x47 the same thing as the UTH? It is the only 11x47 Ultratherm I see on Amazon, here is the link. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005NFOKBM/re ... NvbW5BN3NA

Also thank you for letting me know about how much substrate I will need, it saves some trips to the store for having to buy more or return what I didn't use.

[CallaLily]

For me, when I compared prices plus shipping from Bean Farm, Reptile Basics, and Amazon - I found I saved a few $ going with Reptile Basics.

I'm not sure if there's a difference there. I haven't seen it listed like that before.

[Kleinerhejhog]

I ran into the same thing, the seed mat was the only thing I saw on Amazon; turned out even with shipping Reptile Basics was cheaper, and I was certain I was getting what I wanted.

[parker_roo]

Awesome, looks like I will be buying it through Reptile Basics, thanks for the suggestions, I like to save money!

[parker_roo]

I just ordered my Ultratherm through Reptile Basics! It should arrive in a few days!

[Kleinerhejhog]

Woohoo! New stuff is always exciting.