enclosure and lamp

[jerseyrugby21]

the enclosure that i will be getting is a 18x18x36 enclosure. granted i will be also getting a baby veiled chameleon.
is this to big for the baby? becausei have done resurch and some websites say that you should start out small and work your way up to the larger seize cage while others say the bigger the better.
also i should i go with the 5.0 uvb lamp or the 10 i have read that mostly the 5 is for the best but i am goign to be putting it on the top of a screen enclosure and that you lose some streanth by going though the screen. i have a resonably cold house also. for instance the current tempeture in my house is 67 and i dont want the little guy to either be to cold or to warm.
also, dealing with a plant should i have some sort of lift for the plant so that it can propely drain or is it ok to just have it sit an the bottom of the enclosure?
i apologise in advance for the rambling i just want to make sure that everything is perfect.
-Matt

 

[kaylie]

If you could find a way to block off the bottom half until he/she is big enough, it would make it easier for you so you don't have to buy an extra cage. Male or female? If it's female, that size is good for adult. A male I'd suggest minimum 24x24x48 for an adult. I have my male veiled in a home made 2x3x4.5 (in feet) at 6 1/2 months old. Go with 5.0, and just use different housebulbs with different wattages to play around till you get the temps right- ambient in the low to mid 70s, and basking spot should be 81-83ish. At night they can handle the temp you stated your house is, night temp drops are what they'd get in the wild.
For the plant, I used a ceramic pots with small holes in the sides and one on the bottom. Water can soak through the ceramic and out the holes. If you use a plastic pot with only a hole on the bottom, sure, raise it up so your plant doesn't stay soaked. Use something like screen or river rocks to cover the soil so if a bug goes in the pot, your cham won't accidentally eat the soil.

 

[jerseyrugby21]

kaylie
yea i will be getting a male. i am planing at somepoint to upgrade it to the larger seize but i just do not have the funds to be getting a larger cage every couple of months so yea i am thinking about taking an old screen and cutting off either the top or the bottom of the cage so he is not able to either get to the top or the bottom and yea thankyou for your input and i am also thinking about eventualy making a homemade cage at the moment i am trying to make a good misting system with a small fountin pump and some misting nosels so we shal see how that goes but it should be a fun project to put together.
-Matt

 

[kaylie]

Here is a thread of directions for the rain system you are thinking of. I did the same thing, works well if you do it right.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/my-own-rain-system-50100/