Im sorry if this has be covered already but i cant find it anywhere. what is the best (but cheap!!) heat lamp? i already have a UVA/UVB bulb. but i am getting very confused. thanks in advance for any help which will be greatly appreciated. again sorry if its already covered.

hello trina,
you can chosse between 2 types of lighting setup (excerpt from a Peter Watson caresheet, over at Shelled Warriors):

"a) A UV tube and a heat lamp. Although it at first seems cheaper to go with this option it can work out to be very expensive. Typically a UV tube will cost around £20 and a starter around £15. After 6 months the tubes will need to be replaced as the UV, over this period will become depleted, hence making the tube useless. There is an advantage to this however in that the UV and heat are controlled separately and so one could be turned off without the other having to be as well.

b) A combined UV/heat lamp. The initial expense with this option may seem a lot, but long term it will work out a lot cheaper. These bulbs last between two and three years and cost around £50. Compared to the life of the tube and replacement costs, then the combined will prove more beneficial.

It is inevitably down to personal preference which method you use. I personally opt for a mix of the two depending on the size of the enclosure and how many animals are housed in the area. Whichever method of heating/lighting you use you should be aiming for 28-30C beneath the heat source during the day, with a cooler area away from the basking spot at around 20C."

these links might also help you...
http://www.reptileuv.com/
http://tortoiseforum.org/whats-this-bulb...-1545.html
http://tortoiseforum.org/getting-my-firs...-1256.html

Thanks for your help. which is the best wattage to get?

that really depends on how large your enclosure is and how much area you want the bulb to cover...
it also depends on which type of bulb you've chosen to use.