Bearded dragons are a great pets....... I like them when they mature, they get so tame that they will beg you to handle them. they eat viggies and insects.
Did you end up getting the Beardie? What happened?
I'd recommend paper towels or reptile carpet substrate, no heat rocks, quite possibly no UTH.
As for the lighting, you should go with either a Mega Ray or Zilla's Desert 50. They're both really good for beardies. However, I don't know if they sell the Zilla's there.