How much light is too much

I have recently built a new enclosure and light. The enclosure is 48x24x24. The light fixture is a double t5HO fixture built into a box. it will sit on top of the enclosure.

The sales person at Menard's told me that I could just put one bulb in the fixture and it would work. After building the light box I discovered that was wrong, both bulbs have to be in place for the light to work.

I have one Reptisun T5 HO bulb in the fixture and one Phillips F54T5/841 HO bulb. I will also use a second incandescent bulb/fixture for basking.

Will this be too much light for him?

Would running two reptisun bulbs be too much UVB?

Is there another 2 bulb combination that would be better?

I've already wired the light so I'm trying to avoid pulling it apart and returning it if at all possible.

Any help or advice is greatly appreciated. I'm excited to get him in his new home but I don't want to risk hurting him or his eyes.

Thanks
-Steve

See the thread on full spectrum lighting: viewtopic.php?f=34&t=235017

Unfortunately, it's harder to find good options for T5 than T8, but here are a few:

https://www.amazon.com/Equivalent-Ballast-Compatible-Straight-Frosted/dp/B01N8RNW0W/

https://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Med-Trichromatic-Daylight-22-Inch/dp/B003C5PQWW/

https://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Med-Flora-Output-22-Inch/dp/B003C5RTOA/

https://www.amazon.com/WYZM-Equivalent-Dual-End-Powered-Directly/dp/B019MFFHWE/

I would definitely consider a LED option if you can find something good (I included a few in the links).

I think the best color temp is really about 4500K to 5500K. A lot of "full daylight" lights will be in the 6000K to 6500K range, and these are okay, but I find them a little too blue. One nice thing about the UltraSun, which falls in that 6500K range, however is that it does produce UVA, which is nice.

But really, you actually need a third light, so it's not a bad thing. I think being locked into a T5 is not ideal, but it's not horrible either. It's also less than ideal that you will have to have both lights on the same timer, and neither will be dimmable, which means you can't stagger them, which means it may be a little harsh when it turns on, but overall, it will not be too much light.

See pics of my viv here: viewtopic.php?f=75&t=233838#p1809346

That's with 2 halogen flood lights a T5 HO and a 24" aquarium LED set on. It's perfect lighting actually. You need a lot of light. Remember, if you were in their natural habit you would need sunglasses and it would still be bright.

Thank you, this is some great info. Appreciate your link to your previous post as well. I learned a lot. Here's a photo of my current setup. Obviously still need to beef up the inside of the viv, but you can see the basic structure. I like the LED option and I will find a good full spectrum 46" bulb to complement the UVB. Is the ultra sun available in a 46" option?

When I plan for a basking bulb, is heat the most important factor or is there benefit from the light that the bulb outputs as well?

https://photos.app.goo.gl/zBrpkAXuOvRwZsP33

Heat is the main thing for the basking bulb. I didn't notice that you had a 46" bulb. Yeah, that's a lot of light, but an additional bulb is still good. You could probably use a 45-60 watt halogen for the basking bulb, but you need a dimmer for sure if you use a halogen to fine tune the temps. I think a halogen with a dimmer works well in your situation where it's easier to dim it than to change the distance or wattage of the bulb.

Be sure you have good hide given that you have so much UVB in there. I'd use a short basking platform/hide type thing, i.e. a basking platform that he can hide directly under. This should make the hide area pretty warm so he would be able to chill in the warm hide when he's had enough of the UV exposure. I say short because with a interior mounted lights you won't need to get him much higher, but something that puts him like 14"-16" away from the ceiling.

If you could it so it's in the 90s under the hide that would be nice. Then make another hide on the cool side too.

Is there a 2 light hood available in t5 that would hold both the uvb light and the full spectrum light?

Lubecki23":25ji502u said:

Is there a 2 light hood available in t5 that would hold both the uvb light and the full spectrum light?

Click to expand...

Got mine at Menards. Make sure you get T5 high output.