Lighting Help for Newbies (:

grkmikey

Member
Taterbug":1vx51qsh said:
grkmikey":1vx51qsh said:
hey guys i need help. i have a few problems. i got my terrarium hood and i ordered the power center timer for it and a lamp. i recently heard that the hood wouldn work with the timer. i need help guys. also the the tube lights flickers and barely works only if i hold it in place. its like its not in all the way. please help guys!

Is your tube fully seated? The sockets on either end are designed so that you need to rotate the bulb 90 degrees to lock it in. Sometimes it takes a bit more force than you expect, but still be careful not to break the bulb.

What hood do you have and what sort of timer? Most timers are just on/off devices than cut the power and turn off the lights. If you still have the documents for the hood it might say, or you might be able to find the, on the manufacturers website.


I tried turning the bulb as much as i can and i feel like ill break it if i go harder. i have to hold it so it stays on.i have the zilla slimline desert fixture. i also ordered the zilla power center for the time
 

qronus

Member
i believe i may have made a mistake upon purchasing my UVB bulb and are looking for help. i had read the the coild are bad, so i of course avoided them.
upon further inspection, i believe i may have made a mistake.

http://turtleshack.com/store/images/zm_10_coil.jpg
i though that this type wasnt a coil, because my local pet store didnt have any real tubes - and these looked like tubes to me.

my question is if this bulb is bad, will my baby quincy be okay for a while with it? how long?
i guess all new owners make mistakes, but i may not have time to get a new bulb as fast as id like to.

also, i have a 12'' (30 cm) hood currently (for a 20g tank, for a young juvie) what size tube would best work for a fixture that size? i read that mounting them inside the tank is best, but that is not yet an option for me. hopefully ill be extending the length of my light hood as well, but for now that is what i have.
 

Tiffytigger79

New member
I am completely new to the beardie world and this forum. We got a 4mo girl beardie along with all her set up from an individual. While researching some things about feeding, I have come across the lighting issue and think what we have is not recommended. We have a single fixture that sits on top of the mesh top. One side has a bright white heat lamp bulb and the other side has a red light that goes on in the evening when the other shuts off. I often struggle with the light as I try to slide the top back enough to remove her. With this set up that is shown here, how do you keep them all out of the way enough to get them out??
 
well i'm planning on getting a bearded dragon but the biggest drawback is the cost of the uvb tube light fixture which I don't have enough money for. any suggestions :banghead:
 

diamc

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
AxolotlRocky":grxf7yxn said:
well i'm planning on getting a bearded dragon but the biggest drawback is the cost of the uvb tube light fixture which I don't have enough money for. any suggestions :banghead:
I'm not sure where you live but Amazon has them for a decent price as well as www.lightyourreptiles.com The pet store prices are outrageous!
 

cdsteffey

New member
PLease help. I understand the basic lighting and temp but we are having issues getting the lighting right for our new terrarium. we just upgraded from a 20gallon to a 36x18x24. i have been trying to read around and now im just frustrated. this is our tank...

http://www.petsmart.com/supplies/terrariums/national-geographic-trade-reptile-terrarium-zid36-27780/cat-36-catid-500028?var_id=36-27780&_t=pfm%3Dsearch.

now I just need someone to tell me exactly what i need as far as lighting to make our Beardie comfortable. Right now, in order to get the temp right, im using a 100w basking and nighttime bulb plus an additional 150w bulb for each. the stores do not sale more than 150w bulbs and Amazon can be confusing if you dont know exactly what your looking for. I have Amazon Prime so I could get the items i need in 2 days if I knew exactly what i needed. Im sure the UV light that came with the 20 gallon terrarium isnt cutting it either. He has not been happy since we moved him a week ago. Hardly comes out from under his rock. it took me a few days to get the temp right and now he comes out shortly then goes back in to hide. I know this is not good so please help?????
 

diamc

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
That seems like a lot of wattage. What type of thermometer are you using and where exactly are you checking the temps? Also, what are you using for UVB?
 

erikadickson

Hatchling Member
I have a question!
So, this light fixture:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Jasco-Jasco-10185-Basic-Fluorescent-UCF-Plug-In/29776871

is okay for the Reptisun 10.0 UVB T5 HO 22" 24Watt bulb? I just bought the bulb for $30 so I'm looking for a cheap light fixture so that I don't have to spend another $50 on the light fixture they recommended on the box. I showed my dad this fixture, and he said he wasn't sure if it would work for such a high output bulb. But I saw that you suggested it in your article. Can anyone help me out?
 

GizmosGrammie

Hatchling Member
I think you should be fine with that fixture as long as the wattage is the same as your bulb. However, you will need to remove the plastic cover or it will block out the important UVB rays. I just bought a cheap fixture at Meijer on sale for $10.99, it's a black light fixture and black bulb made by Light of America. I just ordered the 24" Reptisun T8 10.0 UVB bulb on the internet tonight. This will be my first time using the fluorescent bulbs. Unfortunately, my PowerSun MVB bit the dust just shy of 6 months in; and they're just too expensive to replace so I'm going to try the Reptisun fluorescent tube bulbs. You should be able to Google the Light of America fixture to take a look at it.

Gizmosgrammie.
 

erikadickson

Hatchling Member
GizmosGrammie":dlujw21l said:
I think you should be fine with that fixture as long as the wattage is the same as your bulb. However, you will need to remove the plastic cover or it will block out the important UVB rays. I just bought a cheap fixture at Meijer on sale for $10.99, it's a black light fixture and black bulb made by Light of America. I just ordered the 24" Reptisun T8 10.0 UVB bulb on the internet tonight. This will be my first time using the fluorescent bulbs. Unfortunately, my PowerSun MVB bit the dust just shy of 6 months in; and they're just too expensive to replace so I'm going to try the Reptisun fluorescent tube bulbs. You should be able to Google the Light of America fixture to take a look at it.

Gizmosgrammie.

Oh no, it's 15 watts and I need 24 watts :( And the highest wattage I see on lights of america is 17 watts. This is the only other fixture I can find that I think will work:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/ViaVolt-2-ft-T5-High-1-Bulb-Output-Fluorescent-Grow-Light-Fixture-V21/203124380?quantity=1&str_nbr=0260
This is my first time using fluorescent bulbs as well.
 

GizmosGrammie

Hatchling Member
Are you sure it's a 24 watt bulb, I just ordered the Reptisun 10.0 UVB fluorescent Bulb and it says it's 17 watts, the light fixture I bought at Meijer says 17 watts. My husband is an electrical engineer and I just asked him. If you buy a fixture that is less watts then the bulb the fixture will run hot. I thought I better ask him before I posted because I am totally ignorant when it comes to technical stuff.

The reason I'm pointing it out is because I'm surprised a 22" fl. bulb it higher watts than a 24" fl bulb by Reptisun.
 

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