lighting revamp help

i've been on the site for awhile now but once my beardie grew i kinda stopped posting as i didn't need much help him..
after lurking and trying to keep up with new brand products i have ran into a lighting issue so i'm back for help..
i'm looking to replace my MegaRay MVB with a different set up possibly.. i figured for the price of the bulb, especially shipping cost to Canada, waiting on shipping and the fact i can't get them to last longer than 6 months it's probably time to try something different.. my most recent bulb started having issues with turning on and i haven't had it more than 6 months yet.. thought my ballast was the issue as its getting old so i bought a new one but it still only turns on randomly or not at all.. i've left it powered on and 4hrs later it turns on than some days it just doesn't turn on..
my only problem is i have a 110gal tank so lighting/heating that much tank is difficult and i always figured the all in one MVB was the best solution.. in winter the MVB runs at 75-80F and summer it goes 90 to over 100F.. i've got the bulb hanging above the tank with a plant hook secured to the wall.. i would like to set up something that would give me a more consistent and correct heat temp and could be purchased locally or at petsmart canada as i don't really wanna order online anymore.. i could be up for amazon.ca but they really don't have much..

anyone with a 110gal tank that could suggest an ideal lighting set up??

Have you contacted the company about your problems with the megaray?
How do you have it mounted? They do require to be stable and level i believe, and may fail other wise.

In a tank that big one bulb isn't going to cut it, I don't think. What are the dimensions? Many people still need a second heat light with MVB so that the temperatures are kept high enough.

What I've done for my enclosure (a bit larger than yours) is a couple halogen flood lights on dimmer for heat, a 22" T5 reptisun 10.0 for UVB, and a 36" T6 for daylight. These lights and fixtures should be available localy (try garden centers maybe for the lights. They are popular for indoor growing), though you may need to look online for them. You could use a MVB or metal halide also, for the UVA. I plan to add one down the road but like the consistency of the T5 lights and that I can dim the halogens to dial in temps.

i didn't bother contacting them.. it's a PITA so i'd rather figure out a different heating/lighting strategy..
the tank is in a cornered wall so i have a flower basket hanger screwed to the wall and the bulb is in a 160W ballast (also tried a 200W ballast) that is hung from that above the tank to the specified height shown on the MegaRay box..
tank dimensions are, 5'L X 3'H X 3'W.. it was an old fish tank that the bottom was cracked so i took it, resealed the bottom and turned it into a dragon tank
i wanna go with the 10.0 Repti sun but have no idea about a basking bulb.. i tried the Par38 flood lamp bulbs which are nice and cheap but they don't last and the heat wasn't the greatest.. any of the petsmart basking bulbs any good? otherwise just grab 2 Par38's again u think?
i was plugging into a digital timer from petsmart that was set to 12-13hrs or whatever their lighting period was suggested in a bearded dragon book i read but the timer stopped so i'll have to replace it..
how much did ur lighting set up cost?

That's a nice sized enclosure. Mine is 4x2x4 so actually pretty similar. I use 2 GE 65W BR38 (indoor) soft white halogens. They do what I need, I get about 120 on the hot spot an 105 under the second bulb. I can't say how long they last, I've only been using them since December. But I think they are 8-12$ a pair at the grocery store so I'm not too worried. I've heard the petstore bulbs burn out a bit faster/inconsistently, but I've not used them myself.

For the new cage I'd say I'm in around $150-200US including the bulbs, the wiring and switches (everything is wired into the enclosure then into a timer). When I was setting up I just bought a bunch of bulbs and tried them until I found ones that worked and returned the rest.

Just ran down to home Depot to check prices.. seen some Phillips 90w halogen flood lamps with a 2yr rating.. should I try grabbing 2 of those.. u putting one at each end of ur tank? Right now my right side if the tank is the hor spot with the non functioning mvb. . Other side has his water and food with no lights..
I did not see any t6 bulbs either.. I seen they had 60W LED lights on sale for $10 would that work instead.. they had soft white or daytime (blueish).. modernize things cuz I believe the T6 is just a light source only correct?

Sorry, I typoed that should be T5, not T6 but yes my longer one is visible light only. The LED would work for the same purpose; brightness and ambient light with no heat. I'm not sure how bright they are though.

The 90 halogen could work if you can have it far enough away. Those where too hot for my cage, if I'm thinking of the same one. You might not need two bulbs if you can get that one to work, it's big right? I would keep it how you have it, warm to cool wise. That way the far end is cool still, and you can keep the food and water there too.

Here's how I have mine set up. I actually have three bulbs, but only becuase I have trouble keeping the bottom warm too it's not so strong. Up top I use both bulbs in a row with the one on the left a little closer (warmer) than the one on the right. (I have different bulbs now, the outdoor ones were too hot.) They are next to the uvb and the longer t5 is hidden.

I need to get a custom built tank.. mine has no screen or lid so hanging lights is hard but I did make some purchases.. grabbed a 150w dimmable heat lamp ballast (not sure I'll use the dimming feature tho) and 150w zoomed basking bulb for it at petsmart.. grabbed a 90w Phillips flood lamp bulb at home Depot but might go exchange it for a 65w one if its going to be too hot.. just found petsmart has dropped reptisun for their all things living brand so now I'm at a loss on what to get for a uvb tube style light.. they have an all things living one but I can't find any info on if they are good or not.. anyone tried them?

I havnt seen reports for the all living things or tested them myself - you can order reptisun from amazon and other online petstores. Hope some of the bulbs work out for you.

You can get light hangers, so not having a lid isn't too big a deal. If you google "pvc light stand" you might get some ideas to diy as well.

I'm in the process of testing the All Living Things T8 18'' UVB and one of their coil UVB lights. I will keep you posted but in the meantime it may be best to stick to a known good bulb such as the ReptiSun or Arcadia brands.

I've got a hook screwed to the wall for hanging flower baskets but with the addition of a second heat bulb I don't wanna put more holes in mY walls.. Im hoping to figure out something that I can attach to the top of the tank.. my only problem is my dragons basking spot is pretty close to the top of the tank so I cant really have anything just above the tank.. has to be hung a little higher.. I seen lamp stands at petsmart but they aren't tall enough.. in regards to bulbs Ive seen amazon with the reptisun 10.0 for $10 and $7 shipping but I wonder how long it would take to ship and with it arrive broke cuz tube lights are hard to ship.. I'm thinking of trying the all things living tube bulb, it comes with a fixture and everything for $37. I just don't have a way to test if it's giving out strong UVs or not so essentially he may be to weak and I would never know.. although if it sucks I guess I'll have to go amazon and reptisun

Cooper should be able to give an idea of the strength of the output, though the quality is a little more involved to confirm. I have ordered all my reptisuns from Amazon (the listing that is sold and ships from Amazon & has prime/super saver shipping) for the last 3 years - they always well packaged and arrive quickly.

ya having amazon prime would make it worth ordering online, my prime ran out and there is only 1 seller for the reptisun 10.0 on the Canadian amazon, not a prime either

I skipped ahead to this bulb to get some initial readings for you (these aren't complete, just some basic metrics).

8'' no screen 2.4 UVI (this is right about where you want to be, slightly low but good for a T8)
12'' no screen 1.5 UVI (I'd mount closer to 8'' if you can)

8'' screen 2.0 UVI (still OK but if you can go without the screen it's better)
12'' screen 1.0 UVI (better than nothing but I'd try to get it closer)


The most interesting thing I found is when I opened the box, I noticed that the bulb is a Zilla Desert 50. It is an exact match just in a different box. I've used these in the past (I have 3 of them) and done some testing even at 6mo and they hold their output well. Based on my limited data, this can be a trustworthy bulb. Just keep in mind that you'll want to mount it 6-8'' above the basking spot with no screen to get the best results.

I wonder if someone at the store swapped out the bulb?

It's worth noting too that UVI isn't enough on its own to really judge safety. The balance still needs to be considered (such as by using a 6.2 meter and a 6.5) as a bulb could put off a good UVI but still be skewed to the lower wavelengths and result in problems.

Hopefully though these bulbs are actually well balanced and provide an easier option for people as they are more accessible.

Great work and thanks for getting back to me so quickly.. I'll be picking one of these up today.. so I'll be running one of these with a zoomed 150w basking bulb and Phillips 70w flood lamp from home Depot. . The flood lamp is pretty bright so I don't think I'm going to need an additional light for brightning up his tank