Another lightening question... MVB

[Jaxx26]

Hello everyone!

I'll be getting my first bearded dragon in a week or so-- once his tank is all set up and temps appropriate. I just have a few lighting questions and would love everyone's input. I've been reading tons of conflicting information.

I ended up getting a MVB light and figured this would be enough for heat and UVA/UVB. But then I started reading some more about how the rays should extend across the entire length of the tank and not just in the basking area. How important is this? If so, since I already bought the MVB bulb, can I just get a compact or smaller tube 5.0/10.0 light for the other side? I'm also worried about too much D3 if I have both lights up.

Is it strongly recommended to also not put the MVB on mesh screen as well for full effectiveness?

After reading more I'm regretting buying the MVB and wish I just went with the T5 10.0. Wondering if I can make it work or not this way though.

I may have a couple more questions but I'll throw this out there first. thanks everyone!!

 

[CooperDragon]

Which MVB did you buy? They vary quite a bit depending on brand and wattage. It may work for you if you can get it at the right height and produce the right temperature gradient. It's tough to fine tune though because you can't control heat and UVB output independently the way you can with a tube UVB light and regular basking light. You don't need the UVB to spread across the whole tank. It's better to produce a gradient with the highest concentration being over the basking area. You want the beam to be wide enough for your dragon to fit under completely to allow even basking though. A screen top will intercept some of the output from the bulb, but if it's a powerful bulb that might not be a big problem. If you don't have any other animals in the house though, you may consider leaving the top off and suspending the fixture from an adjustable stand. The height you need it at will depend on the bulb you have.

 

[Jaxx26]

Thanks for your reply! The bulb is a 100 watt Sun Glow from Evergreen pet supplies on amazon. I haven't heard of this one in the research I've done. ? If I need more heat I figure I could use a CHE.

How can I measure how much UVB output it's emitting? I of course want to make sure it's a good enough bulb and figure out if I need to return it or not.

Thanks again!

 

[CooperDragon]

Exo Terra makes one called Sun Glo. Is this the one you have? That's just a basking light rather than an MVB though. It won't give off any UVB. I believe that one has a neodymium coating on it which filters yellow visible light so I don't recommend it for basking either because it could make things look distorted to your dragon. I like MegaRay MVBs and the ZooMed Powersun MVBs as far as those go. As I mentioned I prefer to use a T5 tube for UVB so you can control it independently but MVB works if you can get the temps right in the tank or it makes a great portable basking light.

 

[Jaxx26]

Hi--

No it's not the exo terra one. It is an MVB light
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01CRJXJZ4/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1496406306&sr=8-1&keywords=evergreen+pet+supplies+uvb

I think I'm going to just return it and go with the T5 tube and grab a fixture from Walmart to fit it inside the tank. Then I'll jut get a separate basking light. Thanks for the help!

 

[CooperDragon]

Ah OK. That is a MVB. I don't have any test results from that one so I'm not certain of output. You'd need a solarmeter to check it. If it has similar output to other 100w MVBs a proper distance for it is probably about 10-12'' above the basking area. That's just an educated guess based on other test results though. The output and quality of MVBs can vary quite a bit so you may want to contact the company who sells it to see if they have any output readings from the bulb to determine UVB intensity which would tell you how far you'll need to mount it.

I don't advise using a T5 with a non high output lamp. A T5 with a good fixture & reflector should be about 12'' above the basking area and can be mounted on top of the tank if that is within the range. I would get a set like this http://www.lightyourreptiles.com/22-t-5-ho-fixture-high-output-with-arcadia-d3-12-ho-bulb/