hello my question is, can my basking light be angled from the side kinda in my viv. i had it on top but the expanded metal screen was blocking too much light and heat. the only way i could fit it inside was to mount it off to the side pretty much as close to the lid as possible. i wasn't sure if coming from the side would damage her eyes.
It is best to keep the lighting directly overhead. They are better able to manage it and self regulate that way. If the screen is blocking too much heat I would move to a higher wattage bulb. You may need to try some different wattages until you get it just right. It varies from setup to setup. I use a GE brand PAR38 Halogen flood light and it works well at about 24'' in my setup.