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Advanced Discussion
Lighting/Enclosures
Discussion on light & heat efficiency
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[QUOTE="JayTheDragonTamer, post: 1979043, member: 111883"] So first off, some details. My enclosure has a glass front and sides, and a wooden frame and back. The current lid is a temporary mesh top, while I work on the final piece. Because I’ve just built this enclosure, Im not thinking about redesigning whole elements yet. [But in the future I think I’d have more wood and less glass because wood insulates well- a glass face and glass doors, but the rest of the enclosure would be wood.] A couple things: 1) I am having to use high wattage, reptile-specific heating bulbs since the UK banned the sale of halogen/iridescence/fluorescent bulbs to consumers outside of the specialty areas they must be used. This means no GE or Phillips halogen floodlights or general household bulbs that produce heat- I can only find LEDs. Limited options has me trying to heat a large enclosure with 150w Daylight basking bulbs and 100w Solar basking bulbs. I am running 2 or more heat bulbs like this, as well as a CHE, all day at the moment and only just achieving good basking temps. I know out of halogens and iridescent bulbs, halogens are typically hotter and more energy efficient, so these would be my go-to. I should be able to get most Arcadia products. Does anyone which reptile specific heat bulb puts out PLENTY of heat but doesn’t have excessive wattage? Alternatively, does anyone know where I could source heat producing bulbs not specific to reptiles? 2) My enclosure has circular vents along the back near the bottom, and a mesh top (currently). All of my vivs have had mesh tops up until now, but concerns around heat loss are making me reconsider whether I’d be better off changing that design- I still want my heat source mounted on top of the enclosure. 20in height does not provide adequate room to safely have it inside imo. I’d like to know what you guys think about closed top enclosures vs mesh, and how these things affect humidity, ventilation, and heating. After a lecture on air intake needing to be proportional to loss of air from the mesh, hot air rising, and that sort of thing, I’m considering ventilation like this: [URL]https://www.beardeddragon.org/media/f60267c8-4ad5-4b9f-bf61-575e0d45db7e-jpeg.64784/full[/URL] I would have a half mesh, half wood lid- allowing airflow from the vents in the back, up to the mesh along the top at the front. I may include a small square of mesh within the wood portion of the lid, to set my heat source on. The uvb will of course be mounted on the inside of the enclosure, screwed into the wood at the top back, and positioned to overlap with the basking spot. Does this sound like a good design? Any considerations or alterations? The goal of a more closed off enclosure is to prevent the loss of heat from the top and create a constant heat gradient. My concerns are primarily about stagnant air and overheating, as well as managing humidity. 3) All my lighting and heating has reflectors. My dad does not believe this is enough and suggested fitting a metal sheet to the inside top of the enclosure and screwing fixtures into it. Obviously- this is a massive massive hazard for overheating. I cannot stress how much I do not want to turn my enclosure into an oven lol. Dangerous in a whole number of ways. I will NOT be doing that. Having said that, I am curious what you guys think in terms of a more “reflective” top. Not by adding any metal- but by painting the inside of the lid white. (Silver??) Would this have any significant impact? IF the white paint reflected any amount of light, would this be beneficial or harmful? The question is, whether a reflective top would help [I]utilize[/I] a light source or whether it would cause glare. Then there’s the question of the reflected rays. Could this be harmful to the reptile’s vision? I am curious about this idea in theory. Reply if you have any additional comments or ideas too. [/QUOTE]
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Discussion on light & heat efficiency
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