Do dome light fixtures wear out?

[jerichosmom]

I have 2 beardies in showcase cages stacked on top of each other. They both have a standard dome fixture with a household bulb for heat. We used to be able to put a clear 60w bulb in them and their temps were perfect. Now I'm struggling to get their temps regulated. The cage on bottom used to be hotter since the top cage holds its heat in, but now she's topping out at 95-98 and the top cage is anywhere from 110-130 depending on which bulb I try. I'm wondering if the dome itself is the problem. One of them is older than the other and I'm guessing my bottom cage has the old one. Has anyone run into this?

 

[Genestealer187]

Hi the problem is your using house lights bulbs you need the right lizard light bulbs also you need a thermostat to control the light/heat I have just set up two tanks one on top off the other I just spent the best part off £150 on two bulbs and two thermostats

 

[jerichosmom]

Many people use plain household bulbs, as we always have. I have a laser heat gun to monitor temps. I have had these set ups for 4 1/2 yrs and never had an issue until just recently. That is why I'm thinking perhaps the dome is old and maybe needs to be replaced.

 

[ruben0311]

switch out the domes, move the one on bottom to the one ontop, to test if it is infact the fixture. there definately could have been something that happened with the wiring. if you are using a power strip try using different ports to see if it is something wrong with the strip... do everything you gotta do first to see exactly what the problem is before spending tons of cash on stuff that works perfectly fine... just gotta test them out

 

[ruben0311]

and yes you are correct the type of bulb does not matter, just make sure you are using the same type of bulb and not an energy efficient one