HELP! New Beardie mommy! What do I do?

[AHBD]

That's right, I've never used double dome fixture, if you want more uvb at the other end you could put the compact down there instead of right next to the Powersun. I but my aluminum dome fixtures from Walmart , Lowe's, Home Depot....they're usually less expensive and project more heat + uvb down in to the tank, especially if your black dome fixtures are white coated inside. But don't worry, her eyes are not going to get burned through the screen !

 

[NoodlesMommy]

That's right, I've never used double dome fixture, if you want more uvb at the other end you could put the compact down there instead of right next to the Powersun. I but my aluminum dome fixtures from Walmart , Lowe's, Home Depot....they're usually less expensive and project more heat + uvb down in to the tank, especially if your black dome fixtures are white coated inside. But don't worry, her eyes are not going to get burned through the screen !

Sorry i didnt get a picture of the inside of the lamp- its reflective- aluminum with black on the outside

Every time i put the mercury bulb in- with or without the extra heating bulb next it she goes back on the bottom of her tank like its too much- the temp with both bulbs in her tank on top of her hut is actually too hot for her 111* and up!! so ive only switched to using only the mercury in the dual lamp- thats why i asked about using the compact uvb next to the mercury although the mercury doesn't get as hot as the basking bulb

 

[NoodlesMommy]

With just the mercury the bottom of her basking spot only exceeds 88 Maybe the red heating bulb would help with the temp a bit (just a touch not too much?) on thw basking end?

 

[AHBD]

That's actually o.K, her body is closet to the bulb than the basking spot is. You can switch it so that the hot spot is over the log instead and see how that does. An adult beardie only needs a basking spot between 90-100.

 

[NoodlesMommy]

That's actually o.K, her body is closet to the bulb than the basking spot is. You can switch it so that the hot spot is over the log instead and see how that does. An adult beardie only needs a basking spot between 90-100.

Sorry if my previous posts are confusing- it's difficult to type what I want to say on this forum via my iphone

I did a few temperature tests and here's the condensed version of what I found with my dual light :
MVB ONLY: High spot/temp=92* Low spot/temp=85*
MVB + WHITE BASK BULB: High spot/temp=112* Low spot/temp=99*
MVB + RED BASK BULB: --- haven't tried yet---
MVB + UVB 10 COMPACT FLRST: ---haven't tried yet---

I've peeked on other threads and some suggest to use a regular household incandescent light to add some heat to the mercury bulb- Would that work? Or should I try out the red basking bulb with the MVB first? is it recommended to use the uvb compact flourescent with the mercury vapor bulb? Would there be any consequences equipment wise or health wise if I use any of those other methods?

Thank you for being so helpful!

 

[NoodlesMommy]

The 100w Powersun should produce plenty of UVB within about 8-10 inches of the bulb. It should be mounted within that range if possible. Through a screen, it should sit closer to 8'' from the basking spot since the screen will intercept some of the output. If that doesn't produce enough heat, a ceramic heat emitter or second basking light may be needed.

i tried using a basking bulb with the powersun and it got too hot- but the powersun by itself isnt hot enough- any ideas? I've seen posts about adding regular clear incandescent lights to add heat- does that work? I'm trying to get the 'golden combination' of bulbs for the perfect temperature in the basking area

 

[AHBD]

Yes, a very low watt like a 40 should bump it up to your desired temp. The compact bulb won't produce much heat at all. And I saw on your other threads that you'd like this to all be condensed, you can ask one of the mods. to put it all together in the health or behavior forum here you also have this posted since it's not an emergency.

 

[EllenD]

Getting the correct temperatures is a trial and error thing, it can be quite frustrating, lol. One thing I will tell you for sure is that you should never, ever use a red light at all! No colored bulbs at all, no blue or red or green or moonlight bulbs...Not during the day or at night. Beardies see in color so those damn red lights all the reptile companies sell are awful.

If you want to try a very low-wattage, regular old bright white halogen bulb along with the MVB to bump the temps up a bit that's what I would do. I have a very large enclosure for one of my Beardies and it has a 36" Reptisun 10.0 T5 tube centered for UVB right alongside a 100 watt indoor halogen flood bulb that is directly over the basking spot. After playing around with the height of the basking spot and the basking light fixture I got the basking spot temperature and the hot side temperature correct, but the cool side was like 60 degrees because the enclosure is so large. So I bought a 65 watt indoor halogen flood bulb at Dollar Tree for $1. It is the only wattage of flood bulb they sell, the rest of their bulbs are frosted or soft white, but since it was only $1 and I just happened to see it when I went there for other stuff, I thought I'd try it. I built my enclosure myself, so I went to Home Depot and bought another regular fixture, mounted it above the cool side, and put the 65 watt flood bulb in...The cool side went to 80+ degrees, too hot. So I went back to Home Depot and spent another $10 on a 45 watt indoor halogen flood bulb and tried it... Perfect! So it's definitely just a matter of playing around with the bulbs and the heights. Keep your receipts for the bulbs and take any that don't work back.

I've never used an MVB so I don't have any frame of reference of how hot they get, but I'd imagine that if you have a large enclosure you would need a separate low-wattage basking bulb or even a CHE on the cool end.

 

[EllenD]

Something I forgot to mention, you can always try a dimmable bulb/fixture as well, then put a 35-45 watt or so bulb in the dimmer and play with turning it up until the cool side (or hot side, whichever is low) is correct. Dimmable fixtures don't cost much, I know Flukers makes one for $15 that they sell at Petco. Just make sure you get the one that says "Dimmable" because they have a million clamp lamp fixtures that are in different colored boxes but look exactly the same otherwise, I grabbed one that was dimmable by mistake once and spent $5 more than I had to.

 

[Drache613]

Hello,

Were you needing all of your threads merged with this one?
How are things going with your lighting? It is frustrating indeed, trying to get everything
just right! How is your dragon doing, any improvements I hope?
Once you get the heating & lighting all correct she should start doing really well for you.

Tracie

 

[NoodlesMommy]

Hello,

Were you needing all of your threads merged with this one?
How are things going with your lighting? It is frustrating indeed, trying to get everything
just right! How is your dragon doing, any improvements I hope?
Once you get the heating & lighting all correct she should start doing really well for you.

Tracie

I FINALLY GOT THE RIGHT HEAT/LIGHT COMBINATION! HURRAY

I can see a huge difference in her energy and she hasn't been sluggish or looked sickly since we made the changes, took alot of effort but its worth it- MVB+ heating bulb and her basking branch was lowered (with the help of my new probe thermometer!)