Is a 24" Reptisun 10.0 tube TOO much for a 40 gallon?

[Sweetp427]

I bought a 24" tube for my 40 gallon. I put it in and it is sooo bright! Is it too much?

Thanks

 

[dnardini]

Hi I am pretty new at all this stuff but I use the same UVB light as you and everyone I talked to said that is the one to use in a 40 gal. tank. Is it at least 8 in from you beardie?

 

[Sweetp427]

Hi I am pretty new at all this stuff but I use the same UVB light as you and everyone I talked to said that is the one to use in a 40 gal. tank. Is it at least 8 in from you beardie?

I'm going to have to make sure she isn't too close. I just put it in last night. It seemed overwhelming to me, but I don't know much about this stuff.

 

[Chirple]

I use the 24" in a 50 gallon terrarium - which is just like a 40 breeder but a little taller.

You WANT them to get 6-8" away from the bulb - so make sure she *can* get that close. Too far away and she will not get the UVB needed to be healthy. Also, make sure it's mounted *inside* the tank - so there is no mesh between it and the dragon. You can do this with a $9 fixture from WAL*MART and heavy-duty velcro or 3M command hooks or by using something like cable ties to hang it from a mesh top. Just in case.

I haven't noticed it being terribly bright, though - the basking bulb definitely produces brighter light that overwhelms it in comparison.

 

[Sweetp427]

What distance is too close?

 

[dnardini]

I would say closer than 6in is too close



and someonelse on here said your 24" reptisun is too bis for a 40 gal. tank, so I would ask more people what their thoughts are.

 

[Chirple]

Someone was talking about an MVB being too big (in wattage) for a smaller tank, but that's totally different.

A 40 breeder is 36x18x16", a 24" light is the correct size. You WANT the UVB light to be at least 2/3 of the tank's length (1/3 and covering the basking spot is bare minimum - it doesn't give them much freedom to move around and still get UVB). Unlike the MVB, you are not going to cause overheating. Some owners even have the UVB cover 100% length by having no screen top and mounting above the tank.

It's not possible for it to be "too big" in that sense unless it too big to fit in or on the tank. The idea of 2/3 - 3/4 coverage is so they can escape the UVB if they want, but you can also provide hides/design the architecture to serve this purpose as well. But if it's 24" in a 36" tank, you wouldn't have 100% coverage, anyway - so that's not an issue.

Here are threads on the issue with advice from very knowledgeable and experienced members :

viewtopic.php?f=34&t=168112&p=1356168
viewtopic.php?f=34&t=166329&hilit=UVB+length&start=15

Check out this thread some pictures and just look at the size of the UVB compared to the tank :

viewtopic.php?f=34&t=148006
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7046/6923468354_2866e36747_z.jpg
http://i351.photobucket.com/albums/q456/southernessence/2012-02-19165110.jpg
http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n530/copemeli/cageafter.jpg
http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/hh206/mizuna_islaya/IMG_0486.jpg

Ones running the whole tank :

viewtopic.php?f=34&t=140791
viewtopic.php?f=34&t=168799&p=1360815

 

[carlisv]

Hmmmm. This makes me curious about my own Reptisun 10.0 tube. It's almost time for a new one anyway (I got the one I have in January). When I first got it it seemed pretty dim, and I put a question on here asking if brightness has been an issue and didn't get a definitive answer. But all the pictures on here are much much brighter than mine. Headed to the pet store tomorrow I guess . . .

 

[Sweetp427]

Someone was talking about an MVB being too big (in wattage) for a smaller tank, but that's totally different.

A 40 breeder is 36x18x16", a 24" light is the correct size. You WANT the UVB light to be at least 2/3 of the tank's length (1/3 and covering the basking spot is bare minimum - it doesn't give them much freedom to move around and still get UVB). Unlike the MVB, you are not going to cause overheating. Some owners even have the UVB cover 100% length by having no screen top and mounting above the tank.

It's not possible for it to be "too big" in that sense unless it too big to fit in or on the tank. The idea of 2/3 - 3/4 coverage is so they can escape the UVB if they want, but you can also provide hides/design the architecture to serve this purpose as well. But if it's 24" in a 36" tank, you wouldn't have 100% coverage, anyway - so that's not an issue.

Here are threads on the issue with advice from very knowledgeable and experienced members :

viewtopic.php?f=34&t=168112&p=1356168
viewtopic.php?f=34&t=166329&hilit=UVB+length&start=15

Check out this thread some pictures and just look at the size of the UVB compared to the tank :

viewtopic.php?f=34&t=148006
http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7046/6923468354_2866e36747_z.jpg
http://i351.photobucket.com/albums/q456/southernessence/2012-02-19165110.jpg
http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n530/copemeli/cageafter.jpg
http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/hh206/mizuna_islaya/IMG_0486.jpg

Ones running the whole tank :

viewtopic.php?f=34&t=140791
viewtopic.php?f=34&t=168799&p=1360815

Thanks for putting all that info together for me. Appreciated!