I have a few questions and I was wondering if anyone could help. 1) My cage lights seem to not get my basking side of the tank quite to 93 and I have a sub-adult beardie (13 months). Her other side of the take stays about 75. I have a caged light rather thank a fully enclosed one and I don’t know if that’s what’s making the difference or not, or even if I should worry about it :/ Also, I was wondering if I needed to vitamin/ calcium supplement every meal or should I do it every other? I always calcium dust her crickets and salads/vegetables so I was wondering if that was too much!
Hi there, pictures as well as info on the exact type + brand of lights you use is always helpful to ffer suggestions on any needed adjustments. Here;s how to post pics :
here’s her lights , I have a UVB 10.0 reptisun bulb in the black lamp and I’m not sure the bulb on the heater one, but that is the one with the “cage” over it!
Also, thank you for the vitamin advice, it’s truly appreciated
Hi there, pictures as well as info on the exact type + brand of lights you use is always helpful to ffer suggestions on any needed adjustments. Here;s how to post pics :
Hi there, yes, the pics showed up . I wasn't sure what you meant by " caged", now I understand.
An aluminum dome reflector from Walmart or Lowe's wuill greatly increase the heat that it projects down, so get on of those....check to see what the wattage is that is recommended for the dome you get. It's important to see what the big bulb is, looks like a MVB [ mercury vapor bulb ] which produces heat AND uvb. Unscrew it and check the end or the neck of the bulb. It may be a Powersun or an Exo terra solarglo. See what the wattage is as well. You may be best off getting one of these for better uvb output.
Hi there, yes, the pics showed up . I wasn't sure what you meant by " caged", now I understand.
An aluminum dome reflector from Walmart or Lowe's wuill greatly increase the heat that it projects down, so get on of those....check to see what the wattage is that is recommended for the dome you get. It's important to see what the big bulb is, looks like a MVB [ mercury vapor bulb ] which produces heat AND uvb. Unscrew it and check the end or the neck of the bulb. It may be a Powersun or an Exo terra solarglo. See what the wattage is as well. You may be best off getting one of these for better uvb output.
Alright so I took a look at her big bulb and it was as you said an Exo Terra Solarglo with a 125W.... will that in combination with the reptisun UVB bulb be alright for her? I’m sorry for the 100 Questions! Thank you for being so kind to lend me some knowledge lol!
It should be, as long as both bulbs are not more than 6 months old. It's been a while since I used the Exo terra Solar glo, I don't remember if it's recommended to be changed every 6 or 12 months.
Probably every 12 months if it's similar to the other MVBs on the market in terms of longevity. That 125w should sit around 8-10'' above the basking area since it's shining through a mesh top which will intercept some of the output. The ReptiSun compact probably isn't adding much so I'd replace that with a halogen flood bulb or a ceramic heat emitter that you can put on a dimmer to fine tune the heat gradient. Since the MVB has to be at a fixed height for UVB output, then you can adjust the other light to achieve a 100-105f basking surface with cooler areas around that down to about 75-80 or so on the far side of the tank.
Thanks, I thought it was 12 months. And Claudia you could just wrap the cage that holds the Exo terra MVB in a couple pf layers of aluminum foil. That will reflect more heat and uvb down in to the tank. I would move both bulbs about 6" to the right so he can get heat + uvb in a larger space than just the corner.