Lighting questions

[0chocinc0]

Okay so ive been doing a lot of reading about lighting set ups and i feel like im doing it wrong. I bought a 40 gallon tank made by national geographic that came with a foam rock wall. It came with 2 dome light fixtures including a heat lamp and a compact uvb bulb. The uvb bulb is my concern. Ive read your supposed to mount a tube uvb UNDER the screen but my dragon loves climbing on the rock wall and im scared she will touch the light and burn herself. Where can i find a reptisun and housing for the lowest price? Is mounting it on the top of the screen going to work? This is her current setup.

 

[0chocinc0]

Im also concerned with posts ive read about these compact bulbs causing health issues

 

[ruben0311]

the compact flourescent bulbs use to cause issues but most well know manufacturers have made adjustments to make them safer, however, the issues arise from mounting them too close to the animal as they are extremely strong only on within a small area, that means that in order for the reptile to receive the needed UVB exposure it would have to be pretty close to the bulb but since the output is not in a wide area the gradient is very drastic. For a 40 Gal a tube is more effective and safer for your little buddy. If you got a T5 HO bulb you'd be able to safely place it on top of the screen so that the effect that the screen has on minimizing the UVB will not be so much.

 

[0chocinc0]

She seems to be hanging out like this alot lately

 

[ruben0311]

see if moving the lights more towards the front of the cage makes him follow it, i wonder if he is actively seeking the lights or just likes that spot. Is that the heat bulb or the UVB that he's under by the way?

 

[CooperDragon]

Most of the compact bulbs are effective at a limited distance (about 6'') and their output drops dramatically beyond about 8-12''. In a tank that size, I highly recommend using a T5 tube in a reflective fixture which will provide daylight levels of UVB at 12-14'' and work well through a screen top. She is probably moving closer to the light by moving up the wall in order to get adequate exposure.

 

[0chocinc0]

Shes under the uvb in that picture. This is what ive been using

 

[CooperDragon]

This fixture http://www.amazon.com/Sunblaster-904296-NanoTech-Fixture-Reflector/dp/B00AKKUBDQ
With this bulb http://www.amazon.com/Zoo-Med-ReptiSun-10-0-Lamp/dp/B00AQU8HAO/
Are better suited to a tank that size.

 

[ruben0311]

hey coop, have you tested out those kinds of bulbs yet? or got any quick references to check out the distances and what not?

 

[CooperDragon]

I have the Arcadia T5 and it puts out between about 3.7-5.2 UVI at 12-14'' without a mesh screen after a year. The ReptiSun is pretty similar with a good reflector. You can get full test results by joining the Yahoo UVB meter owner's group. Taterbug put together a good summary of the lighting here https://sites.google.com/site/thelizardmadness/lighting-guides