mercury vapor bulb question

[rossebby]

hey all-
my BD ampersand is about five months old and currently housed in a 20L tank. he's using a repti-glo 10.0 for uvb and a 150w basking bulb (i know this is too much, i'm borrowing it till i get paid. it's clamped above the tank very high and i'm watching the tempurature like a hawk till i get the new one.) i have two questions:

1. i want to get a mercury vapor bulb so i no longer have to run two clamp lamps. i was thinking about using the meg-ray one that has been reccomended so much. the question is which watt bulb should i get for my 20L tank?

2. the basking bulb i'm using now says it needs 18" away to work correctly. each bulb that ive gotten has its own requirements on the distance. is this the distance from the ground or the distance to the BD? most mercury vapor bulbs say anywhere from 12"-18". my question is how am i supposed to keep the 90-110 degree basking temp if i have to keep the bulb so far away? btw i'm using a metal top screen if that makes any difference. i guess the answer to this question will have a lot of influence of bulb i get.

the more opinions the better.

thanks

-ross

 

[diamc]

Hi, rather than using the 150 watt basking bulb on your 20 gallon now, you could change to a 75 watt household light bulb and that should be enough heat for that size tank. With such high wattage, it will also be very hard to get the cool side temp in the 78 to 82 range which can cause overheating because it doesn't allow your beardie to be able to thermoregulate. Make sure you are using either an infrared temperature gun or a digital thermometer with a long wire & probe end as those are the only 2 ways to get accurate readings.

I noticed that you asked in another thread about using a Megaray in a 20 gallon and it was mentioned that you really need a minimum of a 40 gallon breeder in order to safely use a MVB because of the heat they produce and the strong UV rays they put out.

Regarding your 2nd question, did you mean to say that the UVB says it should be 18" away? With the Repti-Glo 10.0 fluorescent, we recommend a distance of 10" from your basking beardie and that it should also be right alongside a bright white basking bulb to help diminish the eye irritation and other problems associated with that particular fluorescent UVB. Since you mentioned that you're using 2 clamp lamps, is the Repti-Glo you have now a compact bulb? If so, the compacts are very dangerous, causing all sorts of health problems so I recommend that you replace that with the Repti-Sun 10.0 fluorescent bulb. With that good bulb, it can be 6 to 8" from your beardie while in the basking spot. Once you get a larger tank, at least a 40 gallon breeder, then you could safely use the Megaray MVB. I hope this answers all your questions, if no, let me know.

 

[frank79]

Hi ross
Im affraid you can not use an mvb in a 20 gallon it has to be a 40 gallon minimum.The reason for this is these bulbs are very powerfull and could possibly harm your pooper in a 20 gallon tank.When you upgrade your tank to a 40 gallon or or more i would recomend an mvb they are great my beardie loves it.I noticed your using a reptiglo 10.0 i hate to tell these are not the best bulbs for uvb.It has been known for beardies to start closeing their eyes become less active and stop eating under these lights,i no because it happened to me and lots of others hence i opted for an mvb which sorted him out.The better tubes on the market are the reptisun 10 (in the us) and arcadia 12% d3 (in the uk) lot of people use and swear by them.Also any compact coil uvb light is bad.For a basking light you dont need an expensive reptile light you can use a normal house hold bulb so if your temps are high try a normal 100 watt bulb or experiment with different wattages till you find the one to give you the proper temps.A lot cheaper.Hope this helps.
Frank

 

[rossebby]

okay thanks guys. guess i'll have to wait on the mvb till i get a bigger tank. and thanks for the steer away from the repti-glo, ill buy a new one. ive tried using just a normal household bulb for the basking light but i just didnt get it hot enough, only like 82-87 degrees. so im assuming im gonna need a basking bulb but what wattage (since the household one isnt hot enough) and how far from the BD should it be?

 

[mike91383]

I have been doing a lot of research on the Mega Ray both uv and non UV. The http://www.reptileuv.com/ has a lot of information on lighting and its setup. The thing to remember is "lighting is a process, not a bulb". You will need two dome lights. For one of them you will need a 50 watt Halogen bulb or greater that puts out 4,000 lumens. Depending on the distance from the face of the bulb to your Beardie you may need a higher watt bulb. Remember that Watts = Heat put out. In the second dome light you will need Mega Ray Self-ballasted 100 watt MVB/UVB or Mega-Ray External Ballasted Kits 60 watt Flood UVB Lamp Kit or T- Rex Active UVB Self-ballasted MVB. Either one of these are a great choice for a 40 gallon Breeder. Third is a Full Spectrum Fluorescent that can put out at least 5,000 lumens. All of the lights should be on timers to come on at different times during a 12 hour cycle. First the halogen between 7-8 am to 7-8pm. Next use the Mega Ray or T- Rex between 9-10am to 5-6pm. Then use the Fluorescent between 10 -11am to 3-4pm. And what this does is gives your reptile a more nature sunrise to sunset simulation. This will create a healthier immune system and physiological well being. I hope this helps. And like they say on retileuv.com "lighting is a process, not a bulb".

 

[diamc]

Very interesting info Mike.

rossebby, what type of thermometer are you using to check the temps?And, where exactly are you taking them? I used a 20 long for a short time and only needed a 75 watt household light bulb to get a basking temp of about 103 and on the cool side, I used a 25 watt household bulb to get a temp there of 81. What is the normal room temp where you have the tank? Is it a glass tank or mesh screen?

 

[rossebby]

my room stays in the 60's most of the day (68 now). im using a cheapie thermometer for now till i get paid. its laying on the basking area btw. im gonna try a 100watt household and see if itll keep it warm enough. is it okay for the lamp to be on top of the screen w/ the household or do i need to distance it?

 

[mike91383]

rossebby, what type of thermometer are you using to check the temps?And, where exactly are you taking them? I used a 20 long for a short time and only needed a 75 watt household light bulb to get a basking temp of about 103 and on the cool side, I used a 25 watt household bulb to get a temp there of 81. What is the normal room temp where you have the tank? Is it a glass tank or mesh screen?

I use an inferred thermometer. I check my temps though the mesh screen top, to the top of the height in which my Beardies back is going to be. The normal temp of the room is between 63-65 degrees. This will only affect ambient air temp when the lights are off at night. Well with in the normal night time temps. All my beardies are in a glass 40 gallon breeder tanks w/ screen tops.

 

[mike91383]

is it okay for the lamp to be on top of the screen w/ the household or do i need to distance it?

Yes but you will need to check your temp so that they are right. 105-115 dgrees. Alway check basking spot temps three time to be sure.

 

[iwysss]

Instead of changing the lighting to go around your 20 tank, maybe you can get a bigger size tank since your dragon is going to outgrow a 20 in no time. In the long run, that might save you money. Try looking on craigslist.. they have some cheap (and big) tanks. You can also bargain. :wink:

 

[diamc]

Mike, Bob from reptileuv had mentioned to me that the temps with a temp gun needed to be taken 2 inches from the basking spot and that the reading should never be taken through the screen or it won't be accurate, just thought I would mention this.

rossebby, Walmart has an Accurite brand digital with probe that will give you both basking & cool side temps at the same time as well as a humidity readout, it costs about $12.00. It sounds like you're not getting a good reading with the thermometer you're using now.

 

[mike91383]

I am sorry if I miss wrote but the light needs to past though the screen top and the temp should then be taken inside the Viv to be correct. Gun and all!

 

[diamc]

Oh, so that's what you meant, I agree with you Mike, that's the way the temps should be taken with a temp gun.