ReptiSun 10.0 Dessert Bulb, Help

[zoomommi]

As a newbie, I am getting so much information, I don't know what I am doing right or wrong. First of all, I bought this bulb at a popular pet store for double the price of what petmountain.com has it listed for. I am so tempted to put it back in the box and send it back and buy from petmountain.com. Anyway, someone please answer a coupple of questions for me. What type of fixture do I put it in and where do I place it. A wonderful, nice member suggested this bulb and she uses an "Arcadia controller fixtrue" from the UK. Now, I can't find that fixture in the US. What do I put this bulb in and how far from my little Ollie do I place it. Are these bulbs hurtful to the dragons eyes? Hers is in that controller fixture and then she has it in a piece of PVC pointing at the basking spot.
Right now, I have it in an alluminum dome light on top of the viv above the screen. It is next to her basking light.
Please, someone guide me on this $50.00 ReptiSun bulb.
I will once agian try to imbed a picture in this post.
Please let me know what to get, I am going to make an order from petmountain.com tonight and I would like to place an order for the correct fixture.
Oh, and thank you to whom ever posted the information on PetMountain on one of the threads. The prices on there are half of ANY of the reptile sites I have looked at.
Thanks and please help me with some answers soon,
zoomommi

 

[vickson420]

Hello
Ok so judging from the pic I am assuming your bulb is a coil uvb light correct?If so then I would return it.There have been alot of problems with these bulbs in regards to emitting poor uvb and causing health issues.The best thing to do is to order a linear Reptisun 10.0 from petmountain.com.This is what you should be looking for:
http://www.petmountain.com/product/fluorescent/504983/zoo-med-reptisun-10.0-uvb-bulb.html
Also do you have a heat bulb?I didnt notice one there and that is required.You can use that clamp lamp for the heat bulb but you will need a flourescent strip fixture for the UVB.Now generally you can find them for fairly cheap at Lowes or Home Depot and then mount it on the inside or you can rest it on top if its screened on top.Your beardie is going to have to get within 6-8 inches of the UVB when using that.The uvb bulb has to be replaced every 6mos.The other option is to go with an MVB bulb like this:
http://www.reptileuv.com/megaray-sb-100-watt-self-ballasted-flood-uvb-lamp.php
http://lllreptile.com/store/catalog/reptile-supplies/uvb-fluorescent-lights-mercury-vapor-bulbs/-/t-rex-100-watt-flood-active-uv-heat-bulb/
These bulbs emit heat and UVB in one bulb.They are flood type bulbs and go into clamp lamp fixtures like the one you have but it may not be big enough I cant really tell from the pic.They emit better UVB but their is a distance requirement of at least 12 inches.You can rest it on top of the tank and although they cost more they only require replacement yearly so the cost evens out.My top pick on these is the Megaray although they are currently on back order which is why I gave you the next best option.Hope this helps clear things up a bit.

 

[Josh48329]

I've been reading EVERYTHING I could find on lighting for a few hours each day for a week straight now. It seems the MVB's are DEFINITELY the way to go as long as a)your cage is big enough (looks like yours is) and b)you get a quality one. That being said, I've called EVERY place I could find that had the Mega-Ray on their site (including the manufacturer) and nobody had one or could tell me when they might.

That being the case I went ahead and ordered the T-Rex (second best) from petmountain. http://www.petmountain.com/product/heat-bulbs/503619/t-rex-active-uv-heat-flood-spot-lamps.html The $43 is a bit more than a couple of other places, but with the 10% off code they give you on the website ("HOLIDAY"), it ends up being about the same. I also happened to spend over $150 so I got free shipping -- can't beat that!

A good fixture for this bulb is this deep dome: http://www.petmountain.com/product/light-fixtures/513264/zoo-med-repti-deep-dome-lamp-fixture.html

The 100W bulb should be plenty (just be sure you keep your dragon 12" or more from it), and that and the fixture should be all you need for lighting. It'll take care of your heat, light, and UV all in one. With the 10% off it's only like $51 for the two and should last you a year or so. Hard to beat! Especially if you purchase more and get it shipped for free too....

 

[zoomommi]

It is not the coil, it is this one:
http://www.petmountain.com/product/fluorescent/510305/zoo-med-reptisun-5.0-uvb-compact-flourescent-bulb-26-watts.html
I have been reading all of your warnings on the coil but this one is not the spiral type. I would love to return it because of the cost of this on as opposed to the tube it they are just as effective. I think that because of the height and size of my viv, I will have to install it inside of my viv.
zoomommi
Do you think it would be bad to bring it back since I have used it for a couple of days? I do still have the box.

 

[Josh48329]

Personally, I think I would return it and buy the T-Rex bulb and a properly rated dome. Seems to be a much better value for your money, and more importantly, leads to better health for your beardie.

Knowing that it's not a bulb you'd probably ever use again though if you do get an MVB, paying $40-50 for a few days use would be kinda silly. 2 or 3 days of use in the original package constitutes as "like new condition" to me, but I guess that's an opinion that some people might disagree with....

This is assuming that your tank is 40 gallons or larger, anyway. It looks like it is, but do you know or have the dimensions of it? If it's smaller then the fluorescent tube will be the way to go.

 

[zoomommi]

The Mega-Ray SB100 bulb says that it can have a 6 foot emmision of the UV rays. It would seem that those bulbs might not be very good for the dragons eyes. I see that the UVB is met, but what about the UVA rays. I understand that UVA is also needed. And, they are out of stock.
Here is a better pic of the viv. 36x20x20

 

[Josh48329]

Those dimensions come out to around 62 gallons so an MVB bulb such as the Mega-Ray or T-rex should be fine. Don't worry about the 6ft sounding harmful -- just make sure it's positioned 12" (or slightly more) away from your dragon and you'll be good! You can verify this with a quality digital thermometer to make sure the basking temperature is correct.

I called Mega-Ray (reptileuv.com) this morning and they said they didn't know when the 100W SB would be back in stock. The T-rex bulb that is linked a couple times in this thread is a close second and is in stock just about everywhere. That's what I decided to go with, rather than waiting an unknown amount of time without a necessary bulb. You don't necessarily need an additional light source, but if you need more light and are worried about UVA you could try just a general fluorescent light such as this one: http://www.reptileuv.com/30-watt-t12-36-inch-full-spectrum-natural-light.php

 

[Josh48329]

By the way, there is nothing special about that "full spectrum fluorescent" tube I linked. You can get the same thing (check the model number) at Home Depot for half the price!

 

[vickson420]

Hi
Yes the bulb you are using is known as a compact and falls in the same category as the coil so I would definately ditch it.In regards to the MVB they are fantastic.I have been using them for years and I personally swear by them.As long as you stick to the distance requirement of 12 inches for the 100 watt your beardie will thrive under it.I think as long as you have the reciept and the box there shouldnt be an issue returning it just tell them it doesnt work for your set up.

 

[twyliteskyz]

hi guys, im new too. im trying to get facts straight so i can buy the right things, i read here about this reptisun bulb. and thanks for the petmountain info, but what id like to know is what size length i need. as they list 4 options. i could possibly buy the bulb and just build the cage around that lol, say i buy the 24" one, what would be ideal cage size? or does it not matter that way?

 

[vickson420]

Basically you want the length of the bulb to cover at least 3/4 of the length of the tank.So if you have a 36 inch long tank then you would want at least a 24 inch bulb and so on.

 

[twyliteskyz]

Basically you want the length of the bulb to cover at least 3/4 of the length of the tank.So if you have a 36 inch long tank then you would want at least a 24 inch bulb and so on.

good info, thank you that answers that

 

[twyliteskyz]

what i will end up with is either 36-40 inch length, and 18-20 inch width, anouther concern is im going to be getting a baby, so i will be partitioned off alot, if i have the bulb that fits the large tank basically the babys whole partitioned off section is going to have bulb over it that way, will that be too much

 

[zoomommi]

About the building of the viv,
Twylite, you talked about partitioning because of getting your baby. Ollie,our 6inch little girl is in the pictured 36 in viv and she uses the whole area. I have the basking on one side and she ussually sits on that side, but when hunting or just exploring she goes around the whole viv. The girl in the pet store mentioned that I would have to partition for Ollie to catch her crickets, but those crickets are not very sharp and they come right up to Ollie and that's all she wrote. I am a newbie, but the partition issue for me has be axed. She enjoys exploring the viv. If you have any questions while building just let me know.
I will say that my plans were to put formica on the entire inside. Well, I realized that an easier and MUCH less expensive option was to go to the flooring section and purchase the 18x18 stick tile in a desert color tone and liquid nail them down. You can cut it easily with scissors and It looks great and easy to clean. Just a little thing I discovered that no one else had ever mentioned. My only regret that I will be changing is the hinges. I am going to pull out those hideous hinges I have now and replace them with piano hinge.
Good Luck and I would love to build these things for a living. I would take orders if I thought it would take off! Also it is a hell of a lot cheaper than some of the sites I saw the homemade wooden vivs are.

 

[zoomommi]

OK Guys,
I returned the ReptiSun bulb today with no problem. I went ahead and ordered the T-Rex last night. In the meantime, I will try to get Ollie in the sunlight.
Am I understanding you guys correctly when you say that the UVB rays you get from these T-Rex type of bulbs and the UVA rays you can get from a standard flourescent tube?:???
So, I will have the T-Tex for basking and UVB and then the flourescent bulb for the UVA. If needed, I cant also use her little Zoomed basking spot lamp for additional basking heat. I have a probe therm ordered to make sure my temps are correct.
T-Rex, flourescent, then a basking if needed RIGHT? RIGHT?? Please say yes!
zoomommi