Reptisun replacement ?

[MAK]

According to zoomed, the reptisun will provide benifficial levels of uvb for 12 mo. Why am I reading on the forum that I should replace it every 6 ?

 

[BadCon]

There is a difference between beneficial and ideal. Beneficial simply implies that the bulb will be emitting UVB up to 12 months (because any level of UVB could be considered beneficial). It does not mean that the level of UVB emitted at 12 months is ideal for a bearded dragon. Being sun loving reptiles, bearded dragons have a much higher UVB requirement then some other reptiles. Because of this the bulb should be changed out earlier then 12 months to maintain a constant source of high UVB output. Historically the 6 month mark is where the bulb showed the most amount of decay (decay rates slow down the longer the bulb is in use). However decay rates tend to very by bulb...so the best solution would be to get your own UVI or UVB meter and track the decay of your bulbs. In the long run, it would probably pay for itself with the savings in bulbs. If you don't have one of those however, then 6 months is a good schedule to keep.

I can't stress enough that beardies have a very high UVB requirement. Even a fresh Reptisun's output is on the verge of being to low...which is why you gotta keep them replaced on a regular basis. The nice thing about the Reptisun however is its consistent and reliable. There are other bulbs with higher levels of output (mainly MVB's), but their quality variability makes them a gamble. You get a good bulb, great. You get a bad bulb and you'll either be facing significantly reduced UVB output (compared to advertised levels), or in even worse cases...non-natural short wavelength UVB output that could cause eye and skin issues. In other cases the darn thing burns out after a month of use :roll:.