Hi everyone! So my Ripley is about 5 months old, She's been standing up against the glass underneath her UVB light alot lately. She also sleeps in this position overnight. I was wondering if you guys ever experienced this and if I should be concerned? Is this normal and what could it mean? She's active, poops regularly and her setup is all within normal limits as I've been told in my previous introduction post.. If you need all the details of her enclosure please refer to this post --> viewtopic.php?f=44&t=226128
I've already lowered her hammock so that she is not too close to the reptisun 10.0 in a T5 fixture, but when she stands up she gets pretty close to it
here are some pictures to better explain what she's doing.
Yeah maybe I'll move her hammock to the other side, I don't really want to put the t5 on top because I heard it filters out some UVB, any guesses on why she's standing like that? My fiance thinks maybe it's time to change the bulb, I got it in April and I heard it's good for 6 months, some have mentioned that with a T5 fixture they can last up to a year. Not sure how often I should replace the reptisun , 6 months or a year? I am working on getting a solarmeter 6.5 to keep up with my bulbs.
The T5 should last a year without a problem but the Solarmeter will help you get the most out of it. I would use a reflector with that bulb for best output. Without a reflector, the effective distance is shortened but I still wouldn't let her get closer than about 8'' because it can still get quite intense. Taterbug has a chart of outputs with different configurations. https://sites.google.com/site/thelizardmadness/lighting-guides
With a reflector, the light will be intense enough to shine through the top and still produce good UVB exposure at 10-12'' or so. Again, the Solarmeter will be able to tell you exactly. I have mine on top of the tank but I took the screen off because I don't have any other animals in the house.