T5s & Solarmeters

[SHBailey]

So I've been noticing that our Reptisun 10.0 T5 tube has a tendency to flash once or twice anywhere from a second or two to as much as a minute or more after it has been turned off. I've also noticed that when I measure the output with the Solarmeter 6.2, the reading gradually rises, even after the lamp has been on for several hours and even though I'm holding the meter still right on the basking platform. :?

Has anyone else noticed any of these things with the T5s or did I just get a funky one?

I'm considering getting a Solarmeter 6.5 because I understand that it gives more useful information, but I'm still trying to decide if the expense is justified, since we don't really have a lot of extra money lying around right now. :roll:

 

[Taterbug]

Check to make sure the lamp is fitted properly and snuggle in the sockets. Flickering can be from the contacts not being engaged just right. Try taking the bulb out and reseating it. If that doesn't work try a different bulb to try and repeat the issue. If it continues your fixture might have a fault.

UV output from lamps is more of an art than science. It can vary by things you wouldn't expect like time of day and temperature due to fluctuations in the power supply.

How much difference are you seeing?

6.5 meters are usually more useful but the 6.2 you have will give you fine j formation for output strength and decay amounts.

 

[SHBailey]

Thanks. I will try reseating it -- I may have to get my husband to help me because I have a heck of a time getting those things in and out of the fixtures. There may be some trick to it that I'm just not quite getting. My husband is a wiz with all things electronic and mechanical, one of the many reasons I'm lucky to have him around. :-D

It doesn't flicker while it's on, and the output only rises very slowly, one mW/cm2 at a time, when I hold the meter under it. It seems to be working fine otherwise, but then it flashes momentarily once or twice after it has been turned off. We only have one T5 tube and one T5 fixture so far, and it's about 3 months old. We'd been using the T8s before that and decided to try the T5s. We still have some T8s for backup, but I suppose it's time to consider ordering another T5 so we have a spare as well as another one for comparison.

No kidding about the art instead of science. We've had a number of T8s and I've noticed a wide variation in the readings on the meter with brand new ones right out of the box -- apparently there's more art than science to the manufacturing of these things as well. And too bad there are usually only a few days out of the year when it's actually warm enough here in the subarctic to take the beardie outside and let him soak up some natural sunlight. :roll:

I'm really only using the meter to let me know when it's time to replace the tubes, and I understand that there's more to Vitamin D production and calcium metabolism than mW/cm2 of UVB. So a new meter is probably a "want" rather than a "need". I suppose that a lot of other folks around here know how it is -- in our case, for example, our kitchen floor needs some serious professional help, but if we ever have any extra money, we'll probably spend it on the reptiles.

 

[SHBailey]

Update:

So I talked with my husband, who was responsible for maintaining and replacing fluorescent lighting at one of his previous jobs, and he says it's not unusual for the tubes to flash once or twice after they've been turned off --something to do with ballasts and capacitance and such -- electrical stuff. :? He also said that you have to be careful when you replace ballasts to let them sit for a little while before you put them in the trash or the recycle bin or whatever, apparently because they can carry a residual electrical charge that takes a little while to dissipate after they've been turned off and/or disconnected from the power source.

We're planning to order another T5 hood and another tube or two so we will have a spare in case the one we have quits for any reason, and in the meantime we still have some of the T8s to fall back on for a little while if necessary. Our beardie seems happy with it -- in fact, when I put him back in the terrarium after I've had him out, he often lines his body up with where he knows the UV tube is going to go, even before I put the hood back on top of the tank. 8)