(2) 2' or one 4' bulb t5 for cage?

[Murry]

Ok so my veiled's cage needs full lighting now that his cage doubled in size. His cage is now 4' wide by 2'deep by 4' tall. I plan on getting a T5 fixture that holds eight bulbs. Should I get one 4' fixture or two 2' foot fixtures. I've always heard it's better to get two 2ft ones but I don't have facts to back that. Plant bulbs ain't that expensive so it's really not that much more money to replace an extra 7 plant and 1 uvb bulbs. And whichever way helps ensure the health of Turk sounds better to me. Thanks for the help.

 

[ERKleRose]

Get the 4' one, as UVB bulbs are strongest in the middle, so a 4' UVB bulb is better than two 2' ones. Why the 8 bulb fixture? Side note, how did you attach your cages together? I've got 3 spare ReptiBreezes and tried to attach 2 together, but the latch things that hold the bottom service door got in the way of them being flush.

 

[Murry]

Yeah I did read that about them being strongest in the middle and if you have to waste so much on the sides it's better to only waste the space once. No particular reason why the 8 bulbs. I just figured if I didn't need that many I didn't have to use that many. I would like it to be brighter in there. I'm going to put some LEDs I had on my saltwater tank until the upgrade.
I took the screen out of the appropriate sides put them side-by-side. bought some strong black duct tape and cut the duct tape to fit. The back side of the cage that duct tape is facing in but I have something in the middle so that if you was to get between there it wouldn't be sticky. Then on the front I taped it on the inside sticky facing out and had to cut it down as well to make it fit and look less noticeable. I have a hole cut in that table its on and I have the outside cage boarder taped holding it in place as well. I had no intention of using tape and highly suggest nobody ever use tape in any of their cages. So I'll probably change that before too long. But for now I got to keep the flies in. Lol

 

[Beman]

8 bulbs is wayyyyyyyyy too much in my opinion. It is not only a ton of light it will produce a ton of heat. A quad will be fine. I would get the 48 inch fixture though because then you have less bulbs to replace vs two 24 inch fixtures.

 

[nightanole]

2'deep

Id gets dually with individual reflectors. Then fill out the rest with sansi grow leds.

If you get a quad, and its not individual reflectors, its not going to put out more light at 1 foot or farther. Most of these quad (or even single reflector duals) fixtures are meant for plants (so less than 1ft away from target, or aquariums (less than 2ft away from target.

you basically have 2 reptibreeze xls glued together.

And yes, 5.0/6% for both bulbs tops. Personally id only run 1 (since no one runs dual UVB on reptibreeze xls) anda 6500k "daylight bulb".

 

[Murry]

8 bulbs is wayyyyyyyyy too much in my opinion. It is not only a ton of light it will produce a ton of heat. A quad will be fine. I would get the 48 inch fixture though because then you have less bulbs to replace vs two 24 inch fixtures.

Yea i agree 8 is a lot... i would think to much. But a well know person (not well liked by all) suggested that to a new person. Maybe the quad or samsi. Oh and that is 2 xl reptibreeze connected. Thanks for the help

 

[Beman]

Yea i agree 8 is a lot... i would think to much. But a well know person (not well liked by all) suggested that to a new person. Maybe the quad or samsi. Oh and that is 2 xl reptibreeze connected. Thanks for the help

Let me put it this way... Not sure who you saw recommend that but... I run 3 T5 fixtures on a 30 inch wide x 2 feet deep x 4 feet tall enclosure. They produce heat. Like a decent amount to the point my Veiled will not bask under his basking fixture only the T5's. One UVB and 2 6500 daylight bulbs sitting directly on the top with 8-9 inches to basking branches below them produces 80-82 degrees at that branch. Having a quad will produce similar temps but to have two quads is just going to be intense overkill for temps and airflow. I mean you end up literally blocking the entire top of the enclosure.

I love my T5's and so does my cham. I also love the jungle dawn bars and have thought about adding one of these and removing the basking fixture all together since Beman rarely ever utilizes it. But even with just these 3 lights all of my plants are thriving and even blooming. So I know I already have enough plant lights. Now if you have a lot sitting further down in the enclosure the sansi spot lights might be a great option to penetrate light further down.

And totally separate I could not imagine the intensity of light for a cham being so close to 8 bulbs. I know when I look up at Beman's cage with just 3 it hurts my eyes.

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

Ok so my veiled's cage needs full lighting now that his cage doubled in size. His cage is now 4' wide by 2'deep by 4' tall. I plan on getting a T5 fixture that holds eight bulbs. Should I get one 4' fixture or two 2' foot fixtures. I've always heard it's better to get two 2ft ones but I don't have facts to back that. Plant bulbs ain't that expensive so it's really not that much more money to replace an extra 7 plant and 1 uvb bulbs. And whichever way helps ensure the health of Turk sounds better to me. Thanks for the help.

IMO, for the UVB, it's a toss-up. With shorter bulbs, you have a little flexibility in arrangement, and if one goes out, you at least have the other. Replacements don't take long to get, but there have been temporary shortages. 48" bulbs are more expensive, but I haven't priced them against 2 24" bulbs.

For plant lights, I'd go with Sansi LEDs. They're more efficient, more eco-friendly (fluorescents all contain mercury), and many are self-contained. Some may have a slightly higher initial cost (though coupons are available), but overall lifetime cost is much less.

I have a 48 x 24 x 48 enclosure, and 2 of these Sansi 70W plant lights—they're the bomb.
Website page says there's an upcoming deal!

 

[CasqueAbove]

Simple answer. 2 24in bulbs $50-60. 1 48in bulb $30. Plus as mentioned you will get a better dispersment of light.
And 8 T5 is ridiculous, sorry. Mostly because if you want that much light I would go LED. As mentioned 8 T5 are going to put out some heat, maybe too much heat. Just doesn't add up.

 

[Flickmycham]

Ok so my veiled's cage needs full lighting now that his cage doubled in size. His cage is now 4' wide by 2'deep by 4' tall. I plan on getting a T5 fixture that holds eight bulbs. Should I get one 4' fixture or two 2' foot fixtures. I've always heard it's better to get two 2ft ones but I don't have facts to back that. Plant bulbs ain't that expensive so it's really not that much more money to replace an extra 7 plant and 1 uvb bulbs. And whichever way helps ensure the health of Turk sounds better to me. Thanks for the help.

Hey Murry,
I know this thread was from earlier this year but I’m currently getting a 4’x2’x4’ enclosure all set up and have been searching for answers about basking spots in an enclosure this size. I’m wondering if you have only one heat lamp or two? Ever hear of people using 2 heat lamps? How do you have your lights set up on the top of the enclosure? I’m worried about it not being warm enough on the other side of the enclosure if I put only one basking light on the right side. I know I’m asking for a lot but if at all possible, picture of your light set up would be amazing!
It’s my first adult enclosure I’m setting up and want it to be awesome for my male panther.
Thanks!

 

[Beman]

Hey Murry,
I know this thread was from earlier this year but I’m currently getting a 4’x2’x4’ enclosure all set up and have been searching for answers about basking spots in an enclosure this size. I’m wondering if you have only one heat lamp or two? Ever hear of people using 2 heat lamps? How do you have your lights set up on the top of the enclosure? I’m worried about it not being warm enough on the other side of the enclosure if I put only one basking light on the right side. I know I’m asking for a lot but if at all possible, picture of your light set up would be amazing!
It’s my first adult enclosure I’m setting up and want it to be awesome for my male panther.
Thanks!

You only need 1 basking fixture. You want a gradient of temps. This includes going down into the cage and across the top. This was my 4x2x4. Basking is in the back left corner. Then I had 3 T5's running (1uvb bulb and 2 6500k daylight bulbs. This way the cham picks where exactly it wants to be.

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

Hey Murry,
I know this thread was from earlier this year but I’m currently getting a 4’x2’x4’ enclosure all set up and have been searching for answers about basking spots in an enclosure this size. I’m wondering if you have only one heat lamp or two? Ever hear of people using 2 heat lamps? How do you have your lights set up on the top of the enclosure? I’m worried about it not being warm enough on the other side of the enclosure if I put only one basking light on the right side. I know I’m asking for a lot but if at all possible, picture of your light set up would be amazing!
It’s my first adult enclosure I’m setting up and want it to be awesome for my male panther.
Thanks!

I also have a 48x24x48 enclosure. There's nothing that says you can't have more than one basking spot, but it's really not necessary.

I use 2 70W Sansi lights for plants; they're much more efficient and economical than T5s.
This thread shows how I did it, and then improved it.
https://www.chameleonforums.com/threads/simple-uvb-fixture-supports.177896/