Couple questions

[brownie64]

I bought two new Zoo Med 26w 10.0 CFL bulbs about 3 weeks ago. I can't get the Solar 6.2 do to finances at this time. So I bought a cheap UVI meter for now for reference. Not that I fully trust this thing but let me tell what I found. I was under the understanding that a proper reading of UVI was about 4-4.5 at 12- 15 inches. I can get a 1-0.8 at best. Now I thought just a bad meter right, (not so fast) I also have a 26w Exo Terra 100 5.0 CFL that is supposed to be half as strong as the Zoo Med, and are 4 months old that I put on the babies it has readings of 4-3.5 at the 10-15 inch golden spot? I checked all the bulbs by putting the meter right up to the bulb the Zoo Med read at best 11 were the Exo Terra's reading was 20. So I'm thinking WTF the Zoo Med bulbs are junk. And I paid $37.00 apiece for these things which $24.00 more than the Exo Terra. That's what I get for thinking Zoo Med was a better product!

First question do you have any thoughts on this, and do you think I got ripped off?

Second question is do you think a 4 is too high of a reading for neonates?
Any help or input on this would be greatly appreciated.

 

[NHenn]

I'm glad to see you are doing your homework and testing your lights before just placing them on top of the cage and assuming they are working as designed. Excellent Job!

I personally do not like and therefore do not recommend compact bulbs as they do not produce the gradient of levels you would like to see in a cage. I use T5 lighting for all my setup as it provides the best lighting environment for them when kept indoors.

I would believe that your Zoo Med bulb is of lower quality. I personally don't like zoo med lighting for this exact reason.

I never tested lights for UVI so I can't compare my results with yours or give you a recommendation on your readings. I would guess that a reading of 1 would be to low for a branch around 12" away. I would expect those readings to be much lower in the cage.

Honestly, I would consider looking into HO T5 fixtures for your setups as they will give you some of the best lighting for your chameleons.

 

[brownie64]

I'm glad to see you are doing your homework and testing your lights before just placing them on top of the cage and assuming they are working as designed. Excellent Job!

I personally do not like and therefore do not recommend compact bulbs as they do not produce the gradient of levels you would like to see in a cage. I use T5 lighting for all my setup as it provides the best lighting environment for them when kept indoors.

I would believe that your Zoo Med bulb is of lower quality. I personally don't like zoo med lighting for this exact reason.

I never tested lights for UVI so I can't compare my results with yours or give you a recommendation on your readings. I would guess that a reading of 1 would be to low for a branch around 12" away. I would expect those readings to be much lower in the cage.

Honestly, I would consider looking into HO T5 fixtures for your setups as they will give you some of the best lighting for your chameleons.

Thanks for your input. I'll get the T5 as soon as money permits. Live and learn I guess. I wrote Zoo Med and all I seem to be getting right now is a lot of questions, and runaround. So to anyone out there thinking about Zoo Med CFL lights look somewhere else they are junk, and the customer service isn't any better.