Fluorescent bulbs, are they really all the same?

[desertlizard113]

Okay, so I found this forum on google. I am a desert lizard breeder, and this year it's gotten to the point that I have over 40 babies, with much more on the way due to years of building up my colonies.
- Collared Lizards
- Desert Iguanas
- Yarrow's Spiny Lizards
- Crevice Spiny Lizards
It's been a very, very, VERY busy season, the busiest I have ever experienced. So, with all this going on as any busy breeder would due with mass production, I'm looking to do things a bit smarter, financially. I really have too.

One is crickets, happy with the guy I have right now but his prices are the same as anyone else s, anyone know the cheapest cricket supplier out there?

Two, and why I'm writing is lighting. I read on the forum, rather than spending $8.99 to $10.99 on incandescent bulbs for the purpose of a warm spot I went and got some regular, clear(not white, is that okay?)bulbs for 1/4 of the price and I love them. The lizards are still eating and it doesn't seem to have any affect with this change. Then I bought some domes, only two to see if the would work them same, only paid $6 for them as opposed to $18.99 and up. They seem to work just as well, and when I think of my local pet shops over the years I always wondered why they didn't use the official bulbs and dome marketed to reptiles, now I think I know.

Third and finally the important question. The fluorescent bulbs. Since the reptile industry hasn't been completely truthful about their products, and I did the research, ALL florescent bulbs give off a LOW amount of UVB, that's why the Vitamin D3 has been such a close friend of mine over the years, never once had and issue metabolic bone disorder, or whatever it's called. So my question is, I have these "helical 13w 120vac 60hz 180ma" bulbs here at the house. I googled the heck out of them and all I can come up with is that they are very useful in growing marijuana. Even though that's not my personal pastime or hobby I find it interesting because if it works for marijuana, or plants in general, the a step in the right direction, something is working. So, my final question about this bulb or any cheaper florescent bulb, are they the same? Will it work for my needs? I'm hoping the next time I have to buy a "UVB" bulb, I don't have to shell out $35 minimum. If the bulb I mentioned is not preferable, can any of you suggest a cheap household bulb that is? Thanks so much for any help given, I have spent the entire weekend researching this with minimal information. The bulbs I have now were bought at Sam's Club(not using them yet) and they are ridiculously inexpensive.

 

[fluxlizard]

ooh! oooh! We have the same taste in lizards!

I had 9 baby crevice spiny's born today! Was amazed at how large they were in comparison to the mother. She was HUGE a couple of days ago though. I got a small group (2.4) wild caught earlier this spring. Really cool lizards.

I want yarrows bad and am looking for more female yellowhead collards (Utah locale).

Also looking for blue spiny lizards.

PM me if you are going to sell any of those.

crickets-breed my own.
I also breed my own mealies and a few species of roaches.

 

[fluxlizard]

Oh bulbs- sorry I'm not so much help here. Similar experience as you with el cheapo bulbs and d3. No problems for 20 years. In recent years I cut back on d3, and recently I purchased the new t-5 lighting (zoomed). I like that kind of lighting very much and so do the lizards compared to the t-8.
Plant bulbs I *think* are usually more red spectrum and not much use for UVB.
You can purchase tubes cheaper in bulk from places like LLL. Light fixtures cheaper off of e-bay (I got fixtures for growing indoor gardens for my t-5. Forgotten what I paid now- maybe $20 per fixture in bulk).
Summer I keep my lizards outside in sunlight.

 

[desertlizard113]

ooh! oooh! We have the same taste in lizards!

I had 9 baby crevice spiny's born today! Was amazed at how large they were in comparison to the mother. She was HUGE a couple of days ago though. I got a small group (2.4) wild caught earlier this spring. Really cool lizards.

I want yarrows bad and am looking for more female yellowhead collards (Utah locale).

Also looking for blue spiny lizards.

PM me if you are going to sell any of those.

crickets-breed my own.
I also breed my own mealies and a few species of roaches.

Hey, thanks for you reply, I did send you a PM but when I look in my sent folder it comes up 0, so let me know if you received in when you get a chance.

 

[desertlizard113]

Oh bulbs- sorry I'm not so much help here. Similar experience as you with el cheapo bulbs and d3. No problems for 20 years. In recent years I cut back on d3, and recently I purchased the new t-5 lighting (zoomed). I like that kind of lighting very much and so do the lizards compared to the t-8.
Plant bulbs I *think* are usually more red spectrum and not much use for UVB.
You can purchase tubes cheaper in bulk from places like LLL. Light fixtures cheaper off of e-bay (I got fixtures for growing indoor gardens for my t-5. Forgotten what I paid now- maybe $20 per fixture in bulk).
Summer I keep my lizards outside in sunlight.

Thanks for your reply! So you did in fact use the cheap type of bulbs I'm considering and no problem for 20 years? That sounds positive. Here's my observation, maybe I said it in my initial post, but can't remember. I apologize if I'm being redundant. I noticed the pet shops are not using official incandescent bulbs by Zoomed or the like, and I also noticed they are using the cheap domes that you can get from Lowes or Home Depot, so it got me thinking. No offense to the reptile industry, but their stuff is so much more expensive, at the large quantity I'm breeding I can't afford to do it anymore. Another example, Calcium Sand for $20 at Pet Smart, I think it was for 20 or 25lbs if that. First of all it can be dangerous to smaller lizards, second at Home Depot I can get a much more finer sand for $3 at 50lbs. I'm at a point I have to be more smart with my money and do my research on alternatives.

 

[fluxlizard]

Yeaaaah- BUT- that should really not be the take home message. Any noobies reading this thread should follow current thinking and guidelines for lighting.

I'll PM you with my comments to your last post to explain things a little more and give you some ideas about using sunlight to save money.

 

[kplatvoet]

I like to go a bit with tanstaafl - when it comes to UVB I tend to think with my limited experience that acadia is the way to go - they last longer and people who have meters get better rating. Saving money on other lights and fixtures though makes good sense - Quality is worth paying for and ends up saving in the long run-
The guides here on raising feeders are a great way to save some cash- look into a soldier fly composter - if you can do them outside - calciworms for about the price of a couple of weeks of crickets
http://blacksoldierflyblog.com/purchase-the-bsf-bio-composter/
( I don't have one but I'm thinking it may be my next purchase just for summer use- as they are rumored to be a bit smelly)

 

[desertlizard113]

Okay, to correct any confusion that I may have caused(sorry for this). I just got off the phone with GE (General Electric), and asked him(in short) 1-Does this bulb produce any UVB? His reply was no. and 2- The bulbs that the reptile industry sells, is this a marketing ploy or are all florescent bulbs really the same. He said, it's not a marketing ploy and that the bulbs have a special coating to produce the UVB. I thanked him for his non biased honesty.

So, my conclusion is that the pet shop that use the cheap bulbs, since ideally their animals don't stay there long, they can get away with it. But I'm not willing to take the chance of putting my reptiles at any kind of risk. I also learned recently that you can still buy the cheaper domes at lowes, home depot etc, just use the 300watt to reduce risks of problems with the switches and such.

To wrap up, I discovered reptilesupply.com who I'm about to call now. They have the UVB lights I have been using for years with no problems for a much cheaper rate, in fact the lowest I ever seen. I'm probably going to go with them. Although I am probably going to continue using the cheap incandescent bulbs, at least experiment on a few to make sure there are no ill effects.

 

[desertlizard113]

The guides here on raising feeders are a great way to save some cash- look into a soldier fly composter - if you can do them outside - calciworms for about the price of a couple of weeks of crickets
http://blacksoldierflyblog.com/purchase-the-bsf-bio-composter/
( I don't have one but I'm thinking it may be my next purchase just for summer use- as they are rumored to be a bit smelly)

Excellent idea! Thank you! I've used calciworms before in the past, most of my lizards will ea them.