Lighting upgrade questions

[finalflash]

So quick question/thoughts on lighting upgrade...
I now have a young male Jackson not planned so was not really prepared ...he was being kept with a female in a small enclosure at a local shop so you can imagine how that was going...long story short i felt i had to 'rescue' him....Last few days he has been a great eater and drinker so far so fingers crossed he will settle into his solo life. i had a new zoomed reptribreeze starterkit in case of emergency so had to use this until his permanent enclosure is done...will require some den rearranging lol . So, to the main question i know the mini compact fluorescent are not hitting on much so i have a fresh ReptiSun T5 HO 5.0 UVB bulb/lamp on order ...is it too much to use this and leave the compact fluorescent on as well ? The T5 HO is only a 14' and the bulb is what 12"? i want to give the little guy enough UVB but not blast him ....thoughts are greatly appreciated

 

[MzLaurie11]

Does the mini floresent give off heat,? Because you are going to need abasking light above his basking spot. Not sure the temps jacksons need but if you get one with a dimmer switch youcan get a 75 watt basking bulb then adjust the dimmer to get the temps right. you really should have gotten a 24" ubv with 22" bulb overhang is fine that way when you make his permanent home you are all set. Beman is the right person to ask about using your mini. Best of luck to you and your new family member. Oh i have learned the hard way tjat its better to pay a bit more for what they will grow into then to pay less for what will outgrow!

 

[Tkrd69]

@Beman for all your lighting questions. She is one of the best here star rating

 

[nightanole]

The CFL is fine to leave in. Its basically a "6500k bulb" after about 6" (less than .5 UVI) away. And the plants might like it. Plenty of us run 1 5.0 and one 6500k in a dual fluorescent setup. In fact i recycle my "done" T5HO's into 6500k bulbs and get another 3 years out of them.

Jacksons are cool running, so if you can find a low wattage(i run 35 watt) halogen flood, you can replace the cfl with it later down the road. That would be just as efficient for lighting for the plants, and may even give a small area a 3-5f pop in heat.

 

[JacksJill]

For basking I use a 40-60 watt incandescent (if you can get one) and you only have to run it for a few hours a day, unlike the UVB which is 12 hours a day. I run my basking starting an hour after the UVB starts and alternate hours until an hour before UVB goes off.
I ideally you want UVB to run across the top of your entire cage. Usually that is done by buying a full length fixture but you can put a patch on it with nightanole's suggestion. 5.0 is suitable for a Jackson's.

 

[finalflash]

maybe a little more detail ...right now i am using a Zoo Med's Daylight Blue 60W and Reptisun 5.0 CFL in 13 watt in a double dome fixture as that what i happen to have on hand with new bulbs... was adding the ReptiSun T5 HO 5.0 UVB bulb/lamp as i had a 14" fixture an only had to order a new bulb...just wanted to be sure it was not too much...if that makes sense

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[Beman]

Is your new cham climbing the top of the cage? If not you can use the T5HO with the 5.0 bulb directly on the screen but you want a 8-9 inch distance between the screen where is sits and the branches below it to put the cham in the correct UVI level.

IF the cham is climbing the top then you have to raise the fixture 4 inches off the top then have the branches 5 inches below the screen this will provide a total distance of 9 inches to branch but at the screen still keep the cham in a safe exposure level.

 

[finalflash]

thanks so much for the information...he does a little of both lol so i will watch after the new light is added and adjust to add distance if he decides to do the spiderman and walk the roof.