Lighting?
- Thread starter iya78
- Start date
Elizadolots
New Member
My guess is the answer is going to involve some questions on your set up....another guess is that you'll be pointed to the 5 or the 10 and the choice is going to depend on your set up.
Where the bulb is in relation to the cage, what sort of fixture it's in, how close it is to the basking spot... those are things I suspect will be important in getting a good answer. Oh, and remind us what sort of chameleon you have and how old he/she is. That's important on lighting issues.
Where the bulb is in relation to the cage, what sort of fixture it's in, how close it is to the basking spot... those are things I suspect will be important in getting a good answer. Oh, and remind us what sort of chameleon you have and how old he/she is. That's important on lighting issues.
summoner12
Avid Member
Is the 13w a CLF lamp? the screw in type?
You should purchase a linear type lamp.
The Zoo Med Reptisun 5.0 will do the trick.
The 2.0 isn't really a UVB lamp. It produces a good spectrum of light to grow plants though. Zoo Med has come out and said they stopped labeling their 2.0 lamp as a UVB lamp and now call it a grow light or something.... I forget. There is an article I posted about the 2.0 and Zoo Med replied to it. I will look for it and post a link.
You should purchase a linear type lamp.
The Zoo Med Reptisun 5.0 will do the trick.
The 2.0 isn't really a UVB lamp. It produces a good spectrum of light to grow plants though. Zoo Med has come out and said they stopped labeling their 2.0 lamp as a UVB lamp and now call it a grow light or something.... I forget. There is an article I posted about the 2.0 and Zoo Med replied to it. I will look for it and post a link.
bridgofaith
Avid Member
https://www.chameleonforums.com/zoo-med-6500k-lamp-34554/
You want to order the Repti Sun 5.0 linear bulb. Do a search of the forum and you will find the answer to your question.
You want to order the Repti Sun 5.0 linear bulb. Do a search of the forum and you will find the answer to your question.
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summoner12
Avid Member
Not so much with UVB.
Elizadolots
New Member
Really? Fischer's and Veiled get the same answer? that's something I didn't know.
summoner12
Avid Member
Every day is a day to learn.
dodolah
Retired Moderator
How interesting... So, it's basically the same as my Sylvania/ GE plant light?
Do post the link. This is new to me as well.
Jakedn
New Member
I use a reptiglo 2.0 along with a reptisun 5.0 my plants are thriving and the jasmine vine is flowering.
I believe the reptiglo 2.0 is the same as the naturesun 2.0 (reptisun 2.0), and I believe they are both similar to the GE plant light. They are just most likely more expensive and possibly worse at providing light for optimum plant growth.
bridgofaith
Avid Member
I posted the link in the post I made right after his.
Elizadolots
New Member
I say, every day I learn is a day I'm not growing older...so, yay! Thank you for that.
summoner12
Avid Member
Yeah I think the link was bonk at first.
I was gonna say something but I figured you would fix it... or was it just not working for me? It seems to be working now.
Frans, here is a link to the UVB meter group message I started... Link
Monties1982
Avid Member
As far as the specific difference between the 5.0 and 10.0, the 5.0 puts out 5% of it's total light output as UVB and the 10.0 puts out 10%. Here's a link about the three different lights that has graphs of the spectrum put out by each one.
http://www.exo-terra.com/en/products/linear_fluorescent_bulbs.php
http://www.exo-terra.com/en/products/linear_fluorescent_bulbs.php
bridgofaith
Avid Member
Yeah I think the link was bonk at first.
I was gonna say something but I figured you would fix it... or was it just not working for me? It seems to be working now.
Frans, here is a link to the UVB meter group message I started... Link
No, it didn't work at first. Stupid iPhone! It's good to go now. LOL Sorry!
summoner12
Avid Member
For most people it is best to suggest the 5.0. You can break it down and get super technical... but really, you'll be talking chinese to a lot of people. There isn't much data out there that specifies how much UVB a cham needs. The sun beats down with a lot of UVB every single day and because the animals live in trees and live in the shade a lot of the day, it would be very hard to simulate this UVB fluctuation in a cage.
So to make things simple for the new keeper and because it has proven to work time and time again, the 5.0 is the best lamp to suggest to a new keeper. Creating a basking spot at the top of the cage and placing a 5.0 linear tube next to this spot is a good practice.
To get a good understanding of UVB check out the UV Guide website. It will explain a lot of the basics and can get pretty technical.
Elizadolots
New Member
Ya know...I think this poster would really just like to be told "buy this one"..I sort of think the majority came down on the 5.0...which is what I expected. Can he go forward with that purchase without fear? (just noting that from what I've read the 10.0's are maybe for really big systems or even free range environments, not single chameleon cages)
**edit comment**
Summoner, we posted at the same time.
**edit comment**
Summoner, we posted at the same time.
Dave Weldon
Avid Member
Howdy Elvia,
The tricky part about 2.0 vs. 5.0 vs. 10.0, especially when comparing one manufacturer to another, is that since it is a percentage (5% etc.) then the question becomes: "A percentage of what total output level are we talking about?" One might think that all you need to find out is the total spectral power output in terms of uW/cm2 and then just take 5% of that for each manufacturer's UVB tube and then you'll have an "apples-to-apples" comparison. Unfortunately, this method misses another important dimension in reptile UVB lighting. It doesn't tell anything about the ratios between what is sometimes referred to as UVB1 and UVB2 resulting in an number called "D3 Yield Index". Two different manufacturers' tubes that have the same 5% rating and produce the same uW/cm2 level (example: 50uW/cm2 at 6" as measured by using the Solarmeter 6.2), may have vastly different D3 Yield Index levels. Take, for example, the ZooMed Reptisun 5.0 and the R.C. Hagen Exo-Terra Repti Glo 5.0 linear tubes. Their D3 Yield Index values are 439 and 150 respectively. As you might imagine, the D3YI values are supposed to give you some indication of the tube's ability to stimulate vitamin D3 production in your chameleon. At some point, too much is too much and too little is too little . What's a typical keeper to do . Easy: buy a Zoo Med Reptisun linear tube (18", 24", 36", 48"), put it in an appropriate fixture, position it around 6"-12" away from the basking spot and "fuggeddaboutit" .
LLL Reptile ZooMed Reptisun 5.0 linear tubes:
http://lllreptile.com/search/?q=Repti+Sun+5.0+UVB+bulb
Most common sizes used (and easy to find a fixture for) are:
18" T-8 ($14.09) http://lllreptile.com/store/catalog...por-bulbs/-/zoo-med-18-repti-sun-50-uvb-bulb/
48" T-8 ($15.50) http://lllreptile.com/store/catalog...por-bulbs/-/zoo-med-48-repti-sun-50-uvb-bulb/
These sizes have either purpose-built reptile fixtures available or you can also just go to places like Home Depot and buy the proper wattage fixture. Just remember that there should not be any plastic or glass between the tube's surface and your chameleon.
The tricky part about 2.0 vs. 5.0 vs. 10.0, especially when comparing one manufacturer to another, is that since it is a percentage (5% etc.) then the question becomes: "A percentage of what total output level are we talking about?" One might think that all you need to find out is the total spectral power output in terms of uW/cm2 and then just take 5% of that for each manufacturer's UVB tube and then you'll have an "apples-to-apples" comparison
. Unfortunately, this method misses another important dimension in reptile UVB lighting. It doesn't tell anything about the ratios between what is sometimes referred to as UVB1 and UVB2 resulting in an number called "D3 Yield Index". Two different manufacturers' tubes that have the same 5% rating and produce the same uW/cm2 level (example: 50uW/cm2 at 6" as measured by using the Solarmeter 6.2), may have vastly different D3 Yield Index levels. Take, for example, the ZooMed Reptisun 5.0 and the R.C. Hagen Exo-Terra Repti Glo 5.0 linear tubes. Their D3 Yield Index values are 439 and 150 respectively. As you might imagine, the D3YI values are supposed to give you some indication of the tube's ability to stimulate vitamin D3 production in your chameleon. At some point, too much is too much and too little is too little . What's a typical keeper to do . Easy: buy a Zoo Med Reptisun linear tube (18", 24", 36", 48"), put it in an appropriate fixture, position it around 6"-12" away from the basking spot and "fuggeddaboutit" .LLL Reptile ZooMed Reptisun 5.0 linear tubes:
http://lllreptile.com/search/?q=Repti+Sun+5.0+UVB+bulb
Most common sizes used (and easy to find a fixture for) are:
18" T-8 ($14.09) http://lllreptile.com/store/catalog...por-bulbs/-/zoo-med-18-repti-sun-50-uvb-bulb/
48" T-8 ($15.50) http://lllreptile.com/store/catalog...por-bulbs/-/zoo-med-48-repti-sun-50-uvb-bulb/
These sizes have either purpose-built reptile fixtures available or you can also just go to places like Home Depot and buy the proper wattage fixture. Just remember that there should not be any plastic or glass between the tube's surface and your chameleon.
I think i saw in their catalog that the 5.0 was good if it was 12" above the cham and the 10.0 was good for 20". I guess it's depends on the cage setup. I've also heard that different chams have different uvb requirements [pygmies needing less than vields and panthers]. I know my vieled loves a sunny window. His body shape goes from long to round almost like hes collecting mor sunlight.
sageghost
Established Member
Having lights at those distances will typically not provide your chameleon with enough UV intensity to benefit your cham.
I would refer you to http://www.uvguide.co.uk/fluorescenttuberesults.htm
Its all great information, however I would scroll down and check out the UVB Spread Charts.
However, Dave Weldon's post about about what light to use and its placement relative to the basking light is as easy as it gets IMO.
summoner12
Avid Member
I don't know if your window was open or not. But UVB does not pass thrugh glass or plastic. Your cham was most likely reacting to the warmth of the natural sunlight coming in through the window. With proper basking spot you should see this sort of behavior daily when the animal 'charges' up in the morning.
