my wood viv ,advice

[stephen gedman]

hi everyone, im in the middle ov buildin my wood viv, was gunna put mesh on top so lights & heatlamps could go on top, just been in local rep shop and was told im better off puttin wooden top on with uv bulb&heat bulb inside with mesh covers over the bulbs so cham cant get to close, bulbs inside viv will help keep the heat inside rather than loosing it out ov the mesh , is this ok(think they call them compacts).any advice welcome.

 

[EvilLost]

if you are referring to building a light hood, this is typically done for "display" builds but is not at all necessary for a standard enclosure; it is perfectly fine to lay your light fixtures on top of your screen.

a light hood build is just a cleaner finish

 

[DekuScrub]

hes telling you to mount the lights inside? then you risk you cham climbing on the actual fixture and burning himself.

how big is the cage youre building? what is the ambient temperature going to be?

youre better off with your original plan as long as you can provide a basking spot under the light at the appropriate temperature.

 

[stephen gedman]

size

viv size is gunna be 2ft x 2ftx3ft, just thought it would be better outside the viv, was just concerned about loosing to much heat.

 

[mcleodschams]

on top of the cage is fine if you have to use a stronger bulb and raise it up above the cage untill ther acuired temp is reached here is my custom diy set up View attachment 50923

 

[EvilLost]

viv size is gunna be 2ft x 2ftx3ft, just thought it would be better outside the viv, was just concerned about loosing to much heat.

I also recommend putting the lights inside of a light hood (that is SECURELY SEPARATED from the chameleons) on any type of "display" build, but for a normal build I would suggest skipping the light hood and putting the lights outside.


Given that your dimensions are already small, I would say that you pretty much have to put the lights outside the tank otherwise you have no vertical space left (need at least 8-12" for a light hood)

most adult males recommend 2x2x4' and females 1.5x1.5x3' (interior space dimensions) not sure what species you are looking at though

 

[PantherEnvy]

Put on the outside on top of the screen.

 

[Whatcamo]

My free range is fairly large and there isn't any problems with keeping the hot spots at the right temps I would go with what everyone else is suggesting do a screen top that also allows a nice chimney effect of air flow as as the temps at the top raise fresh air is pulled in from the bottom and that's a good thing from a cham keeping perspective