OMG! What are you doing about heat lights after Jan1?

The halogens I use look just like regular incandescent bulbs and screw in to a regular socket. The spots were too hot. I guess because of the built in reflector.
 
How does that kind compare heat wise with the old incandescents- for example what would put out approx the same heat as a 60w incandescent?
 
I find them to be hotter, so I can use a 60w instead of a 75w, or a 40 instead of a 60w. I don't know if all brands are like this, I think I use Philips brand.
 
Question:

Can someone give me a list of regular house light bulb names that I can buy that would work best for basking? I'd like to stock up too but am unsure what to look for when it comes to light bulbs and watts. x_x
 
Here is a picture of the lights I am using. 20w halogen. I used a quarter for size comparison.
E2784533-79F5-4629-B5A7-DBE7B89264D1_zpsig67tj9p.jpg


Carl
 
Just for all of you to know, there is a loop hole. There are store that will still carry "rough duty" bulbs. They are a bit more expensive & you will need to find a speciality light store, but they will be there industry uses these so they are exempt.
 
Hey carl- those are pretty nifty looking. Have you ever taken the UV filter off and taken readings? How large are the enclosures you are using that as a heat source for? Do you get a gradient or only a hot spot?

I found some normal incandescent looking halogen lightbulbs at the store today- 60 watt and 75 watt replacements. Which is kind of misleading- they both put out significantly less light than a 60 or 75 watt bulb . The 75 watt replacement put out a bit more light than a 60 watt bulb, and without using a thermometer, felt like similar heat. So maybe I can keep the fixtures I just bought then and they will still be useful.

I'll have to look into those heavy duty bulbs laurie brings up too.

And then meanwhile look into some of these other options for new fixtures/bulbs...
 
Last edited:
Olimpia said:
That's exactly what I use, the little metal clamp lamps from Home Depot/Lowe's and some halogens, typically in 60 watt.
Click to expand...

Olimpia suggested this to me long ago and that's what I use and the halogen last longer and put out a better basking spot for my chams. I have close to 50 spot/basking lights and it has saved me $$$$ and provided fantastic basking sites for my chams.
THANKS OLIMPIA!!!!!!!!!!!
 
I use them on 24" tall cages that my lateralis are in. I only need something to create a hot spot because my chameleon room temperature runs at about 80f. Night temps drop to around 60f. The chameleons only spend a short period of time under the light when they come on and only occasionally visit it through the day.

The bulbs Laurie mentioned can be found in auto parts stores. Even these are getting harder to find as more mechanics switch to LED's because they can be battery operated.

Carl
 
So now I'm confused! (what else is new!!??).

Is it best to use the halogen wide beam spot with the reflector, or the
ones that look like a normal light bulb?
Both types screw into normal incan sockets.

I'm glad I ordered a case of 24 each of 40 and 60w incan bulbs when they started to become hard to find.
They are now even harder to find, and prices have gone up!!
 
Psychobunny said:
So now I'm confused! (what else is new!!??).

Is it best to use the halogen wide beam spot with the reflector, or the
ones that look like a normal light bulb?
Both types screw into normal incan sockets.

I'm glad I ordered a case of 24 each of 40 and 60w incan bulbs when they started to become hard to find.
They are now even harder to find, and prices have gone up!!
Click to expand...

I use the halogen wide beam but both will work. You might get a better heat from the wide beam. They look much like the flood lights but much smaller.
 
Okay, I think I may even have a few of those, somewhere.

What do you think of the style of bulb I linked, the kind that looks like a normal bulb, without reflector?
 
OK- so a quick update on what I've tried the past few days-

I got some soft white halogen 60 and 75 watt replacement bulbs from walmart- was 4 for about $6.

I also got a zilla mini halogen fixture and 50 watt bulb. $20 for fixture and $10 for the bulb.

I also got a 45 watt halogen spot from lowes. I think it was about $5

And I also found a clear halogen 100 watt replacement bulb at lowes. $2

The 60 watt replacement bulbs are OK- the 75 watt replacement would possibly work in my situation.

The zilla mini-halogen seems like a really good way to burn a lizard, and the light is so focused that it puts out hardly any usuable ambient light outside the spot and seems incapable of creating a gradient in a screen enclosure. It is hot hot in that spot though.

The 45 watt halogen spot was OK, but seemed a bit dim and not very warm. maybe a larger watt would work OK.

But my favorite by far was the clear halogen 100 watt replacement bulb. Looks a lot like a clear light bulb with a small halogen bulb inside the outer bulb. 72 watts. The light and heat penetrate all the way to the bottom of a 3' high screen cage, and creates a true thermal gradient when used with my 10.5" clamp dome reflector. The light is clean and white and bright. Might be a little on the strong side heat wise- didn't seem too hot, but at the moment I am having to refigure out the heat properties of my rebuilt building, along with far fewer enclosures. I saw a 75 watt replacement size of this bulb also at lowes- and I'll be checking that out to see if it is a better fit forlight my needs. But I'm pretty excited about these bulbs- I actually like the 72 watt 100 watt replacement bulb that I've tried better than the old regular incandescents. The light is so much brighter per watt- even brighter than the halogen soft whites by a lot too- and looks really nice and the heat gradient is better than a 75 or 60 watt incandescent too- the heat spreads further down from the bulb, yet it isn't super hot close to the bulb either.

That's probably the route I'm going to go with.
 
Last edited:
What brand is that? Can you post a pic? I have no idea about these sorts of bulbs and what not.
 
I like to use track lighting from home depot or Lowe's on my rack. They generally come with 3 domes attatched and 3 bulbs. There is an attatchment so that you can plug it directly into the wall instead of hardwiring, and you only need one to power as many strips as you want. These are convenient because they slide up and down the track and swivel in all directions. They come with 50 w bulbs I believe but they throw heat much further so you can use those or get lower wattage bulbs as needed. They push and turn into place and I can find all different wattages to fit the same fixture
 
When I am talking to customers at shows all day, I suggest PAR20 FLood Halogens at 50 watts. This has always worked for me and I've been doing it for years.
 
I'm using the 'zoo med repti basking spot lamp' for my cage... After trying 5 different wattage house hold bulbs, I couldn't get my basking temp right (couldn't get baskin temp above 79-80 degrees), so I bought this repti sun bulb. The fixture I have has a variable dimmer in it, so I can turn it up to increase or dim it down to cool it off.... Otherwise the basking temperature is finally where it needs to be. Will the type of bulb I'm using be affected?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

danny_cham
Question about a new panther chameleon
2
Replies
23
Views
2K
danny_cham
danny_cham
PlanetRemulak
Papilloma Virus/husbandry check?
Replies
13
Views
1K
Lindasjackson
L
Connorology
Bioactive Setup and Lighting Suggestions
Replies
0
Views
1K
Connorology
Connorology
JoXie411
Improve on Imelda’s care
2 3 4
Replies
79
Views
6K
JoXie411
JoXie411
Setth
New Enclosure setup advice (or another shopping list :D )
Replies
5
Views
999
RcManChild
RcManChild
Back
Top Bottom