Plant light

[Echoezra]

Hey there.
So I want to get a light for the plants in my cage. Got to keep them alive until I find a new friend.
Usually I just see mentioned "get a grow light" - can you elaborate on what specifically I'm looking for in a light, I want one that's going to be okay to have on with the chameleon's other lights once I do get another one, so not just good for keeping the plants alive now, but okay for a little guy's eyes in the future too.
Also, where would one find such a light, in actual canadain stores, preferably, not online.
Thanks.

 

[melric]

Your chams UVB light is enough. Save energy use natural sunlight unless you can't because you know Canada and all.

 

[Scott85]

Usually you can find florescent tubes labeled "grow light" at any big box hardware store. Not sure what you have up there, I have Home Depot and Lowes here. Anyway if you cant find a "grow" bulb, one with a color temp around 6500k will work well. While you are there buy a cheap shop light with a reflector to hold two t8 bulbs. If you dont want to use up your uvb bulb, get two 6500k or another cheapo. Then replace it when you get your cham. I used double shop lights, one UVB and one 6500k. Keeps the plants going alot longer.

 

[ghettomike]

I use two 27watt cfls (6500k) in a double hood for the plants in my f veileds enclosure. I got them at Canadian Tire but pretty much any hardware store carries them. They work great at keeping the top half of my hibiscus growing and flowering but the light isnt bright/strong enough to reach the bottom of the polant which is quite bare. I actually use them as basking bulbs as well because they keep my chams basking spot right around the 82 degree mark.

 

[Echoezra]

Oh, okay yeah we have both of those stores I will check there. I have two tube fixtures, my boss gave me a couple he had sitting around so that was a nice cost saver. Kind of clunky & ugly, lol, but hey, makes the bulbs turn on. Haha.
Yeah I figured the UVB bulb would work somewhat, but plants on bottom of cage were fading fast even when Bubb was in there, so I figured a plant light was in order soon anyway, especially when I was given the second fixture.
Now my other problem is setting up these fixtures. They're pretty heavy on the mesh top, waiting for corners to bust through. I thought about setting another aquarium mesh top on it then setting light fixture on that, but then it's adding another mesh to go through right, diluting it more. If I go for a 10.0 uvb instead of the 5.0, which some people had recommended anyway, maybe that would make up for the double meshing?

 

[Echoezra]

Natural sunlight

Yeah, finding sunshine isn't easy nowadays, lol. Plus the windows upstairs here are in weird places, low to floor from slanted walls, it's awkward. Plus I'm afraid cats will chew them to shreds, lol, which won't help keep them alive either, haha. So I'm trying to keep them in the cage where they're safe.

 

[Scott85]

You can probably also find a really reasonably priced shelf system there. Use the bottom and just one level above the cage. Set the cage in, and hang the lights from the shelf above. Make sure you will have enough room for a basking light still. Or if the cage is close to the ceiling, could hang them from there.