What bulb for 2x2x4?

[JCDenton]

Well, I had to go ahead and put my 3.5-4 month old panther in his adult-size cage due to drainage issues. Previously the cage was about 30x24x24 because I raised the floor with a upside down laundry basket. Now I've gone ahead and put a sterilite drawer on the bottom, with holes drilled through the floor and the top of the drawer, making the cage more like 42x24x24.

Is a 18 inch (fits in 24 inch fixture) reptisun 5.0 enough for a cage of these dimensions? Or do I need to possibly move to a 10.0 or get a 24 inch bulb that I place diagonally?

 

[bridgofaith]

A Repti Sun 5.0 18 inch will work just fine. I use those for that size cage. Just make sure the cham can get within 6-8 inches of the light.

 

[summoner12]

I would buy a dual fixture and put a 5.0 and a 6500K lamp in the fixture. I would go with a 24" but finding the 6500K lamp will be a bit more hard if you have a T8 5.0 lamp. You could order one of zoomeds nature lights.. or whatever it is called, it is the same thing.

 

[bridgofaith]

You could order one of zoomeds nature lights.. or whatever it is called, it is the same thing.

NatureSun

He could use the GE 6500K coil bulbs if he can't find a dual fixture in the size he needs. That's what I did. I like the CFL's better for the plant lights, they seem to be brighter, could just be me though. Correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[summoner12]

NatureSun

He could use the GE 6500K coil bulbs if he can't find a dual fixture in the size he needs. That's what I did. I like the CFL's better for the plant lights, they seem to be brighter, could just be me though. Correct me if I'm wrong.

CFLs are just more concentrated.. so they seem brighter... PLUS depends on the wattage. a 24w CFL is more wattage and most likely more lumans than a 18w linear tube.

Also... with your setup, use a piece of aluminum foil to help increase light output into the cage. a 5.0 alone, on top of a cage (IMHO) isn't enough UVB unless the chams basking spot is up close by the lamp.

 

[bridgofaith]

CFLs are just more concentrated.. so they seem brighter... PLUS depends on the wattage. a 24w CFL is more wattage and most likely more lumans than a 18w linear tube.

Also... with your setup, use a piece of aluminum foil to help increase light output into the cage. a 5.0 alone, on top of a cage (IMHO) isn't enough UVB unless the chams basking spot is up close by the lamp.

Thanks, what I wanted to know. Do you use CFL's or linears for your cages? I actualy use both. I use the CFL's on the larger cages and the linears on the smaller ones.

I have foil on all of my 5.0 bulbs.

 

[summoner12]

Thanks, what I wanted to know. Do you use CFL's or linears for your cages? I actualy use both. I use the CFL's on the larger cages and the linears on the smaller ones.

I have foil on all of my 5.0 bulbs.

I use linear 6500Ks in my dual fixtures. If I have a single linear fixture I put a CFL 6500K along side of the heat lamp. In the case of my smaller free range I have a linear dual 48" with a 10.0 and a 6500K lamp and then I have two CFL 6500K lamps. The linear fixture is to the front of the range where his basking spot is and the two CFL lamps are for the plants.

 

[summoner12]

I use linear 6500Ks in my dual fixtures. If I have a single linear fixture I put a CFL 6500K along side of the heat lamp. In the case of my smaller free range I have a linear dual 48" with a 10.0 and a 6500K lamp and then I have two CFL 6500K lamps. The linear fixture is to the front of the range where his basking spot is and the two CFL lamps are for the plants.

I only have single linear tubes on two cages...... so in total I only have like 4 CFLs on my cages, out of 12 cages (free ranges are in that list of 'cages').

 

[bridgofaith]

I use linear 6500Ks in my dual fixtures. If I have a single linear fixture I put a CFL 6500K along side of the heat lamp. In the case of my smaller free range I have a linear dual 48" with a 10.0 and a 6500K lamp and then I have two CFL 6500K lamps. The linear fixture is to the front of the range where his basking spot is and the two CFL lamps are for the plants.

I was using the single linear fixture because the cages were scattered all over the place, but I'm rearranging and changing everything over to dual 48" fixtures, so I won't be using the CFL's much longer. I was only using them on 2 of the cages anyway. Much help as always Kevin!

 

[JCDenton]

CFLs are just more concentrated.. so they seem brighter... PLUS depends on the wattage. a 24w CFL is more wattage and most likely more lumans than a 18w linear tube.

Also... with your setup, use a piece of aluminum foil to help increase light output into the cage. a 5.0 alone, on top of a cage (IMHO) isn't enough UVB unless the chams basking spot is up close by the lamp.

The basking spot is pretty close. There's a branch with a curve in it that will easily let him move between the 5-8 inch range. He actually spends a fair amount of time crawling around upside down on the ceiling and will sometimes stop directly under the bulb to bask. That would seem to be an indication to give him more heat but the branch is already 80-82 and I don't want to cook him.

 

[summoner12]

I was using the single linear fixture because the cages were scattered all over the place, but I'm rearranging and changing everything over to dual 48" fixtures, so I won't be using the CFL's much longer. I was only using them on 2 of the cages anyway. Much help as always Kevin!

dual linear 48" lamps will cut down on your power usage as well. I like to stagger my lights on two different timers as well. I actually turn off the heat lamps mid day for about two or three hours to help with power use and to help keep the room cooler. Right now if I run a fan all day the room starts to peak in temp without side..... and settles because at the time the room peaks in heat the heat lamps go off, keeping the room from being heated even more. when the lights come back on the outside is starting to cool and the air coming into the room helps remove the heat the heat lamps are generating. Another trick is to keep a fan moving the air around... I keep a small fan on the floor to blow cool are up so the hot air doesn't linger at the ceiling. This helps stir it up and get sucked out of the room so cooler air coming replaces it.

if power isn't a big deal keeping the CFLs on top of the cages is a good idea though.... helps give the chams more light. we don't give them ANYWHERE near enough light compared to outside. most of the time we are worried about the type of light... as in giving UVB and UVA, but we don't give them the same amount of light as they would get outside, or the same spectrum since fake lights don't cover all the bases. To be honest, if you could do it, buy a different color temp of linear lamp and keep the 6500K CFLs... you'll provide a broader spectrum and more light in the cage.

The basking spot is pretty close. There's a branch with a curve in it that will easily let him move between the 5-8 inch range. He actually spends a fair amount of time crawling around upside down on the ceiling and will sometimes stop directly under the bulb to bask. That would seem to be an indication to give him more heat but the branch is already 80-82 and I don't want to cook him.

I would still use the foil even if the cham does get up close to the lamp in it's basking spot.. or climbs on the top of the cage. a 5.0 doesn't really generate a harmful amount of UVB to the cham even when up close. Not only do you increase the UVB into the cage, you increase the amount of light (lumens). as I was saying before, the more the better.

 

[bridgofaith]

To be honest, if you could do it, buy a different color temp of linear lamp and keep the 6500K CFLs... you'll provide a broader spectrum and more light in the cage.

What would you recommend?

 

[summoner12]

Ya know I'm not 100%... I suppose a higher kelvin rated lamp would be a good idea... but I am not sure... maybe a 9000K? ya won't find those at Lowes though... maybe a fish place?

 

[bridgofaith]

Ya know I'm not 100%... I suppose a higher kelvin rated lamp would be a good idea... but I am not sure... maybe a 9000K? ya won't find those at Lowes though... maybe a fish place?

I'll check around and see what I find. Not sure I will end up doing both the CFL and linear though.

 

[Todnedo]

For plants you want a bulb on the red side of the spectrum 3k-6500k anything above that wont do much for the plants.

 

[summoner12]

For plants you want a bulb on the red side of the spectrum 3k-6500k anything above that wont do much for the plants.

Good to know. I wasn't sure.

 

[bridgofaith]

For plants you want a bulb on the red side of the spectrum 3k-6500k anything above that wont do much for the plants.

Thanks so much!

 

[Monkeykungphu]

For plants you want a bulb on the red side of the spectrum 3k-6500k anything above that wont do much for the plants.

Tip of the day right here!

 

[Todnedo]

I use 4 bulbs on my setups. Timed to turn on and off in sequence:

7 am UV 5.0 on
9 am 35w halogen basking bulb on
11 am 2 t5 florescent tubes on (1 3000k and 1 5500k)

3 pm 2 t5 florescent off
6 pm 35w halogen off
9 pm UV 5.0 off

This setup simulates sunrise, high noon and sunset very well.
It way more natural than 7 am.... boom!..... all the lights come on at once.
The plants do well with this setup too.