what heat/UV bulb is best for my new enclosure?

[Tegan]

Hi all, im due to upgrade my chameleon in a couple of weeks, i was just wondering on everybody's preference to heat and UV bulb. At the moment i have a separate UV and heat bulb in 2 domes, which i like. however the other , easier option is to use a combo bulb with combined heat and UV. Im not really keen on these bulbs but i know it will save me a lot of money instead of buying the separate fittings. i guess im just wondering what everybody else uses and why. Thanks in advance

 

[nightanole]

Kinda need to know chameleon type can cage dimensions...

As far as best to worst:
T5 HO 6% with reflector
T8 10.0 with reflector
100 watt Mercury vapor
T8 10.0 without reflector
CFL


It comes down to how much light you need, and how efficient the setup is at directing the light to the lizard. A single T5 with reflector will transmit the most amount of light per watt, a curly CFL will transmit the least.

Your all in one combo is a merc vapor. You have 2 issues with those. #1 they are high output, so 100-150 watts while most cages only need 25-50 watts if they are 4sqft or less. #2 they are not known for their reliability, so you are talking buying one every year and odds are a RMA every year or every other year.

 

[Tegan]

thanks for the reply, my chameleon is veiled chameleon and will be going into a setup that is "86cm x 49cm x 91.5cm" i was thinking of having a t8 10.0 uvb tube across the back but you said that is the worst why is that

 

[Tegan]

Kinda need to know chameleon type can cage dimensions...

As far as best to worst:
T5 HO 6% with reflector
T8 10.0 with reflector
100 watt Mercury vapor
T8 10.0 without reflector
CFL


It comes down to how much light you need, and how efficient the setup is at directing the light to the lizard. A single T5 with reflector will transmit the most amount of light per watt, a curly CFL will transmit the least.

Your all in one combo is a merc vapor. You have 2 issues with those. #1 they are high output, so 100-150 watts while most cages only need 25-50 watts if they are 4sqft or less. #2 they are not known for their reliability, so you are talking buying one every year and odds are a RMA every year or every other year.

thanks for the reply, my chameleon is veiled chameleon and will be going into a setup that is "86cm x 49cm x 91.5cm" i was thinking of having a t8 10.0 uvb tube across the back but you said that is the worst why is that

 

[Remkon]

For chameleons best not get a mercury vapor lamp since it's very hard to get the right balance in temperature and uvb output that way. Not saying it can't be done but it's kind of an expensive gamble.

I'd get 2 lamps, 1 for heat, can be a reflector household bulb and a seperate lamp for UVB.
If you can get it Arcadia is possibly the best brand tube light or compact. But if you get a compact place it horizontal so the larger surface area of the lamp is pointed toward the chameleon.

 

[Tegan]

For chameleons best not get a mercury vapor lamp since it's very hard to get the right balance in temperature and uvb output that way. Not saying it can't be done but it's kind of an expensive gamble.

I'd get 2 lamps, 1 for heat, can be a reflector household bulb and a seperate lamp for UVB.
If you can get it Arcadia is possibly the best brand tube light or compact. But if you get a compact place it horizontal so the larger surface area of the lamp is pointed toward the chameleon.

Thankyou so much for your help and input i did question the combo bulb as well since they cant be used on a thermostat. I tend to only use arcadia bulbs they seem to be the very best on the market, all arcadia stuff is amazing I think I will go for the seperate iv and bulb method as this is what i am used to and what i prefer better. thanks again

 

[Remkon]

lamps, other than ceramic lamps, should never be used on a thermostat... Light on, light off, light on, light off all day isn't only extremely annoying to the animal but also shortens the lamps life expectancy by alot. Especially the vapor lamps need to cool down several minutes after being switched off.

I use the 7% D3 compacts of arcadia for my jax and my panther and have nothing to complain, great lamps!

 

[Tegan]

lamps, other than ceramic lamps, should never be used on a thermostat... Light on, light off, light on, light off all day isn't only extremely annoying to the animal but also shortens the lamps life expectancy by alot. Especially the vapor lamps need to cool down several minutes after being switched off.

I use the 7% D3 compacts of arcadia for my jax and my panther and have nothing to complain, great lamps!

i use a thermostat to make sure the heat bulb is not on full power all day as well as to control the temperature and their basking spot/area. I have and will never use an on off thermostat they are annoying as hell. there are other types as well as this one, which is the dimming thermostat which will dimm the bulb ever so slightly instead of turning it off. where do you buy a 7% arcadia bulb out of curiosity

 

[kinyonga]

For years now I've used a double bulb florescent fixture along the back of the cage with one long tube Repti-sun 5.0 UVB light and one regular florescent light and in one corner I've used a regular incandescent household bulb in a hood. This way the chameleon can move in and out of the basking area and in and out of the UVB. I turn the double fixture so the UVB light is furthest from the back of the cage.

 

[nightanole]

thanks for the reply, my chameleon is veiled chameleon and will be going into a setup that is "86cm x 49cm x 91.5cm" i was thinking of having a t8 10.0 uvb tube across the back but you said that is the worst why is that

A T8 without reflector will only put out about 50% of the light into the cage, and if you use a screen, that number drops to about 20% or less. Now if you go with a T5 with reflector, that number jumps to about 50-60% of the light getting into the cage, even with a screen, the screen only reduced the light output by about 15-25%, instead of half like the T8 due to the light angles. Mind you this is with the same wattage lights, so you can literally get 3x the performance per watt if you go with something that matches your setup. With a "hood on screen" setup, the most efficient will always be a single linear (tube) bulb with reflector using the smallest tube diameter possible.

So lets say worst case, going from a 50 watt t12 without reflector, to a 10 watt T5 with reflector, would put out the same amount of light.