Hey all,

as some of you may know, my custom enclosure has a screen lid.. and throughout the last couple weeks ive been trying to figure out why my little guy is sleeping so much and inactive.. even though when i wake him he'll eat like a horse... and otherwise is healthy.

Some people suggested light levels, the vet suggested something along the same lines... and so i started looking at how my lighting was setup..

My UVB lights are resting on top of the screen, with no reflectors and just covered w/ cardboard to keep em from making the rest of the room bright.

So I looked around at how I can change that, and what effect it may have on the enclosure

And I found this site that is VERY informative!

It shows that UVB light is reduced as much as 35% when filtered through fine screen/mesh or flyscreening...

Addition of a commercial reflector removes this issue, as would placing the lights under the screening and inside the enclosure.

However even tinfoil from your kitchen when made into a curved reflector can improve the amount ov UVB entering the enclosure nearly as much as a commercial reflector.

here is the site, check it out.

http://www.uvguide.co.uk/fluorescenttubemeshtests.htm

interesting information. i had always heard that the screens will diminish the effect of the bulb. i've never used a reflector though. maybe i'll pull some foil out when i get a new bulb next week.

I make reflectors from white pvc rain gutters. Also, the breeder of my mountain torts suggested that I use screening to recreate the forest for them, so it works both ways. Remove for arid/grassland tort, add for humid/forest tort.