MVB

[TFCO]

Hello I was wondering is a MVB good for the UVB until it burns out?

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I'm thinking of buying the zoo med radio wave UVB tester to be sure but they are pretty expensive

 

[jaizei]

MVBs uvb output can drop quite a bit during/after burn in and then decreases slowly over time. 12 months is the recommended replacement cycle because most bulbs should still produce uvb after that time period. Some bulbs have been known to produce significant amounts of uvb for much longer but using a bulb for longer than a year without a uvb meter is risky.

If you rely on bulbs as a primary source of uvb, I think a meter is a good investment.

 

[TFCO]

I do rely on bulbs for this time of year in Canada with the four season's we have here my Sulcata must be indoors for at least 3 of them. I get around 16 weeks of 80-100 degree weather for our summer and maybe 10 days or so with temp above 75 in fall. Spring temps for my sulcata to be outside do not really start until the first week of June. Thanks for your reply I will look into buying a uvb meter.

 

[jerm42991]

A MVB will produce heat and light for a much much longer period of time than it will produce UV.

As someone said, general recommendation is replace it once a year