Too bright (not a huge fan of the ceramic)

Yvonne G

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What do I do? I currently have a 60 watt uva heat lamp and the 80 watt MVB burned out prematurely because I just bought a 5.5” dome and its not working in it. Started smelling and stopped working. It burned out. Im losing hope as to what to get to work.
Those 5.5" domes are just not big enough to allow the excess heat to escape, and that's the reason the lights burn out so quickly. You need a 10" or larger dome.
 

TaylorTortoise

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Im returning the 80 watt powersun bulb as we speak. Someone on this forum said that those bulbs are horrible for tortoises even though it emits heat, ubv, uva... it apparently drys out the torts shell so is anything good for them?? Or should we just put them back in their natural habitats to prevent all this annoyance
 

Yvonne G

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I really like the tube type fluorescent UVB. Then for heat I use a radiant heat panel.
 

Maggie3fan

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Im returning the 80 watt powersun bulb as we speak. Someone on this forum said that those bulbs are horrible for tortoises even though it emits heat, ubv, uva... it apparently drys out the torts shell so is anything good for them?? Or should we just put them back in their natural habitats to prevent all this annoyance
I personally have always preferred 100 watt Powersun UVB bulb...yes, they are slightly more expensive...put at 12 to 18 inches away from carapace and timed at 12 hours I don't ever have a problem...I have 3 bulbs now that turn on then off in about a minute...I don't mess with them and they come back on in a few minutes...I have always been against che's...but have gradually switched over and my tortoises and I are very pleased with them...Are you in Pennsylvania? When your weather is a little warmer, you can do without UVB bulbs all together by putting your tortoise safely in the sun for a few hours a week...
 

TaylorTortoise

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I was told that my uva lamp works fine for the tortoise. 60 watt heat emitting uva bulb.
 

Markw84

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I haven't read through every post on all three pages, just the first and last page. So if I missed something, I'll apologize up front.

A few thoughts:

Never cover the holes on a dome fixture. they are there for a very good reason. You need some air flow around a bulb for cooling. The biggest enemy to a bulb is heat. And they generate a lot of heat and need to have a way for it to dissipate. MVB bulbs are even more this way. They generate a LOT of heat. The problem is they then deteriorate fairly quickly. As the bulbs output degrades, the first to go is the UVB. It may look fine, but no more UVB! Without a Solarmeter, you will never know what you are really getting. They have a built in switch that kicks it off if it gets overheated since this is so much an issue. They also put out a tremendous amount of near-IR. As the bulb deteriorates, greater % of output is IR. Extremely desiccating for chelonian basking.
 

Tom

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Im returning the 80 watt powersun bulb as we speak. Someone on this forum said that those bulbs are horrible for tortoises even though it emits heat, ubv, uva... it apparently drys out the torts shell so is anything good for them?? Or should we just put them back in their natural habitats to prevent all this annoyance
I don't know what your deal is, but we've repeatedly explained to you what to do in multiple threads. We've linked care sheets that explain everything, and we've repeatedly typed individual answers to all of your questions multiple times. All you have to do is follow directions. This is not difficult. You are frustrating your self by not listening to the advice you've asked for.

In all these responses, no one here has told you to go buy a $50 MVB. We've all told you, multiple times, to get get an inexpensive flood bulb from the hardware store. 65 watts is usually adequate, but your thermometer will verify that for you. I linked you which fixture to buy yesterday. You can run any bulb in that fixture, and they are cheap and easy to find at any Home Depot or Lowes. My threads tell you to stay out of the pet shop, but you keep going there, getting bad advice, buying the wrong stuff, and then complaining about how you don't know what to do. Take that stuff back to the pet shop and use the money to go get the right stuff at the hardware store. Get rid of the little dome, the MVB, the ramped bowl. You need a much larger enclosure, and as soon as you get that sorted out, you should also take back the wooden house. Its too small, and you can't keep damp substrate in it.

Go to Home Depot. Buy a light timer, a digital thermometer, an 8" terra cotta plant saucer for water, a 6" terra cotta plant saucer for food, the light fixture I linked for you yesterday, and a 65 or 100 incandescent watt flood bulb.You'll have more than enough money for all of this if you take back the pet store junk. Make sure you don't get an LED 65 watt "replacement". Its getting harder and harder to find real incandescent bulbs. They are being phased out, and you might have to order them on line. Use your 60 watt bulb in the mean time, but check the temperature under it.

UV is less critical. You can sort that out later. They can go weeks without it while you get this all figured out. If you use a calcium supplement with D3, it will even hold you over until warmer weather gets here and your tortoise can be in an outside enclosure with access to real direct sunshine.

For today, just do the above stuff. Take back the pet store stuff, and get the right fixture, timer, bulb, and dishes at the hardware store for a fraction of the pet store price. We can talk about UV later.
 

TaylorTortoise

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I don't know what your deal is, but we've repeatedly explained to you what to do in multiple threads. We've linked care sheets that explain everything, and we've repeatedly typed individual answers to all of your questions multiple times. All you have to do is follow directions. This is not difficult. You are frustrating your self by not listening to the advice you've asked for.

In all these responses, no one here has told you to go buy a $50 MVB. We've all told you, multiple times, to get get an inexpensive flood bulb from the hardware store. 65 watts is usually adequate, but your thermometer will verify that for you. I linked you which fixture to buy yesterday. You can run any bulb in that fixture, and they are cheap and easy to find at any Home Depot or Lowes. My threads tell you to stay out of the pet shop, but you keep going there, getting bad advice, buying the wrong stuff, and then complaining about how you don't know what to do. Take that stuff back to the pet shop and use the money to go get the right stuff at the hardware store. Get rid of the little dome, the MVB, the ramped bowl. You need a much larger enclosure, and as soon as you get that sorted out, you should also take back the wooden house. Its too small, and you can't keep damp substrate in it.

Go to Home Depot. Buy a light timer, a digital thermometer, an 8" terra cotta plant saucer for water, a 6" terra cotta plant saucer for food, the light fixture I linked for you yesterday, and a 65 or 100 incandescent watt flood bulb.You'll have more than enough money for all of this if you take back the pet store junk. Make sure you don't get an LED 65 watt "replacement". Its getting harder and harder to find real incandescent bulbs. They are being phased out, and you might have to order them on line. Use your 60 watt bulb in the mean time, but check the temperature under it.

UV is less critical. You can sort that out later. They can go weeks without it while you get this all figured out. If you use a calcium supplement with D3, it will even hold you over until warmer weather gets here and your tortoise can be in an outside enclosure with access to real direct sunshine.

For today, just do the above stuff. Take back the pet store stuff, and get the right fixture, timer, bulb, and dishes at the hardware store for a fraction of the pet store price. We can talk about UV later.
The only enclosure I have is a 20 gallon tank. Or the zoo med wooden enclosure which he is already in. He likes his wooden enclosure so im going to have to do everything else minus the damp substrate. The flood bulb does not provide ubv though.
 

method89

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I don't know what your deal is, but we've repeatedly explained to you what to do in multiple threads. We've linked care sheets that explain everything, and we've repeatedly typed individual answers to all of your questions multiple times. All you have to do is follow directions. This is not difficult. You are frustrating your self by not listening to the advice you've asked for.

In all these responses, no one here has told you to go buy a $50 MVB. We've all told you, multiple times, to get get an inexpensive flood bulb from the hardware store. 65 watts is usually adequate, but your thermometer will verify that for you. I linked you which fixture to buy yesterday. You can run any bulb in that fixture, and they are cheap and easy to find at any Home Depot or Lowes. My threads tell you to stay out of the pet shop, but you keep going there, getting bad advice, buying the wrong stuff, and then complaining about how you don't know what to do. Take that stuff back to the pet shop and use the money to go get the right stuff at the hardware store. Get rid of the little dome, the MVB, the ramped bowl. You need a much larger enclosure, and as soon as you get that sorted out, you should also take back the wooden house. Its too small, and you can't keep damp substrate in it.

Go to Home Depot. Buy a light timer, a digital thermometer, an 8" terra cotta plant saucer for water, a 6" terra cotta plant saucer for food, the light fixture I linked for you yesterday, and a 65 or 100 incandescent watt flood bulb.You'll have more than enough money for all of this if you take back the pet store junk. Make sure you don't get an LED 65 watt "replacement". Its getting harder and harder to find real incandescent bulbs. They are being phased out, and you might have to order them on line. Use your 60 watt bulb in the mean time, but check the temperature under it.

UV is less critical. You can sort that out later. They can go weeks without it while you get this all figured out. If you use a calcium supplement with D3, it will even hold you over until warmer weather gets here and your tortoise can be in an outside enclosure with access to real direct sunshine.

For today, just do the above stuff. Take back the pet store stuff, and get the right fixture, timer, bulb, and dishes at the hardware store for a fraction of the pet store price. We can talk about UV later.
My appreciation for @Tom grows every day...
 

Chefdenoel10

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Well its cold right now im from Philadelphia. I can let him out in the sun in the spring summer when it gets nice but as of right now it is not.
Can a uva/ heat lamp work for now with calcium supplement powder supplement? It has D3 in it
Hey Taylorlynn,
I am sorry to bust in like this but thought I could help out .. I’m in NJ and I’m cold too right now but.....
I just bought this dome lamp that has two domes together. And comes WITH THE LIGHTS!! Both uvb AND heat !!
Two for the price of one!!!!....
Ok... maybe one and a half??
It is sold on amazon, Petco, pet smart etc..
Check it out? If you cannot get to return that stuff then get “store credit” and get this set?? It also comes in “ mini” or regular size... Hope this helps ?? Good luck ?

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William Lee Kohler

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What do I do? I currently have a 60 watt uva heat lamp and the 80 watt MVB burned out prematurely because I just bought a 5.5” dome and its not working in it. Started smelling and stopped working. It burned out. Im losing hope as to what to get to work.

Try taking back to seller for a refund?
 

EddieT

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What kind of ceramic bulb?
Ik Tom said not to go to the pet store which in a way I agree with him but I usually get the ceramic bulbs from there because they are hard to find elsewhere. They are what I use for all 12 of my reptiles because I like my house to be dark and like I said before they only give off heat, no light, also they last for years. So the only light my reptiles get is from their sunroof in the winter months alongside their uvb bulbs. And then I move them to their outside enclosures in the summer months (I’m from New Mexico so the only issue I have is humidity but that’s a different story). Sorry I’m making this longer than it needs to be but basically go to the pet store, then the light bulb section, and look for the ceramic bulb. You’ll notice it’s much heavier than a normal bulb.
 

Toddrickfl1

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Ik Tom said not to go to the pet store which in a way I agree with him but I usually get the ceramic bulbs from there because they are hard to find elsewhere. They are what I use for all 12 of my reptiles because I like my house to be dark and like I said before they only give off heat, no light, also they last for years. So the only light my reptiles get is from their sunroof in the winter months alongside their uvb bulbs. And then I move them to their outside enclosures in the summer months (I’m from New Mexico so the only issue I have is humidity but that’s a different story). Sorry I’m making this longer than it needs to be but basically go to the pet store, then the light bulb section, and look for the ceramic bulb. You’ll notice it’s much heavier than a normal bulb.
Same yourself some money next time

 

EddieT

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Same yourself some money next time

Oh wow those are cheap thanks for the suggestion! Do u know the quality of them tho? I’m not sure if you saw my other post but mine literally last years from the pet stores so do u know if these are same quality?
 
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