Unsure on basking light needed

Luke1027

New Member
Joined
Jul 15, 2020
Messages
23
Location (City and/or State)
York
Hi All, I got some amazing help with my last post so thought I’d ask you guys anoth question.

I have just bought the T5 pro kit 24w tube light and I’m now wondering what basking light to use. I have a heat only one at the moment but I’m wondering if that’s all I need or would I be better with one that gives off light as well and also should the basking light give off uva even though my T5 will do that?

It’s a minefield and I don’t want to get it wrong.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
 

Tom

The Dog Trainer
10 Year Member!
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jan 9, 2010
Messages
63,220
Location (City and/or State)
Southern California
Hi All, I got some amazing help with my last post so thought I’d ask you guys anoth question.

I have just bought the T5 pro kit 24w tube light and I’m now wondering what basking light to use. I have a heat only one at the moment but I’m wondering if that’s all I need or would I be better with one that gives off light as well and also should the basking light give off uva even though my T5 will do that?

It’s a minefield and I don’t want to get it wrong.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
There are four elements to heating and lighting:
  1. Basking bulb. I use 65 watt incandescent floods from the hardware store. Some people will need bigger, or smaller wattage bulbs. Let your thermometer be your guide. I run them on a timer for about 12 hours and adjust the height to get the correct basking temp under them. I also like to use a flat rock of some sort directly under the bulb. You need to check the temp with a thermometer directly under the bulb and get it to around 95-100F (36-37C).
  2. Ambient heat maintenance. I use ceramic heating elements or radiant heat panels set on thermostats to maintain ambient above 80 degrees day and night for tropical species. In most cases you'd only need day heat for a temperate species like Testudo or DT, as long as your house stays above 60F (15-16C) at night.
  3. Ambient light. I use LEDs for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most bulbs at the store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish. Strip or screw-in LED bulb types are both fine.
  4. UV. If you can get your tortoise outside for an hour 2 or 3 times a week, you won't need indoor UV. In colder climates, get one of the newer HO type fluorescent tubes. Which type will depend on mounting height. 5.0 bulbs make almost no UV. I like the 12% HO bulbs from Arcadia. You need a meter to check this: https://www.solarmeter.com/model65.html A good UV bulb only needs to run for 2-3 hours mid day. You need the basking bulb and the ambient lighting to be on at least 12 hours a day.
 

Luke1027

New Member
Joined
Jul 15, 2020
Messages
23
Location (City and/or State)
York
Hi All, I got some amazing help with my last post so thought I’d ask you guys anoth question.

I have just bought the T5 pro kit 24w tube light and I’m now wondering what basking light to use. I have a heat only one at the moment but I’m wondering if that’s all I need or would I be better with one that gives off light as well and also should the basking light give off uva even though my T5 will do that?

It’s a minefield and I don’t want to get it wrong.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
Thank you for taking the time and for the information. I will have a look at basking bulbs now.
 
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