UVB and heat lamp lighting

TacoTortoise

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Feb 15, 2015
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Capital of California
I could not find much information on how long i should keep a uvb and heat lamp on. All i need to know is how many hours a day should I turn them on? And I also heard that you have to take the glass off a uvb bulb because uvb rays cannot penetrate glass, is that true? I could not find any threads that answer this.
 

leigti

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southeast Washington
There should not be plexiglass or glass between the bulb and your tortoise. people usually keep the lights and heat on about 12 hours a day. Babies would require heat 24 hours a day.
 

Yvonne G

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you want it to be like summer time, so about 14 hours a day is good. If you want to mess with two separate heat lights, you can keep the UVB light on for 3 or 4 hours during the middle of the day, then keep a regular light on for the 14 hours.
 

leigti

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southeast Washington
A mercury vapor bulb provides both UVB and heat all in one. It works best in an 11 inch ceramic fixture.
 
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