uvb lights

[slowpoke]

hey guys and gals , i was going to order my uvb lights for my new tortoise habitat , should i use Exo Terra Repti-Glo 5.0 Compact Fluorescent or should i use the 10.0 for the russian tortoise ... i already have the heating taking care of with a programmable thermostat and the works... thanks

 

[StudentoftheReptile]

A lot of people have had issues with the compact florescents. They have a history of causing blindness in tortoises.

A while back, the products were recalled and supposedly the issue was fixed, but people still have problems with tortoise blindness. It is still debatable exactly what the cause is; whether it is the orientation of the bulb (horizontal vs vertical) or just a faulty product altogether, etc....but most members will probably post on here and tell you (and I agree): it is better safe than sorry. Might just want to use a regular tube florescent bulb.

 

[slowpoke]

A lot of people have had issues with the compact florescents. They have a history of causing blindness in tortoises.

A while back, the products were recalled and supposedly the issue was fixed, but people still have problems with tortoise blindness. It is still debatable exactly what the cause is; whether it is the orientation of the bulb (horizontal vs vertical) or just a faulty product altogether, etc....but most members will probably post on here and tell you (and I agree): it is better safe than sorry. Might just want to use a regular tube florescent bulb.

everything I read about it making them blind was when you put it below the recommended height at around 8 to 10 inches from the flooring , in that case I can understand it getting to much of the bad UVA and UVC mine will be around the 20 inch mark with a reflector , and the problem they had was in 2006 and sense fixed as long as you don't put it right on top of your reptile .... but still I don't want to take the chance so ill check out my other options ... thanks for the heads up on the blindness of torts with those ...

 

[StudentoftheReptile]

yeah...and ya know, the more I think about it, the other lights cover a more broad area as opposed to a focused beam. Well, I guess the MVBs do, but they're so large, they cover so much ground anyway. Seems more natural to offer more light and then have some decorations and foliage for the tortoise to hide under.

 

[GBtortoises]

A tube style flourescent UVB bulb would be a better choice than a CFL. The tube style lamps do not have the eye dangers associated with them and they will also illuminate the enclosure better.

 

[Tony the tank]

If your looking for just UVB and not heat.. A long tube florescent would work... But if you want a nice setup that will last.. Megaray externally ballasted zoo kit.... You can mount it 36" above the enclosure illuminate a wide area with UVB ... And since they are externally ballasted they last quite a few yrs with hardly no burn in... I have a buddy who has had one for 3 yrs....and at 30" he still gets over 200 microwatts..

 

[Kristina]

I recommend that you get a MVB bulb. I don't have much faith in florescent UV bulbs, and never have.

 

[GBtortoises]

Mercury vapor lamps work well for what they are intended-to produce heat for basking and UV rays. But the only illumination that they provide is directly under them. They are do not adequately provide overall enclosure illumination which is an important part of a temperate climate tortoise's activity. A combination of either a MVB lamp and a tube flourescent or an incandescent tube of high enough wattage (for heat & light) and an incandescent tube work much better than just an MVB lamp alone.

 

[Neal]

Mercury vapor lamps work well for what they are intended-to produce heat for basking and UV rays. But the only illumination that they provide is directly under them. They are do not adequately provide overall enclosure illumination which is an important part of a temperate climate tortoise's activity. A combination of either a MVB lamp and a tube flourescent or an incandescent tube of high enough wattage (for heat & light) and an incandescent tube work much better than just an MVB lamp alone.

This has been my experience as well.

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[yagyujubei]

Don't buy mega ray.

 

[Kristina]

Mercury vapor lamps work well for what they are intended-to produce heat for basking and UV rays. But the only illumination that they provide is directly under them. They are do not adequately provide overall enclosure illumination which is an important part of a temperate climate tortoise's activity. A combination of either a MVB lamp and a tube flourescent or an incandescent tube of high enough wattage (for heat & light) and an incandescent tube work much better than just an MVB lamp alone.

This has been my experience as well.

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I understand what you are saying and concur. But for the purposes of producing sufficient UV lighting for long term indoor housing, tube florescent UV lights fall short of the bar. If your tortoise is getting outside time, then that is fine - but MVB's produce the best amount of UV in my experience.

I personally use regular incandescents for "light only" or "light and heat." They are cheap, easy to wire up your own sockets and configurations, and have just always worked best for me. In my enclosures that have living plants, I use CFLs for lighting.

 

[Tony the tank]

A nice Megaray MVB at 36" will give you lots of light at that distance and plenty of UVB...

 

[carnivorouszoo]

Why does the one person say uva's are dangerous? all lights put off uva. . .

 

[slowpoke]

Why does the one person say uva's are dangerous? all lights put off uva. . .

thats what i hear is when the cfb came out it was putting off too much uva wich can cause problems for any reptile

 

[carnivorouszoo]

Oh thanks for explaining

 

[jaizei]

Why does the one person say uva's are dangerous? all lights put off uva. . .

thats what i hear is when the cfb came out it was putting off too much uva wich can cause problems for any reptile

I believe much of the problem was attributed to low wavelength UVB. The lamps were producing a more damaging type of UVB. There is also the fact that using reflectors with the lamps increase the amount of UVB beneath them significantly.

 

[GBtortoises]

Mercury vapor lamps work well for what they are intended-to produce heat for basking and UV rays. But the only illumination that they provide is directly under them. They are do not adequately provide overall enclosure illumination which is an important part of a temperate climate tortoise's activity. A combination of either a MVB lamp and a tube flourescent or an incandescent tube of high enough wattage (for heat & light) and an incandescent tube work much better than just an MVB lamp alone.

This has been my experience as well.

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I understand what you are saying and concur. But for the purposes of producing sufficient UV lighting for long term indoor housing, tube florescent UV lights fall short of the bar. If your tortoise is getting outside time, then that is fine - but MVB's produce the best amount of UV in my experience.

I personally use regular incandescents for "light only" or "light and heat." They are cheap, easy to wire up your own sockets and configurations, and have just always worked best for me. In my enclosures that have living plants, I use CFLs for lighting.

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Based on everything that I've read and experienced, tube flourescents don't "fall short" at all. Long before Mercury Vapor lamps were redesigned to accomodate the hobby the only choice was tube flourescents and they did well. Especially considering the fact that those back in the day didnn't hold a candle (pun intended!) to todays tubes. One of the most critical mistakes people make with any flourescent lamp, tube or CFL, is not replacing it as often as they should. From the first instance that you supply electricity to any type of light emitting fixture it begin it's life span begins to degrade. This is especially true of any flourescent which uses gases within it to produce light.

As I said before, MVB lamps work well for what they are intended. But they still do not produce enough intensity within an entire enclosure. Adding a tube style flourescent will. You can add most any type of tube, but if you're going why not use a full spectrum in order to provide UV throughout the enclosure, not just directly under the MVB lamp?

All but two of my enclosures have a combination of an incandescent and a UV tube flourescent. I've been using that same combination since UV tubes have been available. Two of my enclosures have an MVB lamp and a UV tube. One of those has an additional 75 watt spot light also. I have yet to see any difference whatsoever in any of the tortoises actions, activity or eating habits in any of the enclosures, babies or adults.

Again, MVB lamps work great, I'm not knocking them at all. They simply do not provide enough light intensity for normal activity.