Zoo Med desert kit
- Thread starter Qwertyuiopgsggs
- Start date
The bulb should not be used. In the past it caused eye problems. It is meant to hang vertical not horizontal.
Get a tube florescent.
Get a tube florescent.
Qwertyuiopgsggs
Active Member
What do you mean by vertically? With the set up that came with it I cannot possibly think of putting it vertically, what is the difference between the tube and the bulb and can I use a similar set up for a tube?
Qwertyuiopgsggs
Active Member
A bulb would be very inconvenient for my set up, could you suggest a similar product but as a smaller bulb?
Ive been looking at the 80 W powersun mercury vapor lamp by zoo med, is it appropriate?
Those coiled bulbs can damage the torts eyes. They are not suppose to hang the way most people hang them.
The tube bulbs come in different lengths.
Is this for a hatchling or adult? An adult needs a 4x8 foot enclosure. Use the dome for a regular basking bulb and get a fixture for a tube uvb bulb.
The tube bulbs come in different lengths.
Is this for a hatchling or adult? An adult needs a 4x8 foot enclosure. Use the dome for a regular basking bulb and get a fixture for a tube uvb bulb.
You've been given the wrong advice and sold the wrong products by the pet shop. Pet stores, FB, YT, the internet in general, vets, books, reptile "experts", and more, all give the wrong care info and recommend the wrong products. Its been this way for years and it is a constant source of frustration for beginners. They follow all the advice they are given, buy all the stuff they are told to buy, and try really hard to do things correctly, only to come here and find out they've been misled. This forum is the only place I know of giving out the correct tortoise care info. Sorry to break this bad news, but the good news is that you have now found the RIGHT info, and you and your tortoise will be happy and healthy if you follow it.
Here is a simplified heating and lighting breakdown:
There are four elements to heating and lighting:
- 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).
- 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. Some people in colder climates or with larger enclosures will need multiple CHEs or RHPs to spread out enough heat.
- 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.
- 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.
The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise
I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...
tortoiseforum.org
Questions are welcome.
Qwertyuiopgsggs
Active Member
Thanks for the links, it really taught me not to trust everything I hear, I really do not think I will be able to use a tube in my set up which is a 3 by 5 concrete mixer, is there any lights that I could possibly use with the attachment that I currently have? One bulb that they also recommended me to get was this:You've been given the wrong advice and sold the wrong products by the pet shop. Pet stores, FB, YT, the internet in general, vets, books, reptile "experts", and more, all give the wrong care info and recommend the wrong products. Its been this way for years and it is a constant source of frustration for beginners. They follow all the advice they are given, buy all the stuff they are told to buy, and try really hard to do things correctly, only to come here and find out they've been misled. This forum is the only place I know of giving out the correct tortoise care info. Sorry to break this bad news, but the good news is that you have now found the RIGHT info, and you and your tortoise will be happy and healthy if you follow it.
Here is a simplified heating and lighting breakdown:
There are four elements to heating and lighting:
Here is the correct care info for your species:
- 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).
- 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. Some people in colder climates or with larger enclosures will need multiple CHEs or RHPs to spread out enough heat.
- 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.
- 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.
The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise
I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...
Questions are welcome.
Zoo Med PowerSun UV UVB (160 watt) https://a.co/d/2oqiBvN
In the description says it is mercury vapor which got me worried if it is appropriate for tortoises
MVBs are no longer recommended for tortoises for several reasons. They are delicate and unreliable, some of them stop producing UV prematurely, and they contribute to pyramiding.
You can make an over head attachment point with 2x4s or with PVC pipe pretty easily.
If a tube just isn't what you want to do, then ZooMed has a new LED UV bulb, but it also needs a horizontal mount:
Qwertyuiopgsggs
Active Member
I added this bulb to my amazon cart and I will be acquiring it soon, I am still a little confused over the vertical position, do you have some sort of picture by any chance?
Make a pvc pipe support and attach the lights. Use the T's to make legs and run a single pipe and 90 so it sits on the floor outside the tub. If you put plastic over it it won't rot
Qwertyuiopgsggs
Active Member
Is this the product you are using?
Zoo Med Reptisun T5-Ho Terrarium Hood - 14", Black https://a.co/d/cnSm1wI
I also am finding it difficult to raise the temperature of the enclosure during the night, I am using that same double domes with 2 of these:
Zilla Incandescent Heat Bulb https://a.co/d/a8ayB9m
Zoo Med Reptisun T5-Ho Terrarium Hood - 14", Black https://a.co/d/cnSm1wI
I also am finding it difficult to raise the temperature of the enclosure during the night, I am using that same double domes with 2 of these:
Zilla Incandescent Heat Bulb https://a.co/d/a8ayB9m
Please go back and re-read post #6 where I broke down the heating and lighting step by step and also linked the care sheet. Nowhere in any of that does it say to use an incandescent black light for night heat. In fact, it says the opposite.
Why do you think you need night heat for an adult Russian tortoise? Where in the world is Weymouth, and what is your overnight low temperature there right now?
Most of what you need will be found at a hardware store, not a pet shop.
Qwertyuiopgsggs
Active Member
Weymouth is in the shores of Massachusetts, at the moment it is summer so temperatures never drop below 14 C specially indoors, but winters are very harsh here and temperature swings are common, it can be -10 in the morning and 50 at noon, temperature in my home is always controlled no matter what, but even so in winter it most definitely can drop below the 10 C inside
I will say the compacts have some limited uses, I've noticed my Homes Hingeback perfers them to the T5 HO tubes and will use them while he hides from the tube lights if they are on. I even tried the Arcadia Shadedweller Pro and he hated it as well.
Sorry I switched the two around.
Yes the Coil bulbs are to be hung horizontally not vertically. Side to side not up and down if that makes sense. It's really just better not to use them.
Qwertyuiopgsggs
Active Member
And why is that if you dont mind me asking? Is the waves different defending on the side of the bulb?
I was looking at online stores and I found this on Ebay and I would like to know if it is appropriate:
I dont really trust Ebay, but I couldnt find it on Amazon
I was looking at online stores and I found this on Ebay and I would like to know if it is appropriate:
Zoo Med ReptiSun T5 HO High Output Terrarium Hood 14" long LF-70 | eBay
Includes ReptiSun T5 HO 5.0 UVB Lamp. The lighting hood features a low profile design and uses an energy efficient T5 HO electronic ballast for rapid startup and maximum lamp performance. 14": Includes 15 Watt 12" Reptisun T5 HO Lamp.
www.ebay.com
I didn't know they made those so short, but it should work. I don't have first hand experience with anything shorter than 22".And why is that if you dont mind me asking? Is the waves different defending on the side of the bulb?
I was looking at online stores and I found this on Ebay and I would like to know if it is appropriate:
I dont really trust Ebay, but I couldnt find it on AmazonZoo Med ReptiSun T5 HO High Output Terrarium Hood 14" long LF-70 | eBay
Includes ReptiSun T5 HO 5.0 UVB Lamp. The lighting hood features a low profile design and uses an energy efficient T5 HO electronic ballast for rapid startup and maximum lamp performance. 14": Includes 15 Watt 12" Reptisun T5 HO Lamp.www.ebay.com
The 5.0 bulbs make very little UV and are not worth the money. Get a 10.0.
Qwertyuiopgsggs
Active Member
So I should get this set up and then buy a new tube?
