Spring Lighting Schedule

So as Daylight Savings has arrived, it is time to rethink my lighting schedule. Days are getting longer, and this time of year I tend to have the doors and windows open. This can be a challenge keeping the humidity levels where I want, so along with my lighting times, I am also experimenting with misting schedules.

First off, the basic setup has not changed much. I have experimented with different wattage for basking, but other than that I am still using the Arcadia T5 HO quad fixture with one Arcadia 6%, two 6500k's, one plant pro and the blue LED Moonlights. The basking bulbs are both 60 watt clear glass incandescent household bulbs. For misting, I am using a MistKing Ultimate setup with two dual misting nozzles. I use distilled water for this system.

I start the daily lighting with the blue LEDs coming on at 6:00 in the morning. At 7:00 the first set of T5 HO lights come on (the 6% UVB and one 6500k). At 7:15 the first basking bulb (on the side of the house the sun rises) comes on. At 8 am the first misting session of the day occurs. Right now it is for 2 minutes, but I will change this a few times throughout the season if needed to maintain proper humidity levels. At 9:30 the second set of T5 bulbs come on. This is the other 6500k as well as the plant pro. I set the second basking light to go on at 11:45. This one is on the side of the enclosure where the sun will set later in the day. At 12 noon the second misting of the day goes for another 2 minutes.

At 2:30 the third misting of the day goes for about 4 minutes. With the two basking spots on at that time it helps to dry out the enclosure before the next session at 4 pm. The 4 pm misting is for 2 minutes. At 5 pm the first basking spot (sunrise side) goes off. At 7 pm the 6% UVB and one 6500k go off. At 7:30 the blue LED moonlights come on. At 7:45 the second basking light goes off and at 8 pm the final T5 Arcadia's go off for the day. The final step is the LED moonlight goes off at 8:30 pm.

Hope this gives you some ideas about lighting techniques and schedules. I will most likely not change much until the late fall when I will switch to the winter lighting schedule again. For a look at what that looks like and for pictures of the lighting setup, click the following link http://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/decadancin/754-winter-lighting-schedule.html. Thanks for checking out the blog! Let me know what you think. :cool:




Once again, special thanks to Todd at Light Your Reptiles [email protected] for all his help with the Arcadia T5 HO quad fixture and Marty at MistKing http://www.mistking.com/ for an awesome product as well!

Comments

wow That's an elaborate lighting process! A nice gradation, more natural than having everything flip on and off at once no dobut. Your process is Far more involved than what I do for mine. Im not sure Id even have room for that many bulbs on top of my cages, which are a decent size. How big is you cage?
 
Thanks Sandra! His enclosure is approximately 46" tall, 33" wide and 20" deep. The Arcadia is a 24" unit so although it takes up a lot of the space, there is just enough for the basking bulbs. I don't know how neccessary all this is, but Zaphod seems to always adjust to the outside light, so I tried my best to comply! :D
 
mine adjust themselves to the natural outdoor sun schedule too :) They're in a bed room with a big window, so that serves as the gentle wake up light for mine, similar to your LEDs. I have the cage UVB and plant tubes come on first (together, dual fixture) but only 2 or 3 minutes before the basking bulb (Ive only one per cage). Ive often wondered if the basking bulb should come on first before the UVB though.
 
If you are trying to mimic nature at all, I don't think that would be the way to go, but if you have temperature issues it could work out! It would be worth experimenting ;). I just try to guess what is best for Zaphod and make him as happy as I can! :D
 

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