A little confused about lighting

[falconut]

I thought I had a good idea of the direction I needed for lighting for a male Panther until I read a long thread on here about T5's. Now I'm confused if my initial plan is wrong.

I have a DIYcages 4' tall x 2' wide x 2' deep screen cage. I have a 20" fluorescent fixture, that uses standard 18" 15-Watt t8 bulbs. From my initial research here, I was planning on getting an 18" Reptisun 5.0 for this fixture and adding a basking bulb. But after reading the long thread, they make it seam like anything less than T5 is unacceptable, is this true?

I see LLL sells Reptisun 5.0 in T5, is this what others are using? I wasn't aware they were available is T5, so I was assuming people were using T8 bulbs. Any details as what I should be using would be helpful. I'm looking to research and setup prior to getting my chameleon.

 

[jamjam]

what thread were you reading? the thread i thought was the light bible when i first joined a year ago was the definitive lighting thread. (good read) t8's were the go to in the past and im sure a number of people still use them successfully. with t8s i might be thinking a 10.0 might be a better choice id look into some threads that have testes it with a uv meter.

but you are right i believe a majority of people on the thread including myself use t5s which can be found in most brands and usually use atleast a dual fixture

 

[NHenn]

Your initial plan is not wrong and what you are planning on using (5.0 T8) should be fine for your chameleon but it is not the best lighting you can get. If you want to provided some of the best lighting then I would consider looking into T5 like others use and more importantly looking into a double or quad fixture as just a single T5 is still not the best lighting option. Here is a picture to show you the lighting comparison.

 

[falconut]

jamjam - this is the thread https://www.chameleonforums.com/definitive-lighting-thread-everything-you-really-need-know-80869/

I was originally going to use a 100W Reptile UV (MV), like I have for my basilisk. It would surely provide UVB. But I was told the better light choice was linear Reptisun 5.0. Was thinking T8, not T5. Wasn't aware reptile lights were being made in T5.

NHenn - call me weird, but I actually kind of like the look of the right cage. To me it almost look too bright on the left side, where it's hard to even see the plants.

Is there a reason most people recommend 5.0? If going T8, wouldn't going with a 10.0 be better to boost the UVB? Or am I not understanding things correctly?

 

[jamjam]

and thats the thread i was talking about as well lol. id probably go 1.0 as well with the t8.

i just want to remind you in the pictures nhenn provided its a double t5 vs single t8. as mentioned not to say the t8s are bad however with either i still suggest having a double especially if you will be having live plants

 

[falconut]

Questions

1 - I believe I've read that T8 Reptisun 5.0 bulbs need to be replaced every 6 months if you don't have a meter. I thought I read that T5 need to be replaced every year. Is this true for T5 Reptisun 5.0 bulbs?

2 - Would a single T5 Reptisun 5.0 get hot? I plan on attaching tubing to the bottom of the screen top (rain ring) and wouldn't want it to melt.

 

[jamjam]

Questions

1 - I believe I've read that T8 Reptisun 5.0 bulbs need to be replaced every 6 months if you don't have a meter. I thought I read that T5 need to be replaced every year. Is this true for T5 Reptisun 5.0 bulbs?
all reptisun bulbs should be replaced every 6 months because they lose significant amounts of uvb. arcadia bulbs can last up to a year.

2 - Would a single T5 Reptisun 5.0 get hot? I plan on attaching tubing to the bottom of the screen top (rain ring) and wouldn't want it to melt.

typically uvb bulbs only put out a little bit of heat if any at all

 

[Chameleonpainter]

I'm gonna buy a t5 fixture for a 2x4 enclosure, can anyone tell me if a 2 tube or 4 tube would be better for that large of a set up?

 

[Big Gulp]

You really can't do much better than this setup. WAY better than Reptisuns. Plus they last a year, whereas the others last 6 months before they need replacing.

Also comes with a 6.5k bulb, which helps with live plants. The fixture itself is heavy duty, and it's 24" long, so it fits perfect across your enclosure.

http://www.lightyourreptiles.com/24hot5dobufi.html

 

[danTHAman152000]

I just took delivery of a 72" quad set up from Light Your Reptiles. I am in the process of setting up a double free range, so the extra long fixture made sense for me.

My point on commenting was to share my thoughts of buying the bigger fixture (more bulbs) and just simply not using them all the time.

I figured I could either simulate noon time soon with an hour of extra light on a timer, or simply use the extra bulbs when trying to show him off (or find him in his free range!).

The prices from Todd are very reasonable and he is super helpful. I've been using a ReptiSun 10.0 24" and I am so excited to try out this beast!

 

[Chameleonpainter]

Thanks guys!It seems all roads lead to light your reptiles, thats where I had looked originally.This confirms everything I've heard before.Have a great weekend

 

[falconut]

All this talk about more UVB and 3 or 4 bulbs has me re-thinking the ReptileUV bulb like I use in my Basilisk enclosure. I have that in a 3' tall with 1/2" chicken fence just under it and the plants grow up to it great.

I was thinking of placing the bulb about 8" above the cage, so it would be getting filtered by the screen and the cage is 4' tall screen. The closest basking branch would be about 6" - 12" from the top. This would allow him to go lower to get less lighting.

They also last a year and come in a low UV output. Here's a photo of the cage with one sitting on top without a reflector with all room lights off:

I would get a dome to hang above if I went this direction. It provides light all the way to the bottom, throw in some branches and plants and I imagine it would look great. just curious why others don't use them.

 

[jannb]

All this talk about more UVB and 3 or 4 bulbs has me re-thinking the ReptileUV bulb like I use in my Basilisk enclosure. I have that in a 3' tall with 1/2" chicken fence just under it and the plants grow up to it great.

I was thinking of placing the bulb about 8" above the cage, so it would be getting filtered by the screen and the cage is 4' tall screen. The closest basking branch would be about 6" - 12" from the top. This would allow him to go lower to get less lighting.

They also last a year and come in a low UV output. Here's a photo of the cage with one sitting on top without a reflector with all room lights off:

I would get a dome to hang above if I went this direction. It provides light all the way to the bottom, throw in some branches and plants and I imagine it would look great. just curious why others don't use them.

I would highly recommend you get a UV meter. I am no lighting expert but I have had a meter for years and check my lights monthly. I use a variety of lights on my different free ranges. The 100 watt MV's that I have puts off allot of heat but you have to get up real close to get any UV and going through screen your chameleon would probably not get any UV at all. If you want to use a dome with one bulb that puts off heat and UV go with the Megaray bulb because they gives off allot more UVB.

 

[falconut]

Yeah, from all I've read over the years, the Megaray is the best MV bulb for reptiles. That is what I have over the cage in the photo.

I think I'm considering one of the following setups:

a) single 24" T5 Reptisun 5.0 and a Basking bulb in a dome

or

b) single 100 Watt Megaray in dome

I'm leaning towards a single Megaray as I have no troubles growing plants under it while giving my basilisk the UVB she needs. Maybe the low Megaray. I've got an email into Reptile UV to see what they suggest with my setup.

 

[jannb]

Yeah, from all I've read over the years, the Megaray is the best MV bulb for reptiles. That is what I have over the cage in the photo.

I think I'm considering one of the following setups:

a) single 24" T5 Reptisun 5.0 and a Basking bulb in a dome

or

b) single 100 Watt Megaray in dome

I'm leaning towards a single Megaray as I have no troubles growing plants under it while giving my basilisk the UVB she needs. Maybe the low Megaray. I've got an email into Reptile UV to see what they suggest with my setup.

I'm old school and use allot of what's worked well for me in the past. If you go with the Reptisun and basking bulb I'd get a duel 24 inch fixture and put a plant light in one side. I'd never put a MV or Megaray on a cage for a chameleon. They work great in large free ranges because there's a big area to cover. The Megaray might be ok if you hang it over the cage instead of laying it flat on the cage but I can't say for sure because I don't use inside cages nor have lights on my large outside sun cages.

 

[falconut]

Alright, now you guys/gals have me leaning towards a T5 for UVB. Question here, I'm going to use a rain ring which has the 1/4" tubing attached directly to the inside of the top screen of the cage. Would the T5 fixture be able to be placed directly on the top of the screen over the tubing without melting it?

 

[jamjam]

cant see why not

 

[Djturna4thakidz]

I have had no problems with the t5 melting anything