Help with lighting

[littlebigbox]

I move my baby into a ReptiBreeze L and kept his dome fixture and lights from his old cage (100 w double dome, ZooMed). He just has a 60w blue heat bulb and a 5.0 Reptisun (both came with the dome.) His basking spot stays between 75-80 degrees F and he's around 4-5 months. I know it should be higher when he get a bit older, but should it be higher now?

Also, I've been looking into halogen bulbs. Can I buy any halogen bulb (preferably screw in,) from the hardware store? Or do I need to buy one from the pet store? I've heard they last longer than regular basking lights and the heat spreads farther.

Thanks!

 

[Carlton]

I move my baby into a ReptiBreeze L and kept his dome fixture and lights from his old cage (100 w double dome, ZooMed). He just has a 60w blue heat bulb and a 5.0 Reptisun (both came with the dome.) His basking spot stays between 75-80 degrees F and he's around 4-5 months. I know it should be higher when he get a bit older, but should it be higher now?

Also, I've been looking into halogen bulbs. Can I buy any halogen bulb (preferably screw in,) from the hardware store? Or do I need to buy one from the pet store? I've heard they last longer than regular basking lights and the heat spreads farther.

Thanks!

Yes, you can use a halogen screw in bulb from the hardware store. Something like those exterior porch floodlights. It is safer to err on the cooler side for basking rather than risk a thermal burn. Whichever bulb you decide to use, if you try something different, make sure to test the resulting temp at the basking perch.

How long has the ReptiSun bulb been in use? You know you need to change them at about 6 months, right? Just checking.

 

[littlebigbox]

Thank you. Yes I know about the UV needing to be changed. It's only been out of the box about 3 weeks. He is recovering as best as possible from MBD, so he was in a 5 gal fishtank till he was able to climb again. Now he's climbing from top to bottom of his new cage!