How often should I replace the UVB and heat bulb?
- Thread starter Theveiled
- Start date
Gwendalyn.brock
Established Member
I was told 6 months for uvb and when the bulb goes out in the heat lamp but that could be wrong. Might want to get more opinions.Hey everyone!
I was just wondering how often to replace the UVB and heat lamp bulb for my veiled. They are not over a year old but don't want them to go out or not be as effective for him.
Thanks!
Dave Bolamperti
Avid Member
Hey Theveild,
UVB bulbs generally last 6 months, Acadia bulbs can go 9-12 months before the loose their strength. Keep good bulbs to prevent MBD
Heat bulbs last till they burn out.
Dave
UVB bulbs generally last 6 months, Acadia bulbs can go 9-12 months before the loose their strength. Keep good bulbs to prevent MBD
Heat bulbs last till they burn out.
Dave
SocialNumb
Established Member
I hear Zoo Med bulbs should be replaced every 6 months but has anyone tested this? I hear some people say it's because they're made in China but the ones I have are made in Germany.
R.H
Member
I have Acadia had it for 7 months, my cham started sleeping through the day so tried everything reccommended to me. No one recommended my uvb because of the make and where I bought mine from said 2year guarantee on it, however my gut said change it, so went back to this place and they laughed at me sayin I didn't need to change it, once I took old strip out it was black on both ends . my gut was correct and now I'll change every 6 months regardless!!
Chams health comes 1st x
Chams health comes 1st x
jajeanpierre
Chameleon Enthusiast
R.H
Member
I also bought at same time this tiny uvb platic square thing that sticks in viv and goes purple when uvb is present, will be a great indicator to when it stops working
hi there, i offered my little uvb gadget up to it and it glowed slightly, slightly to me isn't good enough for my baby so i changed it, however regardless to if it was workin or not i wpuld of changed it ( for my peace I mind)
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jajeanpierre
Chameleon Enthusiast
I don't know what that light meter measures, but not all UVB is created equal. There is only a certain range of UVB that can be used by the animals to produce Vitamin D in the skin. Maybe Todd of Light Your Reptiles will chime in.
kiwilulu
Member
These meters are used to check psoriasis uvb lamps.
http://m.ebay.com/itm/ULTRAVIOLET-L...P-PSORIASIS-VITILIGO-/321842614534?nav=SEARCH
I also found this interesting read
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/usinguvmeter.htm
Lets wait for the expert to chime in!
http://m.ebay.com/itm/ULTRAVIOLET-L...P-PSORIASIS-VITILIGO-/321842614534?nav=SEARCH
I also found this interesting read
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/usinguvmeter.htm
Lets wait for the expert to chime in!
jajeanpierre
Chameleon Enthusiast
Here's Todd's response to my question this morning about those cheaper light meters. I'm quoting with his permission:
Hi Janet.
They are not reliable and do not work. Just a gimmick.
bad.
Solarmeters are the only option...
and believe me....
I have searched the world for YEARS for a less expensive reliable option to off because I would be RICH.
It just does not exist.
Thanks.
Sincerely,
Todd C. Goode
[email protected]
www.LightYourReptiles.com
Hi Janet.
They are not reliable and do not work. Just a gimmick.
bad.
Solarmeters are the only option...
and believe me....
I have searched the world for YEARS for a less expensive reliable option to off because I would be RICH.
It just does not exist.
Thanks.
Sincerely,
Todd C. Goode
[email protected]
www.LightYourReptiles.com
Hi....
had weighed in on this through Janet above about UVB meters...
and I can clarify if anybody is wondering.
There are many wavelengths of UV rays in natural sunlight. And we should always try in what we do to duplicate natural sunlight as close as possible-- because Mother Nature is the best.
After all... all life on earth has evolved under Natural Sunlight for millions of years.
Anyway,
THE important thing to know is that the wavelength that allows the creation of vit D in animals skin is the 390 -405 nm band.
With 396-399 probably being the "sweet spot".
The UV meters you buy test wider swaths / or bands.
And because of years of use and trial and error we know what / how strong the reading 60 uw/cm2 is off a Solarmeter 6.2 and can reference it.
Also we know what a reading of say "2" is off a 6.5 meter and can reference it.
With all these other UV meters and so called UV detectors ...
What wavelengths are they sensitive to? What do the readings mean?
Who knows!
A Brand X UV meter It could read real low.....so we *think* all the UV wavelengths are low...
but the UVB in the 390-405 range could be very HIGH and burn the animal's skin.
Or conversely,
a Brand X meter could be reading real high measuring the UV wavelengths say between 420-500 nm... and give a high reading so we think there is plenty of UVB.
But in reality there could be NO UV rays between 390 & 405 nm.
So even though the meter was telling us that the UV was very high inside the cage---
the animal would surely get MBD as fast as if it was getting no light at all without those 390-405 rays!!
They could not synthesize Vit D w/o any of the 390-405 wavelengths present.
As many know, I constantly test and try things out so LightYourReptiles.com brings you ONLY the very best products.
And speaking of NON- Solarmeter UV meters...
I just got and tested a very nice looking UV meter that was suppose to be a "knock off" of the Solarmeter 6.2.
I actually had to buy this meter out of pocket and pay the cost of shipping from China -- and it was quite expensive.
But I had to test this new meter before I committed to buying it in quantity to sell through LYR.
FYI:
If I imported them in bulk, the meter would have sold for around 129.99. (!!)
A substantial savings over a Solarmeter at about 200.00.
(So this would have been a coup IF it was any good -- and you all would have loved me for it... LOL )
But it turned out it was TERRIBLE.
The readings were so far off what a "real" 6.2 meter was.... it wasn't even funny.
And the thing that bothered me most with this knock off meter :
Using a REAL Solarmeter and getting a reading of 100 uw/cm2 at a foot, then moved it farther away to 2 feet and it read 33.
It made sense in this example with the increased distance, the UV strength dropped by 2/3.
So, using the Knock offs and getting a "reading" of 150 at a foot,
then moving it away from the light *the same distance* it should have dropped to a reading of about 50..... right?
Even if the numbers did not match, the PERCENTAGE the UV dropped moving the meter a foot away should have been the same. It is only logical as Spock would say.
In other words:
One would think that even if the reading numbers were not the same, the one thing that would be a constant would be if the UV weakened in one meter by 2/3 or 66%, then the Knock offs reading should have fallen by approx. the same percentage with the same increased distance.
But Nooooo....
the knock off was giving a reading of like 100. (!!) when moved away to a foot.
It was telling us the UV only weakened by 1/3 with the increased distance from the UV source.
Crazy!
So there is an example of an expensive, nice looking meter you could not trust at all.
The moral of the story,
and there is no getting around it,
is that you can not substitute any meters for Solarmeters.
(Except if you are talking like a 5000.00 laboratory UV meter/ spectrometer. )
And other companies can NOT really copy or knock-off the Solarmeter electronics and sensor because there are certain patents protecting whats in them.
I hope this helps increase understanding on the subject.
Cheers!
Todd
www.lightyourreptiles.com
ps. 24" Quads are back in stock!!
had weighed in on this through Janet above about UVB meters...
and I can clarify if anybody is wondering.
There are many wavelengths of UV rays in natural sunlight. And we should always try in what we do to duplicate natural sunlight as close as possible-- because Mother Nature is the best.
After all... all life on earth has evolved under Natural Sunlight for millions of years.
Anyway,
THE important thing to know is that the wavelength that allows the creation of vit D in animals skin is the 390 -405 nm band.
With 396-399 probably being the "sweet spot".
The UV meters you buy test wider swaths / or bands.
And because of years of use and trial and error we know what / how strong the reading 60 uw/cm2 is off a Solarmeter 6.2 and can reference it.
Also we know what a reading of say "2" is off a 6.5 meter and can reference it.
With all these other UV meters and so called UV detectors ...
What wavelengths are they sensitive to? What do the readings mean?
Who knows!
A Brand X UV meter It could read real low.....so we *think* all the UV wavelengths are low...
but the UVB in the 390-405 range could be very HIGH and burn the animal's skin.
Or conversely,
a Brand X meter could be reading real high measuring the UV wavelengths say between 420-500 nm... and give a high reading so we think there is plenty of UVB.
But in reality there could be NO UV rays between 390 & 405 nm.
So even though the meter was telling us that the UV was very high inside the cage---
the animal would surely get MBD as fast as if it was getting no light at all without those 390-405 rays!!
They could not synthesize Vit D w/o any of the 390-405 wavelengths present.
As many know, I constantly test and try things out so LightYourReptiles.com brings you ONLY the very best products.
And speaking of NON- Solarmeter UV meters...
I just got and tested a very nice looking UV meter that was suppose to be a "knock off" of the Solarmeter 6.2.
I actually had to buy this meter out of pocket and pay the cost of shipping from China -- and it was quite expensive.
But I had to test this new meter before I committed to buying it in quantity to sell through LYR.
FYI:
If I imported them in bulk, the meter would have sold for around 129.99. (!!)
A substantial savings over a Solarmeter at about 200.00.
(So this would have been a coup IF it was any good -- and you all would have loved me for it... LOL
)But it turned out it was TERRIBLE.
The readings were so far off what a "real" 6.2 meter was.... it wasn't even funny.
And the thing that bothered me most with this knock off meter :
Using a REAL Solarmeter and getting a reading of 100 uw/cm2 at a foot, then moved it farther away to 2 feet and it read 33.
It made sense in this example with the increased distance, the UV strength dropped by 2/3.
So, using the Knock offs and getting a "reading" of 150 at a foot,
then moving it away from the light *the same distance* it should have dropped to a reading of about 50..... right?
Even if the numbers did not match, the PERCENTAGE the UV dropped moving the meter a foot away should have been the same. It is only logical as Spock would say.
In other words:
One would think that even if the reading numbers were not the same, the one thing that would be a constant would be if the UV weakened in one meter by 2/3 or 66%, then the Knock offs reading should have fallen by approx. the same percentage with the same increased distance.
But Nooooo....
the knock off was giving a reading of like 100. (!!) when moved away to a foot.
It was telling us the UV only weakened by 1/3 with the increased distance from the UV source.
Crazy!
So there is an example of an expensive, nice looking meter you could not trust at all.
The moral of the story,
and there is no getting around it,
is that you can not substitute any meters for Solarmeters.
(Except if you are talking like a 5000.00 laboratory UV meter/ spectrometer.
)And other companies can NOT really copy or knock-off the Solarmeter electronics and sensor because there are certain patents protecting whats in them.
I hope this helps increase understanding on the subject.
Cheers!
Todd
www.lightyourreptiles.com
ps. 24" Quads are back in stock!!
Last edited:
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