Interesting Lighting alternitive?

[MGgoose]

I was thinking would I be able to use a light duty tanning bulb? (about 5%) Where I live it is a large pain to get regular 5.0 Reptisun Bulbs. Even through the internet it is very expensive shipping and the nearest store to get 5.0's is an hour and half drive. There are plenty of tanning solons though and I was thinking that since Tanning bulbs put out UVB, I might be able to get a much cheaper and easy access to bulbs for my cham. He is about & months and he is an ambilobe. I would love to hear some input on whether my idea is feasible or not.

 

[KingJulian]

Honestly I've never even thought about that...it seems like a good idea. The tanning bulbs are just uvb bulbs. The only issue you may have is finding a fixture to house the bulb.

 

[MGgoose]

I am fairly sure they can be put in any fluorescent fixture. But the thing I am worried about is will it be too strong or will there be any side effects?

 

[Video Master]

Where do you live that it is hard to get them?

 

[KingJulian]

Thats a good question that I'm not sure anybody would really know. I used to work in a tanning salon, and of course there are downsides to the bulbs for us, but i'm not sure about for chams. If you are able to compare the wattage of a 5.0 uvb to the tanning bulb and get one thats almost the same, I'm sure it will be ok. I still have the box from our reptisun 5.0 bulb that we have...it's a 24 inch 18 watt bulb, since we have a bigger cage. Hope this helps

 

[Raphael1047]

If you would really want to know you can get a solarmeter 6.2. It checks the amount of UVB in reptile bulbs.
Here is a link. www.lightyourreptiles.com/solarmeter62.html
It is pricey but it is worth it I am sure. Hopefully more experienced members in this topic will chime in.

 

[Norcal55]

If you go that route check the output with a meter and if im not mistaken I believe most of the tanning bets are 220vac units, not sure if that will make a difference on the bulbs.

 

[kinyonga]

You need to make sure the UVB is in the right range.

 

[MGgoose]

Where do you live that it is hard to get them?

The nearest place to get them for me is St. Louis.

 

[tzap13]

internet

not sure how shipping is that much of a pain anywhere in the states.

 

[MGgoose]

not sure how shipping is that much of a pain anywhere in the states.

It's more than it should be but still a bit cheaper than driving, but the mail people around here just toss packages around and don't care if they break which can end up being a money drain.

 

[summoner12]

You need to make sure the UVB is in the right range.

right, and a UVB meter from solarmeter will not tell you this.

All I can say is, put the effort into getting the right kind of bulb, it's worth it. And I wouldn't buy 5.0. Buy 10.0 if it's a big cage.

 

[Raphael1047]

You need to make sure the UVB is in the right range.

What do you mean the right range?

 

[summoner12]

light has a frequency it transmits on.... each color we see is a different frequency... kinda like a radio. So, with that analogy, you need to be tuning into the right station of the UV spectrum.

UVB meters, like the solarmeter only read a volume of UVB between two points on the spectrum, a range. It reads volume, not quality of UVB. And it doesn't ID where the UVB is on that range. So it won't help you know if a tanning bed lamp is any good, it just tells you it has an amount of UVB, if it falls within the range of that meter's range.


I nabbed this off of google...

 

[Venutus1]

Without knowing the spectral band of UV A and B emitted from a tanning bulb....
it would be risky to use one.

Not saying it doesn't seem like a good idea..

but :

You would need to know the spectral spread and proportions of UV to UV B.
(I suspect they are overly heavy on UV B side.)



You would need to buy expensive HO or VHO fixtures in 6 foot length.

You would have to mix it with a daylight bulb to simulate more natural sunlight.
Otherwise it would be crap... and very un natural.
(sorry to be blunt)
So then you WOULD have to find some hard to get full spectrum 6 foot Ho or VHO T10 or t12 bulbs to pair it with... so you wouldn't light them like they were living on some other planet with no ozone layer and weird slightly purple blue light. LOL
In other words, you would have to BALANCE the spectrum to closer match natural daylight by mixing in some other flo. light sources.
This is most important.

You would have to check them carefully with solarmeter --once it was determined that the UV was not in a bad range.

I can think of a few more things that you will need to be aware of if you go ahead with this. But here's a start.

Just sayin'...


Cheers!
Todd

 

[Venutus1]

light has a frequency it transmits on.... each color we see is a different frequency... kinda like a radio. So, with that analogy, you need to be tuning into the right station of the UV spectrum.

UVB meters, like the solarmeter only read a volume of UVB between two points on the spectrum, a range. It reads volume, not quality of UVB. And it doesn't ID where the UVB is on that range. So it won't help you know if a tanning bed lamp is any good, it just tells you it has an amount of UVB, if it falls within the range of that meter's range.


I nabbed this off of google...

yes. well said.

 

[Solid Snake]

I would not recommend tanning bed bulbs. I think youd do better with http://www.petguys.com/-01556122192...tm_medium=GoogleShopping&utm_campaign=PetGuys

 

[Venutus1]

To understand UV better... I always recommend studying the work of Dr. Frances Baines before going ahead with UV.

(BTW, she has tested the Exo Terra bulb mentioned / linked in rite above. I don't sell those. .... for a reason... the decay rate has been proven to be very fast in the bulk of the ones that tested. )

Here is her web-site:
http://www.uvguide.co.uk/

Here is Dr. Baines showing bulbs available to the hobbyists at the Turtle Breeders Convention in UK last year.

Make sure you go to the end to see all...
She saves the best for last.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUu24MNO2Ho

Cheers!
Todd

I was thinking would I be able to use a light duty tanning bulb? (about 5%) Where I live it is a large pain to get regular 5.0 Reptisun Bulbs. Even through the internet it is very expensive shipping and the nearest store to get 5.0's is an hour and half drive. There are plenty of tanning solons though and I was thinking that since Tanning bulbs put out UVB, I might be able to get a much cheaper and easy access to bulbs for my cham. He is about & months and he is an ambilobe. I would love to hear some input on whether my idea is feasible or not.

 

[sarahlynne]

i wonder if you could tan yourself using a chameleons light?!! lol

 

[Carlton]

I would NOT use a tanning bulb unless you could be completely certain about the exact part of the UV spectrum it produces. So much on the lighting market just can't be substituted. Out of all the stuff needed to keep chams the UV lighting and gutloads are the most exacting. Everything else can be created in more than one way. I would not shortcut them with something sketchy or unproven. The last thing you want is to burn your cham or create a long term health problem that will take attention (and vet bills) to correct later.

It would be worth it to order a larger shipment of bulbs and risk losing one to breakage or driving to get them every couple of years. After all, you don't live someplace completely off the map.