Hi, we are having issues keeping our plants alive in our cham's enclosure. I think the main problem probably stems from a lack of light - we have her UVB bulb on for ~12 hours a day, but I was thinking maybe a grow light might help the plants? We have tropical plants which in theory should withstand the heat / humidity of her enclosure . Any advice on getting a grow light? Also would it be too much for the cham if we added a grow light in for the plants? If a grow light is too much, any suggestions on how to keep her plants alive? Obviously when we switch out the plants its quite an upheaval for the cham who then also gets stressed out... so ideally the longer we can keep her plants alive, the better. Thanks!
Keeping plants alive in cham enclosure?
- Thread starter ssc97
- Start date
Here is the link to the 22 inch one at reptile basics. https://www.reptilebasics.com/led-reptile-lighting/jungle-dawn-22-34-watt/
They are pricey but last and lower electricity usage.
They are pricey but last and lower electricity usage.
Klyde O'Scope
Chameleon Enthusiast
I suggest/recommend an LED plant light. LEDs are more cost-effective in the long run, and better for the environment (no lead like fluorescents). Fluorescents will also require a fixture, whereas many LED plant lights do not—they come ready to plug in & turn on.
Quite a few folks have gotten this LED plant light; it's self-contained, has the oomph necessary to reach down into the lower regions of an enclosure, and IME perfect for a 24x24x48 chameleon enclosure. There are also usually many coupons available.
Whatever plant light you choose, your chameleon will likely be drawn to basking under it; they seem to be hardwired to bask under the brightest source available. This can work out very well in a couple of ways....
It's a good idea to set up the three kinds of light (basking, UVB, plant) in a sort of intersecting Venn diagram.
This allows your chameleon to seek out & bask under whichever combination of light s/he prefers.
It also necessitates tilting the basking light to shine beneath the plant light in an elliptical shape rather than circular. This too provides gradients of temperature for the chameleon to find & choose from. For example (Top View)...
Quite a few folks have gotten this LED plant light; it's self-contained, has the oomph necessary to reach down into the lower regions of an enclosure, and IME perfect for a 24x24x48 chameleon enclosure. There are also usually many coupons available.
Whatever plant light you choose, your chameleon will likely be drawn to basking under it; they seem to be hardwired to bask under the brightest source available. This can work out very well in a couple of ways....
It's a good idea to set up the three kinds of light (basking, UVB, plant) in a sort of intersecting Venn diagram.
It also necessitates tilting the basking light to shine beneath the plant light in an elliptical shape rather than circular. This too provides gradients of temperature for the chameleon to find & choose from. For example (Top View)...
CasqueAbove
Chameleon Enthusiast
We have a section on plant care and links to some lights at www.caskAbove.com Keeping the plants alive is important in forming a more natural environment.
Do you put this on along with your UVB light also or do you just swap your UVB out for this instead? Thanks!
Where are you based? We're in the UK..
Thanks. Not too much light for the chams (if that's possible)?
This would be separate from your uvb lighting. You want to make sure your running the T5 linear fixture with the UVB bulb and then you add either T5 fixture with a 6500 daylight bulb or the LED option for the plants.
Klyde O'Scope
Chameleon Enthusiast
In that case, this might also work. Note that it's time sensitive.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/SANSI-50W-...child=1&keywords=sansi&qid=1619190278&sr=8-21
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