Mercury Vapour Vs Florescent tubes

[Canny Chams]

Hey, i have been reavaluating my chameleon care methods recently, and i am wondering what is better for chameleon health, Mercury vapour bulbs or the conventional UVB tube and basking light? My vet told me that mercury vapour are better for absorbing D3, quite frankly that vet proved in many ways to be completely useless so im asking you guys who have more experiance. I know that mercury vapour sends the rays much farther (up to 6 feet) while the tubes need to be within a couple feet. Mercury vapour also combines UV and heat in one place so they cant decide to have uv but not heat, vice versa, but thats how it is in nature. Opinions please

 

[Hoj]

i use the typical flourecant and basking setup but i have lookied at the mecury bulbs.
my biggest issuue would be changing the setup as there are a few around my house lol.
also i think there is alot of wasted heat in many MV setups

 

[Canny Chams]

at this point im not worried about effitiency and more whats best health wise.

 

[Hoj]

well, like i say the typical 2 bulb setup works for me...but i have not tried the MV methode.

 

[chuckd82nd]

you guys think a MV bulb UVB and a 18" UVB light fixture would be too overwhelming?

 

[Canny Chams]

yes i do, i think choose either of the methods

 

[Hoj]

agreed if you have a MV no need for the uvb, or ditch the MV and add a basking dome

 

[Whatcamo]

When I first set up my chams cage I put a 5.0 reptisun tube a 5.0 reptiglo power compact and a flukers sunspot 100w mv my Cham constantly chose the mv so I removed the others so that's what he has now and he loved it so that's what I'll be sticking with

 

[Monzon]

I would say that ambient temperature would have to be a consideration in your choice. If you live in southern states, you may need to move the MV away from the animals in a way that also reduces their UV exposure. In that scenario, you are not gaining the benefits you pay for with the MV or MH bulb. By contrast, a quality florescent could be placed quite close and your animals could choose the basking sites that suit their needs (heat and UV). In my situation, with low ambient temps, I can place a MH bulb close enough to my enclosure so that I get UV and heat within the right ranges. I run MH in the winter because it provides everything my animals need: high lumens, just enough heat, and a good dose of UV. The only way to know for sure in each individual situation is to monitor with temp gun and UV meter until you have a mix that works. If that sort of experimentation and tinkering seem to be a hassle, than just use the tried and true linear florescents. A 5.0 tube does not penetrate through screen very well, but when it is on all day, the cumulative effect seems to be sufficient.

 

[Canny Chams]

well i think im gonna go mercury vapour, i hope they have a warranty, i had one with my beardy a couple years ago and it broke like 4 times in a year, they are REALLY sensitive to even slight movement when they are hot.

 

[Venutus1]

well i think im gonna go mercury vapour, i hope they have a warranty, i had one with my beardy a couple years ago and it broke like 4 times in a year, they are REALLY sensitive to even slight movement when they are hot.

Just a couple of things...
MV Bulbs do not last that long anyway... they need to be replaced every 5 - 10 mo. depending on brands. Even if they are not burned out.

Different brands, and even batches within brands vary ALLOT as to how much UV they give off. As much as 30% with the Zoo med Powers sun 100w (!)

Exo Terra giv off LOW UV compared to other brands.

One word: Solarmeter.

an no ... lol ... I do not own stock in the company.
Wish I did!!

UV is so variable and potentially dangerous.... WHY FOOL AROUND?

Yep... Solarmeters are a little expensive... but WAY cheaper than Vet bills or a ruined, fried suffering Chameleon.

Bet of all, Solarmeters are incredibly easy to use.

Good luck and may your Chams prosper!

Todd
www.lightyourreptiles.com

 

[zerpda]

mv

I really like the MV bulbs. I've been using one for about 5 months for my veiled and he seems to be perfectly fine with it. You are right though, they are very sensitive. I received a new Jungle Dawn LED spotlight yesterday from Light Your Reptiles and I barely bumped the MV bulb, sure enough, gone. I like them because like you said its a bit more efficient, 1 bulb for heat and uvb as opposed to a bulb for basking and a tube for uvb.

 

[jaglon53]

Just a couple of things...
MV Bulbs do not last that long anyway... they need to be replaced every 5 - 10 mo. depending on brands. Even if they are not burned out.

Different brands, and even batches within brands vary ALLOT as to how much UV they give off. As much as 30% with the Zoo med Powers sun 100w (!)

Exo Terra giv off LOW UV compared to other brands.

One word: Solarmeter.

an no ... lol ... I do not own stock in the company.
Wish I did!!

UV is so variable and potentially dangerous.... WHY FOOL AROUND?

Yep... Solarmeters are a little expensive... but WAY cheaper than Vet bills or a ruined, fried suffering Chameleon.

Bet of all, Solarmeters are incredibly easy to use

Good luck and may your Chams prosper!

Todd
www.lightyourreptiles.com

Agreed I have had mv output 1400 at 12inches before you can never be to careful.

 

[ataraxia]

Just a couple of things...
MV Bulbs do not last that long anyway... they need to be replaced every 5 - 10 mo. depending on brands. Even if they are not burned out.
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Can you please explain why?
I run eight of these bulbs over my bearded dragons. Typically i see close to a year to a little over a years use out of these bulbs. The bulb i currently have in are all older than 6 months ATM and still out perform UVB reading than any new "non-MV bulb".

They will not last long with a reflector or in a cabinet. The bulb has to be well ventilated.

Op: MV bulb uses more electricity than a combo 40-60 watt house bulb and 15 - 25 watts used on the tube uvb. Standard 125-160 watts on the mvb. The bulb gets extremely hot. The MV bulb will also out perform any other type of uvb bulb hands down.

I have kept them over some of my veileds also but switched because of the electricity bill.

 

[sdheli420]

ive used the mv set ups for abount 10 years now and love them (keep in mind i use a solar meter, and use them in very large free ranges, they are also kept a certain distance away from the nearest basking point so they do over do it..

i think they work about the same as the tube lighting with a cage vs. mv with a large free range

my chams are very healthy (better than when i used cages and tube lighting), but that could also be because of better gutloading, purified water, ect ect maybe not just the lighting..


no matter what..i only reccomend mv - mh lighting in large free ranges with the use of a solar meter..