My experience with a solar meter: WARNING

[GrayMadder]

So I recently purchased a Solar Meter and used it for my chameleon cage. I have brand new Arcadia 6% (2 months old) uvb lighting that runs diagonally of Shenron's enclosure. I purchased my fixture and bulb from lllreptile. I was super excited to finally get my solar meter and opened it right away to test it out.

I used it against my arcadia lighting, and to my surprise I wasn't getting a reading. I tried multiple times and spent time googling what was wrong with my solar meter. I wasnt getting any readings at all. So I quickly figured my solar meter wasnt working, I have the best lighting, why wasnt it reading properly?? I contacted the seller and reported the issue and was immediately sent another one.

I received the new one and opened it up and went to my uvb lighting and used it once again.... no reading!!!

I quickly started to think "maybe my lighting is bad??" Keep in mind, this is a brand new fixture and brand new bulb from a top of the line company! I pulled the lighting down and checked for plastic.. nothing. I checked every part of the light.. nothing.

I have extra bulbs that I keep for all my reptile enclosures. So I decided to replace the bulb. I tried the solar meter and got my readings!! I pulled out the "defective" solar meter and again... I had my readings!!

This is just a warning of how important these are for your reptiles!! I had a brand new fixture and had no idea I had a defective bulb. I would not have noticed for who knows how long. I am so thankful I made this purchase and prevented a potentially catastrophic event for my chameleon. If I would've went the whole 9-12 months thinking my uvb was working, who knows how much my chameleons health could have deteriorated.

Crisis averted.

 

[Mendez]

Jeez, that sounds like a nightmare! The fear of getting a defective bulb was the very reason I bought my solarmeter in the first place. Turned out my bulb was just fine--but at least it gave me peace of mind.

Super glad that you got lucky! What are the odds of getting a defective bulb and then realizing the problem right away! Happy to hear that your cham was not affected by the defective bulb. Great story!

 

[GrayMadder]

Jeez, that sounds like a nightmare! The fear of getting a defective bulb was the very reason I bought my solarmeter in the first place. Turned out my bulb was just fine--but at least it gave me peace of mind.

Super glad that you got lucky! What are the odds of getting a defective bulb and then realizing the problem right away! Happy to hear that your cham was not affected by the defective bulb. Great story!

Thank you!! Yes it definitely was a huge scare. Really.... what are the odds?!

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

Another way to test if it's the meter is just aim it at the Sun.

Another way to test if the bulb is a dud is with UVB test cards.
Not as accurate as a meter, but would have detected UVB vs. NO UVB.
Previous threads: https://www.chameleonforums.com/search/1077480/?q=uvb+test+card&o=relevance

Interesting that the bad bulb still lit up like a good one.

 

[GrayMadder]

Another way to test if it's the meter is just aim it at the Sun.

Another way to test if the bulb is a dud is with UVB test cards.
Not as accurate as a meter, but would have detected UVB vs. NO UVB.
Previous threads: https://www.chameleonforums.com/search/1077480/?q=uvb+test+card&o=relevance

Interesting that the bad bulb still lit up like a good one.

Yea it was night time when i received it, so i just immediately assumed it wasnt working. Which wasnt a great assumption. I was upset i spent so much money and it didnt work lol.

Also had no idea about the strips!! Thanks!!

 

[suprdude]

I just got my solar meter but don't yet have the UVB bulb, so I went outside and aimed it at the sun to test. 3.0 UVB apparently! I also tested the same sunlight through my glass window and got zero UVB.

 

[Mendez]

Another way to test if the bulb is a dud is with UVB test cards.
Not as accurate as a meter, but would have detected UVB vs. NO UVB.
Previous threads: https://www.chameleonforums.com/search/1077480/?q=uvb+test+card&o=relevance

Wow, I did not know that these test cards even existed! Everyone should have these test cards if they don't have a solar meter. At least they would know that the bulb isn't defective and spitting out a 0.0. Great info, thanks!

 

[Shanar808]

Wow thank God you purchased your solarmeter when you did! I had an issue with a bulb that died in less than 1 month back in December, luckily it was obvious and I made sure to have a backup bulb. Although the seller company thru Amazon said that I couldn’t be refunded because it wasn’t defective when I first plugged it in so refused to refund/replace without charging me a fee and making me return my spare bulb as well. (I ended up just taking the loss for fear they would resell them to another unwitting customer)

How great would it be if solarmeters cost the same as temp guns and hygrometers? Just wishful thinking, I’m sure the parts and calibration are extensive in comparison.

 

[Sonny13]

Wow, good sharing.....now you made me anxious . Need to get a solar meter asap!!

 

[Shanar808]

Thanks for sharing and I agree with Sonny13 we need to get on that train.

 

[Sonny13]

Wow thank God you purchased your solarmeter when you did! I had an issue with a bulb that died in less than 1 month back in December, luckily it was obvious and I made sure to have a backup bulb. Although the seller company thru Amazon said that I couldn’t be refunded because it wasn’t defective when I first plugged it in so refused to refund/replace without charging me a fee and making me return my spare bulb as well. (I ended up just taking the loss for fear they would resell them to another unwitting customer)

How great would it be if solarmeters cost the same as temp guns and hygrometers? Just wishful thinking, I’m sure the parts and calibration are extensive in comparison.

That´s the problem, you never get warranty over bulbs.

 

[GrayMadder]

Wow thank God you purchased your solarmeter when you did! I had an issue with a bulb that died in less than 1 month back in December, luckily it was obvious and I made sure to have a backup bulb. Although the seller company thru Amazon said that I couldn’t be refunded because it wasn’t defective when I first plugged it in so refused to refund/replace without charging me a fee and making me return my spare bulb as well. (I ended up just taking the loss for fear they would resell them to another unwitting customer)

How great would it be if solarmeters cost the same as temp guns and hygrometers? Just wishful thinking, I’m sure the parts and calibration are extensive in comparison.

I dont know why reptile products are so expensive. I assume it's because usually one company has the only product so they up the prices. Its the same with enclosures.. in my ooinion it shouldnt cost nearly 1,000 for a decent enclosure. This is why reptiles are always so poorly cared for.

But yes! Thankful I made this purchase. So weird thst the bulb looked perfectly fine

 

[GrayMadder]

Wow, good sharing.....now you made me anxious . Need to get a solar meter asap!!

Yes!! If you dont have the money for one yet, i would at least purchase the strips klyde linked! That way you can at least have peace of mind your bulb is putting out uvb!

 

[Shanar808]

I think I might be a good idea to contact Arcadia and let them know just in case it may have been a whole batch that could’ve been improvised during assembly. The contact email is [email protected] and they were swift at responding to my inquiries.

 

[Sonny13]

I dont know why reptile products are so expensive. I assume it's because usually one company has the only product so they up the prices. Its the same with enclosures.. in my ooinion it shouldnt cost nearly 1,000 for a decent enclosure. This is why reptiles are always so poorly cared for.

But yes! Thankful I made this purchase. So weird thst the bulb looked perfectly fine

It´s with all hobbies!! Companies just know hobbyist are always willing to spend money and they take disadvantage of it. It´s the same with vets, for my dog it was always , just a pill here and small cream there and here we go $150,00 please. Because we always want the best for them and at that moment we don´t care for the money.

And definitely agree with the poorly care due the high prices, it makes it harder......still it´s not fully true. When you stay with the commercial ´shit`because of lack of creativity, yesss it will be expensive. However with some research on the internet, you end up better and cheaper. Live items (branches / plants etc.) are way cheaper than the fake items and better for you animals to. The thing that gives me most the creeps, are those chameleons giving as a gift, to a poor child or student, which suddenly gets confronted with the high prices involved for keeping a cham. Most of us started with other reptiles and chameleons where just the holy grail within reptile keeping and we made a well considered decision for starting with such beautiful and expensive animals (at least I did). It´s same with dogs, buying one ain´t the money, raising one is......

 

[GrayMadder]

I think I might be a good idea to contact Arcadia and let them know just in case it may have been a whole batch that could’ve been improvised during assembly. The contact email is [email protected] and they were swift at responding to my inquiries.

Thank you I will definitely do!! I have the bulb still and all the info they might need! Thank you !

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

I was upset i spent so much money and it didnt work lol.

Who wouldn't be? What we went through trying to get the correct T5 UVB the very first time became known as "The Great UVB Debacle Saga." It took 6 tries among 3 suppliers to finally get the right one that worked—wrong dia, wrong strength, wrong length, broken bulb, defective bulb, wrong quantity... When one vendor finally got it right, we immediately ordered 2 spares so we (theoretically) wouldn't have to worry about it for another 3 years. When they arrived, I immediately tested all 3 against each other with the Solarmeter. That was about 15 months ago, and the first bulb (Reptisun) is still functioning adequately.

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

Wow thank God you purchased your solarmeter when you did! I had an issue with a bulb that died in less than 1 month back in December, luckily it was obvious and I made sure to have a backup bulb. Although the seller company thru Amazon said that I couldn’t be refunded because it wasn’t defective when I first plugged it in so refused to refund/replace without charging me a fee and making me return my spare bulb as well. (I ended up just taking the loss for fear they would resell them to another unwitting customer)

That's irrelevant. If it was either Reptisun or Arcadia, both are warrantied for 1 yr., there should be no fee, and why would that have anything to do with your spare?

I'm not grilling; I'm asking rhetorical questions aloud. Some vendors try to bully customers, figuring they'll cave rather than stand up for themselves. If/when someone does stand up—and/or demand the matter be kicked upstairs—it's the vendor who will often cave.

It's, "Who's going to blink first?" It's a stupid game.

standing up for your consumer rights

How great would it be if solarmeters cost the same as temp guns and hygrometers?

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

I dont know why reptile products are so expensive.

Hobby products usually are; it doesn't matter what hobby. It often pays to find out if a particular thing has a different market, and pursue it there. A good example of this is digital reptile hygrometer/thermometer with probe.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Pawliss-...e-Thermometer-Hygrometer-With-Probe/403743340
Or you can go to that big river in Brazil and find (virtually) the same thing generically.
https://www.amazon.com/Veanic-Hygro...l+hygrometer+with+probe&qid=1616595026&sr=8-3

When I got my Solarmeter a bit over a year ago, the 6.5R was $20 more than the 6.5 when the only difference was the picture of the iguana. Today the prices fluctuate back & forth.

It's been this way with every hobby I've ever indulged in.

 

[Shanar808]

That's irrelevant. If it was either Reptisun or Arcadia, both are warrantied for 1 yr., there should be no fee, and why would that have anything to do with your spare?

I'm not grilling; I'm asking rhetorical questions aloud. Some vendors try to bully customers, figuring they'll cave rather than stand up for themselves. If/when someone does stand up—and/or demand the matter be kicked upstairs—it's the vendor who will often cave.

It's, "Who's going to blink first?" It's a stupid game.

standing up for your consumer rights

It was thru an Amazon seller that was selling as a set of 2, I filed complaints with Amazon. The company accused me of abusing the Amazon return policy, even though I was well with my return window.

And I love that song!

Big river in Brazil!