need some lighting advice

[goosay]

Hello all,

I am a soon-to-be juvenile panther chameleon owner and had a few questions about lighting..

I have a 2x2x4 ft cage w/ all live plants. I have a zoo med reptisun 10.0 for uvb currently & trying to figure out what basking light I should get that would also help my plants flourish. Ideally I would use the Phillips 60 watt plant bulb (seen it recommended by a few people on here) for both basking & my plants...but I live in California and incandescent bulbs are now illegal. I purchased a LED plant bulb in case I can't find a 2 in 1 bulb (for both basking and my plants)...but would rather not have three separate bulbs on top of my cage. Is there some sort of alternative that is legal in CA? Any advice is appreciated

Thank you!

 

[Dbash44]

Hello all,

I am a soon-to-be juvenile panther chameleon owner and had a few questions about lighting..

I have a 2x2x4 ft cage w/ all live plants. I have a zoo med reptisun 10.0 for uvb currently & trying to figure out what basking light I should get that would also help my plants flourish. Ideally I would use the Phillips 60 watt plant bulb (seen it recommended by a few people on here) for both basking & my plants...but I live in California and incandescent bulbs are now illegal. I purchased a LED plant bulb in case I can't find a 2 in 1 bulb (for both basking and my plants)...but would rather not have three separate bulbs on top of my cage. Is there some sort of alternative that is legal in CA? Any advice is appreciated

Thank you!

I'm in SoCal and use a quad t5 fluorescent fixture. You can have three 6500k plant lights plus your 10.0uvb. That's essentially what I do and it works great for me. I have a panther that uses the t5 fixture for basking and another that prefers a heat bulb. I use the repti sun basking spot lamp for the one that likes the heat bulb. I use 75w raised about 4 inches off the cage. Basking perch is 4 inches from top inside the cage give or take.

Whatever brand bulb and whatever wattage you decide to use, make sure it isn't too hot. Do you know what basking temps you're shooting for? It's always safer to start cooler and get hotter if necessary. Your bulb wattage will also depend on what kind of enclosure you have. If it's glass/plexiglass or any of the sides are covered you will have different results than someone with an all screen cage. My cages only have the service door and top screen open. Everything else is covered. I achieve ambient mid 70's that way.