T5 HO lighting

[CHIMP]

So Its been recommended to me that I get T5 HO lights and that is great, waiting for them to be shipped to me now, but I was curious If anyone knew how long the bulbs are good for? Should I treat them like my old UVB bulbs and replace every 6 months. (Not that I do, I just re-purpose them around the house, give them to my corn snakes, etc...).

 

[JoXie411]

Yes every 6 months you should replace it. Also a uv reader would help you have a better idea when to change the bulb but they are extremely expensive

 

[nightanole]

Without a meter you want to replace them yearly. I can eek out 24-36 months out of arcadias, but i have a UVI meter.

The bulbs are not that expensive, so if your cham has 6 years to live, does it really matter if you spend an extra $50 on bulbs and replace them every 9 months vs 18 months?

I have over 4 hoods running, so my meter paid for itself in about 4 years.

The older T8's were juuuuuuuust good enough out of the box, so once they where six months old or so, they were not qqqqqqqquiet good enough depending on the cage setup, and were down by half output by the 1 year mark.

 

[CamoChameleonsHuman]

Yes every 6 months you should replace it. Also a uv reader would help you have a better idea when to change the bulb but they are extremely expensive

Unless you buy from Arcadia which last 9-12 months.

 

[CHIMP]

Without a meter you want to replace them yearly. I can eek out 24-36 months out of arcadias, but i have a UVI meter.

The bulbs are not that expensive, so if your cham has 6 years to live, does it really matter if you spend an extra $50 on bulbs and replace them every 9 months vs 18 months?

I have over 4 hoods running, so my meter paid for itself in about 4 years.

The older T8's were juuuuuuuust good enough out of the box, so once they where six months old or so, they were not qqqqqqqquiet good enough depending on the cage setup, and were down by half output by the 1 year mark.

Yes I was looking at the meters but, That's a bit much, I would need 4 of them. I just can not jump off that ledge for at least a year or two. I have alot of other things I need to tend to first, We are in process of building our dream home while paying two mortgages, Three car payments, 40' RV, and a 22' bay boat, so money is somewhat tight. (My wallet had a stroke just saying that lol.)

I will look into Arcadia for my bulbs!

 

[CHIMP]

Actually I was just looking at the meters again. Are they portable? looks like I could get away with just 1? If that is the case I can swing for that no problem.

 

[CamoChameleonsHuman]

Actually I was just looking at the meters again. Are they portable? looks like I could get away with just 1? If that is the case I can swing for that no problem.

Handheld even.

 

[CHIMP]

oh, bless! I was looking at 1 for $200. I will toss it in the cart. I was thinking it was going to be $800-$1000 for 4 of them. I am like oh lord no!

 

[CHIMP]

https://www.amazon.com/Solarmeter-M...v+meter&qid=1563307572&s=gateway&sr=8-1-fkmr1

 

[nightanole]

oh, bless! I was looking at 1 for $200. I will toss it in the cart. I was thinking it was going to be $800-$1000 for 4 of them. I am like oh lord no!

The solarmeter 6.5 is like $200-250 depending on how many pictures of lizards are on the box.

Its momentary meter. You hold down the button, and it shows a live reading. So you just hold it around where the cham is, and you will get a reading.

 

[CHIMP]

just sent a link amazon has them on sale for $186. with prime membership