T8 vs. t5

Pistachiochameleon

Pistachiochameleon

Established Member
I am switching to linear... besides the amount of electricity I’m burning is there any benefit to t5 vs t8? Is my Cham still getting all the benefits of a 10 UVB bulb? It’s a lot more convenient to go with a t8... but I want to get what’s best for Cham. Thanks
 
I run a T5 quad unit. With my solarmeter I am achieving a 3-4 UVI index at basking 7 inches below the screen. I am running a 12% Arcadia bulb, 1 plant pro bulb and 2 6500 daylight bulbs in mine.
 
Lets say you have a T8 10.0. It puts out 100 thingies per hour. You replace it when it drops to 50 thingies per hour.

Now lets switch to a T5 HO.

First things first, its double the watts per foot. So if you got the same formula 10.0, you are now up to 200 thingies per hour.
But wait there's more. The main reason to switch to T5 HO (or T5 normal in an office environment) is because they are 33% more efficient vs a T8(which is also why we switched from t12's to t8's in the 1980s).

So now we have double the wattage per foot, and 33% more light per watt. Now we are up to 266 thingies per hour. onto a chameleon that can technically run off of a T8 5.0 (so starts at 50 thingies per hour and replaced when it gets to 25 thingies) with a good vitamin D schedule.


So to sum it up, T8 Stick to 10.0/12%, and if you get a T5 HO, stick to 5.0/6%.

Or if you want to try it, wrap the T5 HO 10.0/12% with 1 layer of screen for the first 9-12 months, till its output is 100-133% of a true T5 HO 5.0/6%.
 
Beman said:
I run a T5 quad unit. With my solarmeter I am achieving a 3-4 UVI index at basking 7 inches below the screen. I am running a 12% Arcadia bulb, 1 plant pro bulb and 2 6500 daylight bulbs in mine.
Click to expand...

And to put that into perspective(and yes it looks like you get the same readings as me):

A panther needs 30-35 µW/cm² peak when the bulb is fresh, and should be changed at 15-20 µW/cm². Mind you, you can go higher as others have stated daylight is 300 µW/cm²

Now on to the scarry numbers:

Ohio august 23 2013 partly cloudy with sun peaking out behind cloud 11am: 3.0 UVI
Full sun 2pm 5.8 UVI
Full sun 2pm in the shade 1.5 UVI (measured under a few oak trees and bird garden shrubs)

42" LYR hood+ reflector no screen with 6% and 6500k 6 months old: 1.8 UVI @ 12" .7 UVI @ 24"

42" LYR hood+ refector no screen with 12% and 6500k 1 month old: 3.5 UVI at 12" 2.8 UVI @ 15" (beardy rock level)

With a 40 to 1 conversion for UVB µW/cm² to UVI, that would make the cham cage 72 UVB µW/cm²at basking and 28 UVB µW/cm²mid tank.

For the beardy that would be 112 UVB µW/cm² at basking rock.


ZooMed Reptisun 10.0 T8 tube, at 12 inches distance no screen (assume no reflector):
6.2 reading: 24 µW/cm².
6.5 reading: UV Index 0.7"
 
nightanole said:
And to put that into perspective(and yes it looks like you get the same readings as me):

A panther needs 30-35 µW/cm² peak when the bulb is fresh, and should be changed at 15-20 µW/cm². Mind you, you can go higher as others have stated daylight is 300 µW/cm²

Now on to the scarry numbers:

Ohio august 23 2013 partly cloudy with sun peaking out behind cloud 11am: 3.0 UVI
Full sun 2pm 5.8 UVI
Full sun 2pm in the shade 1.5 UVI (measured under a few oak trees and bird garden shrubs)

42" LYR hood+ reflector no screen with 6% and 6500k 6 months old: 1.8 UVI @ 12" .7 UVI @ 24"

42" LYR hood+ refector no screen with 12% and 6500k 1 month old: 3.5 UVI at 12" 2.8 UVI @ 15" (beardy rock level)

With a 40 to 1 conversion for UVB µW/cm² to UVI, that would make the cham cage 72 UVB µW/cm²at basking and 28 UVB µW/cm²mid tank.

For the beardy that would be 112 UVB µW/cm² at basking rock.


ZooMed Reptisun 10.0 T8 tube, at 12 inches distance no screen (assume no reflector):
6.2 reading: 24 µW/cm².
6.5 reading: UV Index 0.7"
Click to expand...
Just when I thought I was getting good with the lighting and knowing what UVI was you throw in more numbers and letters lol. I was quite amazed when I was testing the solarmeter the difference with UVI at different levels with a screen or without. I also tested the positioning in my quad system and dependent on placement it would actually lower the UVI level. I am guessing this is due to the other bulbs/ refelector. I would imagine absorbing or distorting the light as the best positioning I found was the outside edge of the quad system. :)
 
A16EB6C6-5C43-48CC-911A-89691D05BF96.jpeg
 
Little off topic, but I have a Mercury vapor bulb I got on Amazon for my panther(which is on a free range).... it's not too hot, but at about 3ft away the solarmeter reads around 6-8.0, at 12 inches it was something crazy like 20.0 lol.
 
jamest0o0 said:
Little off topic, but I have a Mercury vapor bulb I got on Amazon for my panther(which is on a free range).... it's not too hot, but at about 3ft away the solarmeter reads around 6-8.0, at 12 inches it was something crazy like 20.0 lol.
Click to expand...

Back in the 1990s before the starter/bulb combo came out, they used mercury vapor bulbs for emergency MBD treatment for large reptiles at zoos. They were more powerful than tanning lamps, 30min or something was equivalent to 12 hours basking in the sun.

6 at 3ft away seems seems right if its 150+ watts. That is simulating full sun in odds are a 18-24" square, perfect for iguanas. Seems perfect for a free range chameleon too, its like hes got his own little "open window" with full sun he can hang out at.
 
nightanole said:
Back in the 1990s before the starter/bulb combo came out, they used mercury vapor bulbs for emergency MBD treatment for large reptiles at zoos. They were more powerful than tanning lamps, 30min or something was equivalent to 12 hours basking in the sun.

6 at 3ft away seems seems right if its 150+ watts. That is simulating full sun in odds are a 18-24" square, perfect for iguanas. Seems perfect for a free range chameleon too, its like hes got his own little "open window" with full sun he can hang out at.
Click to expand...

Glad to hear this, I think the bulb is 100 watt, but there were 2 types to pick from and the one I got was the extra strength uvb I think. Underestimated how powerful it was lol.
 
Beman said:
I run a T5 quad unit. With my solarmeter I am achieving a 3-4 UVI index at basking 7 inches below the screen. I am running a 12% Arcadia bulb, 1 plant pro bulb and 2 6500 daylight bulbs in mine.
Click to expand...
Plant pro bulb ? Where you get that at you got a link
 
A few questions as I dial in my lights... I have a solarmeter 6.5r and I use a SolarGlo PT2334 - 80 watt 2-in-1 bulb. My solarmeter 6.5r reads around UVI 1.3-1.7 at his basking branch depending where I move the meter under the blulb's reach where it shines on the branch, and the temperature hovers around 84-85 degrees at the basking branch, which both look to be ideal ranges for the needs of a panther as it relates to heat and light.

1. How do I know if my lighting has the proper µW/cm² range mentioned in the above posts (30-35 µW/cm² ) for my male panther chameleon?
2. Vitamin D3 production happens in the 280-320 range, how can I tell my readings above are in this range? Is there a calculation I need to do based on the UVI reading from the solarmeter 6.5r?
 
nightanole said:
Back in the 1990s before the starter/bulb combo came out, they used mercury vapor bulbs for emergency MBD treatment for large reptiles at zoos. They were more powerful than tanning lamps, 30min or something was equivalent to 12 hours basking in the sun.

6 at 3ft away seems seems right if its 150+ watts. That is simulating full sun in odds are a 18-24" square, perfect for iguanas. Seems perfect for a free range chameleon too, its like hes got his own little "open window" with full sun he can hang out at.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I bought one when I first got into chams without knowing better. It now sits on a shelf in the garage until I get my free range together. It's a wonder I didn't cook the little guy.?
 
BrittBepler said:
A few questions as I dial in my lights... I have a solarmeter 6.5r and I use a SolarGlo PT2334 - 80 watt 2-in-1 bulb. My solarmeter 6.5r reads around UVI 1.3-1.7 at his basking branch depending where I move the meter under the blulb's reach where it shines on the branch, and the temperature hovers around 84-85 degrees at the basking branch, which both look to be ideal ranges for the needs of a panther as it relates to heat and light.

1. How do I know if my lighting has the proper µW/cm² range mentioned in the above posts (30-35 µW/cm² ) for my male panther chameleon?
2. Vitamin D3 production happens in the 280-320 range, how can I tell my readings above are in this range? Is there a calculation I need to do based on the UVI reading from the solarmeter 6.5r?
Click to expand...

You will get a lot of back and forth on this...

But boiled down 30-35 µW/cm² is about 1 UVI depending on the time of day and season, some use 40:1 conversion, but they can not really be "converted".

So the pre T5HO recommendation is 1 UVI at the cham hang out zone (and can not get closer than 3 UVI) with D3 supplements once every 2 weeks. This "formula" has worked since the 1990's in zoos.

The new think is to use a T5HO with a UVI goal of around 3, and little to none D3 supplements. The premise is that D3 supplement is bad and its better to do 100% with light.

You have to choose which camp to go with. You can not mix them. If you do a high UVI and supplement you will get edema. If you go low UVI and dont supplement, you run the risk of MBD.


I posted my setup " 42" LYR hood+ reflector no screen with 6% and 6500k 6 months old: 1.8 UVI @ 12" .7 UVI @ 24" " and i supplement with ultra low dose sticky tongue farms indoor formula.
 
nightanole said:
You will get a lot of back and forth on this...

But boiled down 30-35 µW/cm² is about 1 UVI depending on the time of day and season, some use 40:1 conversion, but they can not really be "converted".

So the pre T5HO recommendation is 1 UVI at the cham hang out zone (and can not get closer than 3 UVI) with D3 supplements once every 2 weeks. This "formula" has worked since the 1990's in zoos.

The new think is to use a T5HO with a UVI goal of around 3, and little to none D3 supplements. The premise is that D3 supplement is bad and its better to do 100% with light.

You have to choose which camp to go with. You can not mix them. If you do a high UVI and supplement you will get edema. If you go low UVI and dont supplement, you run the risk of MBD.


I posted my setup " 42" LYR hood+ reflector no screen with 6% and 6500k 6 months old: 1.8 UVI @ 12" .7 UVI @ 24" " and i supplement with ultra low dose sticky tongue farms indoor formula.
Click to expand...
This was super helpful, thank you! The above is for his temporary home while he's with me in Maine for a month and had to improvise how to replicate his permanent setup but also fit in a car (see here if you want to see my McGuyver attempt at a temp cage): https://www.chameleonforums.com/thr...-basking-uvb-bulbs.175836/page-3#post-1577055

In his permanent setup the UVI at basking branch is around 2.4 UVI and I give him calcium without D3 6 days week, then once with D3, then back to no D3 for six days then 7th day vitamins only. Think edema might happen with this setup?
 
BrittBepler said:
This was super helpful, thank you! The above is for his temporary home while he's with me in Maine for a month and had to improvise how to replicate his permanent setup but also fit in a car (see here if you want to see my McGuyver attempt at a temp cage): https://www.chameleonforums.com/thr...-basking-uvb-bulbs.175836/page-3#post-1577055

In his permanent setup the UVI at basking branch is around 2.4 UVI and I give him calcium without D3 6 days week, then once with D3, then back to no D3 for six days then 7th day vitamins only. Think edema might happen with this setup?
Click to expand...

D3 Dosages of popular supplements:

RepCal D3+ 400,000 IU/kg
Flukers Reptacalcium 100,000 IU/lb
Exoterra 14,740 IU/lb
ZooMed ReptiCalcium 22,907 IU/kg
Mineral -indoor 2000ui per kg
Repashy calcium plus LoD 8,000 IU/lb or 20,000 ui/kg



You can search "edema" on this forum, and you will find the most popular combo to get edema is LoD every 2 weeks, with a UVI above 2.
 
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