UVB light

[MissMaisie]

Hi. I'm a fairly new chameleon owner, I have had my veiled cham Lulu for a few weeks now and she seems to be eating well. I got a tube UVB light, but it's way too long to put above the cage so I was wondering if it's okay for it to sit at the side of it like it is now in the picture? Im not entirely sure how close to the cage it should be. I'm also still trying to get some more branches to put in, it's been a bit tricky getting the right sizes online, but I seem to have found some now

 

[sharp229]

I wouldn't have it mounted on the side like that because it could damage his eyes over time. I would either mount it above the cage or get a smaller fixture. Usually a 2ft is best, because this is the size of an adult cage.

It shouldn't cause a problem on top of the cage, but he needs to be able to get to at least within 7" of the light since UVB doesn't travel far.

 

[Carlton]

Hi. I'm a fairly new chameleon owner, I have had my veiled cham Lulu for a few weeks now and she seems to be eating well. I got a tube UVB light, but it's way too long to put above the cage so I was wondering if it's okay for it to sit at the side of it like it is now in the picture? Im not entirely sure how close to the cage it should be. I'm also still trying to get some more branches to put in, it's been a bit tricky getting the right sizes online, but I seem to have found some now

No, it will be irritating to your cham and to anyone looking at the cage to place the light vertically on one side. If you can't get a shorter tube light it won't really cause any problems for it to hang over the cage top. UVB tube lights don't create a lot of heat so you can rest the fixture directly on the cage frame. Just don't let the bulb itself rest directly on the mesh...it might damage the coating on the bulb glass. You could put something small (like small plastic bottle caps) under the edges of the fixture to raise the bulb off the cage frame slightly.

 

[MissMaisie]

No, it will be irritating to your cham and to anyone looking at the cage to place the light vertically on one side. If you can't get a shorter tube light it won't really cause any problems for it to hang over the cage top. UVB tube lights don't create a lot of heat so you can rest the fixture directly on the cage frame. Just don't let the bulb itself rest directly on the mesh...it might damage the coating on the bulb glass. You could put something small (like small plastic bottle caps) under the edges of the fixture to raise the bulb off the cage frame slightly.

Okay, thanks, I will see what I can figure out and put it above the cage then.

 

[junglefries]

It can damage your eyes as well.

 

[Dexter13]

not to hijack a thread but I also had a uvb question. I got a 3-4 month old male Jackson about a week ago. He hasn't been using the basking spot I have set up and stays in the shadows under some of the live plants I have. Since he is always in the shade he gets nowhere close to the uvb light I have and he is completely covered from the uvb by the plants. I'm going to try and re-arrange where the basking spot is to give him more cover so he might be more willing to use it, but if he does not, is there anything else I can do so that he is getting the uvb he needs?

 

[kinyonga]

Dexter13..What's the temperature in the basking area? If it's too hot the chameleon will not go into the basking area.

 

[JamesBryan]

Which UVB light is it as well?

A 5.0 should be fine.

 

[Dexter13]

Around 80 degrees F it's a 60 watt bulb I us d to have a 40 watt but it only got up to around 74 degrees F. I'm going to try re arranging the plants to make the basking spot a little more hidden to see if that'll work. And the uvb is a reptisun 5.0

 

[JamesBryan]

Around 80 degrees F it's a 60 watt bulb I us d to have a 40 watt but it only got up to around 74 degrees F. I'm going to try re arranging the plants to make the basking spot a little more hidden to see if that'll work. And the uvb is a reptisun 5.0

75-80F is what you want for basking temps at that age. Try lowering the temp slightly if you're on a dimming thermostat or lower the basking branch if not.