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What Size Megaray Bulb for 36x18x18?

J

Johnstud56

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I bought the Powersun 100watt doesnt reach more then 92... Im worried the 100 watt wont get the basking spot to at least 100.... whats everyone elses temps and wattage with this bulb?
 
You'll want to watch out if you're thinking about purchasing from ReptileUV and you can check the BOI for more details on that.

We currently use around 6 PowerSun 100 Watt bulbs on various bearded dragon cages and we adjust the height to get the basking temps where we want. We use a SolarMeter to test the UV output and all of ours are putting out a safe amount of UVB even when moved closer to get the correct basking temps. I'm not saying there aren't PowerSun 100 Watt bulbs out there that could put out too much UVB if moved closer, but we haven't come across any that we felt put out too much UVB at a distance required to keep the basking spot at 105 - 110.

I guess it would be tougher if you're not able to adjust the height of your bulbs like we're able to.
 
Well I have a lamp stand... the tanks 18" high and at that point only allows me to get the tank to 92 at hottest... I need around 105... How high can you place the Powersun 160 and still get beneficial UVB? I know the 160s gonna run hot if I put it to close. The 100 watt as close to the screen about 12 inches away.
 
u have issues getting that tank hot?must be cold where you are huh,i have my setup in a basement and a 45 watt keeps my 4x2x18 hot lol.
 
I would probably try raising the basking platform.

In our case we sometimes remove the screen top and lower the lights into the cages, but we have no other animals that would try to get into the cages so your situation might be different.

The UVB on the bulbs diminishes rapidly and 18" was too far away on all the PowerSun's we currently have and 12" is approx. the distance we keep them from our basking spots.
 
No... if your using a dimmer on the bulb it will shorten the life by up to 50%... Zoomed told me this directly. Im going to take the screen off tomorrow and lower the bulb into the tank and try that... im just worried he might climb the fake rock back ground in the Exo Terra
 
When we first bought our bulbs (8 total), they were putting out enough heat and UVB that we had them resting on top of our 50 gallon viv's which were 16" from the basking spot. At first we were pretty bummed when after a month the heat and UVB both had diminished in a pretty consistent manner. We put them closer and they have held steady for months now without diminishing further. We check the temps and UVB on the lights once a week. So in our case, we did nothing special to keep the heat where we wanted it. Our house is kept at a constant 74F year round and our viv's are open topped as we have removed the screens in most of them.

We adjust them based on temps and UVB and it worked well for our setup. There are many variables including ambient temps and ventilation so what works for us may not work for you.
 
Good luck with the height adjustment Billy. I don't know how your basking spot is setup but you might want to also consider just raising the basking spot if you think your dragon might escape. The PowerSun and Reptisun 10.0 tubes are the bulbs we use pretty much exclusively, although we've also raised a couple dragons with CFL's and have had no issues when used at a correct distance.
 
What are you using to measure the temps? Gaping while basking as you may already know occurs as a means to reduce a dragon's body temperature. Are you seeing your dragon gaping much while basking? If your dragon is gaping already while basking then your temps may already be decent.
 
For what it's worth, we were lucky enough or unlucky enough, however you put it to have a number of Repti-glo 10.0 coil bulbs around and we tested them. We had one old bulb that was putting out a crazy amount of UV radiation and what I mean by that is it was putting out more UV then our strongest MVB's we had on hand. That said, we've personally tested a number of the newer ones and they are generally pretty similar to a Reptisun 10.0 tube as far as UV output.

Last summer, we purchased two female dragons and one was raised under a PowerSun 100Watt MVB and the other was raised under a Repti-glo 10.0 CFL and an incandescent basking bulb. We had no issues with appetite or growth in either case.
 
Your house is too cold.

Billy,
If your temps aren't 100-105 on the hot end, it's probably that your house is too cold. You mentioned lower to mid 60's I believe. If you don't want to raise the house temps try insulating the back and sides of your tank with some kind of insulation found at homedepot maybe. Also, that fake rock in the back. If it's styrofoam you probably should remove it or chance melting it if it comes too close to the bulb.
Also you can fix the lighting so it's on one end of the tank. (fluorescent tube, kittycornered as best you can), and cover the remaining part of the lid with either paper or cardboard, or anything that'll keep the heat from escaping.
And that's if the heatlight is sitting directly on the lid and can be kept off the paper. You don't want the light fixtures over the paper.
If you have cats or any other loose creatures you'll need to make sure everything is secured properly to prevent fires. I live in RI and suffer from freezing winters and this works for me and my house temps are 74-76, much to my oil companies delight.:ack2:
At Petsmart they have some ceramic branches that are about the right height to get them closer. You should be about 10in away from the bulb.
Concerning the open mouth, that should only happen after he get's hot. If he does it all the time, and it's accompanied by any breathing sounds he could have caught a uri if he was too cold for too long.

Good luck!
 
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