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Post by jubjub2004 on Jan 12, 2005 23:28:49 GMT -8
I need to know exactly what is best for uva and where to get it. Dom recommended GE true lights but I cant find them. Is that just a regular GE soft white bulb?!?! Also looking for an alternative to those costly dome light fixtures to put those in. Thanks your all very helpful.
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Post by Merlin on Jan 13, 2005 4:38:03 GMT -8
If you are using a UVB bulb you are also supplying UVA. The UVB bulbs supply both.
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Post by Tesa on Jan 13, 2005 5:58:02 GMT -8
expensive domes?? I only pay 5 bucks at Walmart for mine.....?? (unless I'll be using more than a 100 watt bulb, in which case I use ceramic sockets)
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Post by jubjub2004 on Jan 13, 2005 6:35:43 GMT -8
Are you sure about the mega-ray giving off UVA? I need an alternative bulb because i dont want to leave them under the uvb for 12 hours. Thanks Tesa i'll look there if i can find a Walmart around here. Funny there isn't a Walmart here, it's not like i live in the middle of nowhere. I bought 2 at petco for 15$ each but there ceramic and for the megarays. I'll just need a cheap one for those other bulbs im trying to find
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Post by prism_wolf on Jan 13, 2005 7:09:24 GMT -8
UVA is visible light. It is the light we see from the sun, light bulbs...yada yada. With the MegaRay EBs, you can leave them under for 6 hours...I think Dom already told you this...so regular housebulbs will give you the continuation of the daylight needed for the photo periods.
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Post by IguanaKing on Jan 13, 2005 11:56:33 GMT -8
That's not quite true, V, unless you are talking about UVA being visible to igs. Its not visible to us. Jubjub, As long as your ig's habitat provides areas where he can get away from the MegaRay, he'll keep himself from being overexposed. I think its important to have his UVB source in his hot spot so his natural, thermoregulatory behavior will give him the right amount of UVB.
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Post by IguanaKing on Jan 13, 2005 20:09:31 GMT -8
Yup. On the subject of non-dietary needs, just try to mimic the sun, shade, and humidity as closely as you can to your ig's natural environment. All you have to manipulate after that is night and day, your ig will take care of the other details...if he's got a habitat of a sufficient size, there's no need to micromanage...an iguana knows. Iguanas didn't come this far with very little evolution without the ability to deal with their environment...as long as his basic needs are available to him...
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Post by prism_wolf on Jan 14, 2005 7:49:24 GMT -8
This is what I meant by that IK... UVA is the visible light which is thrown from bulbs and the sun which we can actually see. UVA plays an important role in the animals behavior. UVA light tells the animal when it is day, induces appetites, breeding behavior and other activities such as climbing, running, jumping and hunting.
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Post by IguanaKing on Jan 14, 2005 18:32:09 GMT -8
OK, but I'm still confused. Where have you read that we can see UVA? It may be something that effects our behavior, but we humans can't actually "see it". The sun does produce UVA, but most household bulbs don't even produce the full visible spectrum, let alone frequencies like UVA.
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Post by prism_wolf on Jan 16, 2005 7:21:40 GMT -8
UV-A is what makes the day bright. It is what we see shining from the light bulbs...this is considered "light we can see". It is what gives us our days...whether it be natural from the sun...or man-made from the bulbs. Hell...this can explain it SO much better...lol imagers.gsfc.nasa.gov/ems/visible.htmlBTW...this is a great site with easy to understand explanations... ;D. I like easy!
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Post by IguanaKing on Jan 16, 2005 8:14:04 GMT -8
V, the visible light is just the region between the lines on that diagram, it doesn't include UV frequencies. The sun and only a very few man-made bulbs are actually capable of producing UV frequencies. Most man-made bulbs don't even produce the full spectrum of visible light (red to violet). The "full spectrum" lights produce the full range of visible light, but still very little, useable UV of any kind. The human eye can only perceive light in the 400nm-700nm range. 700nm is red light, 400nm is Violet light, UV-A is 315-400nm, so its frequency is above what the human eye can detect. (The shorter the wavelength, the higher the frequency). Its true that it just touches the edge of what we are capable of seeing, but, as with any sensor, the response of our eyes to this range of frequencies looks a bit like a bell curve. The center of this curve (the highest point) is around 550nm, which is yellow light. This is why yellow is the most visible color to the human eye. On the other hand...remember how in war movies they have red lights on the battleships at night? That is because red is at the edge of our perception, it actually takes a much stronger red light to be seen by the human eye. Red light can't be seen as far away as yellow light of the same strength. It also causes less of an impact on the constriction of the iris, so it allows us to see, but we can easily look back into the darker areas and not have to wait for our irises to dilate again. The same would go for violet light. But, in this same situation, if the battleship were illuminated with a pure UV-A source, nobody would be able to see, except an iguana. Infrared is also shown on that diagram, to the left of the line, and we can't see that either. But...we can feel it in the form of heat on our skin. The names given to the upper and lower ends of the light spectrum are based on the visible light spectrum. The UV frequencies, including UV-A, produce beneficial chemical reactions in our skin cells which travel to the rest of our body, just like they do in igs. Sometimes, however, these rays can be of sufficient strength to cause harmful reactions known as photoionization which actually alters the genetic composition of a cell and can cause it to become cancerous. Sorry to go off on a wild tangent like that, but the EM spectrum is pretty much my life. I deal with ATC radar transponders and weather radars every day. The transponders are low power (100-500 watts), so I can be near their antennas and not be harmed. Weather radars, on the other hand, are much higher power (sometimes higher than 1 MegaWatt ), and the worst part is that their transmitter frequency is of the same wavelength as the width of the capillaries in the human retina. Standing in front of one of these, while its radiating, would cause a person to go blind very quickly even though there is no light emitted. DOH!!! Another wild tangent. Sorry everybody. ;D The NASA article you linked is absolutely correct, but I think you might have misunderstood it. Here's the next page from what you linked. It explains the UV frequencies. imagers.gsfc.nasa.gov/ems/uv.html
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Post by prism_wolf on Jan 16, 2005 8:43:44 GMT -8
LOL...no tangent...just something you know about very well... ;D. I had read the next page. I am going to have to say the reference I had gotten so long ago was apparently very wrong. I didn't do what I do for so many other things in general...do more research. I love the pictures they use for each of the different parts of the spectrum. They're so dramatic. Thanks, IK! I will have to change a few things in my database... .
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Post by IguanaKing on Jan 16, 2005 8:54:47 GMT -8
No problem, V. ;D Heh...you know...this discussion actually led me to figuring out why my igs get so freaked out by me when I'm siiting in front of my window during the day. I have a standard set of blinds in each window. I think the UV-A from the sunlight that shines through between the slats probably casts some pretty wicked stripes on my face which only my igs can see. This explains why they only are freaked out by me during the day, but after the sun goes down they're fine. Heh...sometimes they get so freaked out that I have to pick them up and take them into the hallway so they can see its just daddy and he doesn't have his face painted with stripes like a scary monster that eats iguanas. ;D
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Post by jubjub2004 on Jan 16, 2005 9:25:36 GMT -8
Have you looked at this chart, russiantortoise.org/uvb.htm it lists the UV output of various bulbs. Some of the murcury vapor bulbs emitt a much greater amount of UVA than UVB. Perhaps one of these would be a good addition to the M.R. The mega-ray does not emitt any UVA according to this or it's just not listed. So getting back to the original post. What do you think is the best bulb out there for UVA or full spectrum? How much UVA does the GE true light emitt, and where do I find this bulb?
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Post by IguanaKing on Jan 16, 2005 9:43:35 GMT -8
Jubjub,
My second-to-last post actually should give an idea as to the UV-A output of the MegaRay. The MegaRay also produces light you can actually see, yet, it doesn't produce X-rays. This means that its center frequency is ACTUALLY, most-likely somewhere in the UV-A range, even though it produces high levels of UV-B. The MegaRay has not been tested for UV-A output, that's why there's no data, but we can deduce that it produces plenty of UV-A. Remember the bell curve...its highly likely that the MegaRay produces more UV-A than ANY of those other bulbs. But...its also important to remember that UV output of any frequency depends on the composition of the glass in the bulb/tube...AND...the reflector placed behind it. UV-A wasn't measured with the MegaRay...YET...it doesn't mean that it doesn't produce it. UV-B is just considered to be more critical to the physical health of an ig, so UV-A hasn't been tested yet. I'll e-mail BobMac and see if he has any data on the subject.
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