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Post by reptymom on Apr 14, 2006 17:01:27 GMT -8
Okay so I have two reptisun 8.0 UVB they are 18 inches long, will these be sufficient for a baby ig?
Also if I have a small outdoor enclosure, how much sun daily would be sufficient in summer (would he have to be outside all day everyday or for just a few hours daily)and would I still need to use the reptisuns inside or could I save them for winter only use? Thanks all...
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Post by Merlin on Apr 14, 2006 17:32:01 GMT -8
IF you are using a screen cage with at least an 1/8 inch opening in the squares! Puttng a glass cage in the sun is a death warrant for the ig. Gets too hot!
If the ig gets 3-4 hours of natural sunshine a day it will be sufficient. That will still be far more than the best flourescents can put out. Make sure there is a shady place for him to retreat to to cool off so he doesn't overheat.
48 inch bulbs would be better, since you are talking about a 48 inch long tank, this will light up the entire enclosure. The 48 inchers will also be putting out more and stronger UVB than the 18s due to the fact that the highest amount of light comes from the center areas of the tube, dropping of as it gets closer to the end. Therefore longer tube equals more strong light producing area.
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Post by IguanaKing on Apr 14, 2006 18:02:18 GMT -8
As Merlin said, a screen cage is fine outdoors, but do not use a glass enclosure. Glass, unfortunately, actually magnifies the most harmful wavelength to an exothermic creature, the IR band (heat). It also almost completely negates UVB.
As for your lamps, make sure you follow manufacturer guidelines for their minimum and maximum distance from your ig. Up until recently, the general rule was 6 to 8 inches from a 48" tube. But now, there is technology available that makes those short distances actually harmful for an ig. These newer tubes also change very little in their output from end to end. I don't have any experience with the ReptiSun 8.0, so just be sure to follow manufacturer recommendations. In the wild, an ig is usually exposed to levels between 300-400uW of UVB, but that is only for a couple of hours, and the IR (heat) actually forces them to move into and out of the sun on fairly short cycles of as little as 20 minutes. So, provide good heat and UVB in the same spot, and provide your ig with the opportunity to seek shelter from both at the same time.
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Post by Patrick on Apr 15, 2006 5:54:34 GMT -8
Hi IguanaKing
What UVB lamps are you referring to? Mega Ray’s, Active UV’s or the Reptsins, Iguana Lamps or the Compacts, I would say any where from 6 to 12 inches for tubes and that is if you have 2 tubes. Mega Ray’s depending on watch one you are using 12” min.
Power Suns say 6 ft. and I know for a fact that is not right! I have seen a lizard raised on that and the person followed the manufactures recommendations and it ended up with a calcium deficiency.
But for Tubes that Reptymom is using, I would say anywhere from 6 to 12 inches Max. Any further then that and your lizard is not getting the recommended UVB for the day that it needs to produce the D3 that it needs.
You have to remember that a manufacture will never be able to reproduce what the sun puts out no matter what.
Plus if you do not have a meter you will never know that the tube is putting out.
I am Sorry but I have to disagree with you on the distance for the UVB tubes for iguanas.
Hi Reptymom
If your going to take your iggy outside for a couple of hours (2 to 3 hours) a day the UVB from the sun should provide enough UV for the day and the bulbs could be saved for wintertime, that is if you take your iggy out everyday!
But never heard of the 8.0 Reptsins? I have heard of the 8.0 Repti Glo’s That Exo Terra puts out.
Patrick
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Post by MAR on Apr 15, 2006 6:28:40 GMT -8
I've heard as low as 45 minutes of noon day sun in the summer is enough if supplied everyday. Good rule of thumb is an outdoor cage 2x the size of a suitable indoor cage. Half the cage shaded and half in the sun. Keeping a large pool of water in the bottom is a good idea also -- this can be as simple as a tarp lineing a hole/hollowed area and filled with water.
When giving distances for the lights you need to know what bulb is being used as we all know all bulbs are not equal.
Personally if I were going to buy tubes I would opt for no less than 36" long and use a double tube fixture. The price difference between the 48" and the 24" long tubes is small and the fixture is more or less a one time cost. Like with cages, why buy one fixture now knowing you will have to buy another later?
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Post by IguanaKing on Apr 15, 2006 11:25:39 GMT -8
Patrick, I am am using UVB Mystics from Big Apple Herpetological...here's a link to my research thread... tesa.proboards24.com/index.cgi?board=light&action=display&thread=1130006775It is true...these lamps at 6 to 8 inches will do your ig serious harm. They have tested at no less than 599uW at 6", and that's bad news for anyone who is that close for much more than a few minutes. BTW...I am using a SolarMeter 6.2 daily. I am currently reading 112 uW at 18" with 6-month-old lamps. With them, my readings don't vary appreciably from end to end on the tube....they vary most when deviated from the radial center between the two. My original point was to warn all users of UVB producers to follow manufacturer recommendations. BTW...PowerSun states that their bulbs project useable UVB up to 6 feet...that is a maximum distance, not a minimum. The minimum distance is what can kill an iguana in only days if one doesn't follow manufacturer guidelines about the minimum distance. ;D
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Post by reptymom on Apr 15, 2006 14:55:38 GMT -8
I might have misread it. I am using the flourescent tubes so it must be reptiglo..I had a Powersun once and it lasted 3weeks and burned out.I wont buy that brand again.And no I didnt get my money back I lost the guarentee and bought it online....Ive read that mercury vapor bulbs can actually be harmful anyway is this true? Also I couldnt at this point use a 48inch tube cause the cage is not quite 48inches(remember I made it so nothing is exact)..But with a fixture it would never fit..
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Post by IguanaKing on Apr 15, 2006 16:37:49 GMT -8
You have read fairly out-dated info that Mercury vapor bulbs are harmful to igs. This is no longer true of some of them...and the MegaRay is proven to be one of the safest. However, its surface temps get high enough to be dangerous, so it should ONLY be used when it can be mounted in a secure spot away from the possibility of interation between it and your ig. It should be regarded in the same manner in which you treat your heat lamps. If you can provide that, then the MegaRay is a proven, excellent way to go
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Post by Patrick on Apr 16, 2006 4:47:37 GMT -8
Hi IguanaKing
Yes I have read the Thread and the Bulbs you are using and you are right with that type of Bulb, But for the Reti Glo 8.0 5.0 Reptsin 5.0 or Iguana light 5.0 fluorescents I would say 6 to 8â€s, 12†max. With little UVB being produced. I also have a 6.2-meter and I have had 5.0 bulbs and have watched their UVB output go down at 12†away in a matter of 6 months.
MVB can be harmful if set to close that is true also, but read what you typed and read what I typed because I was even wrong on the power suns, it does state in the instructions min 12†with a Cooler area away from the Bulb an min. of 24†Zoomed must of revamped there instructions. It doesn’t even say 6 ft anymore, but it use to. So with the technology changes so will the manufactures instructions. But I would not place a power sun 12†away in less I want a fried lizard. LOL!
The point is with out a meter and a temp gun it is hard to adjust a MVB in less you have use the bulb for a long time and no where your reptile is comfortable at.
Reptile will regulate there know UV I have watch that with my know reptiles they will move in to the UV and Out as they need to for UV.
My point is for most and I Repeat Most Fluorescent Bulbs like Reptymon is using I would have to say 6 to 8†the Max. 12†away from the Lizards Body. Not the 12†min that the Manufacture recommends for though bulbs.
And I do agree with the Mega Ray they are a Really good Bulb and I use them for my own reptiles, they are one of the better bulbs out there to use. But I do not want to take away from the people that still use the 10.0 and the 5.0 or the Repti Glo 8.0 lamps they are also good bulbs if place right 6 to 8â€s away 12†max.
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Post by IguanaKing on Apr 16, 2006 7:47:53 GMT -8
Roger that, Patrick. ;D I just wanted to make sure that people are using their specific lamps properly since conventional wisdom is quickly being overtaken by new technology. There's a thread here somewhere about someone who was placing her animals about 6 inches away from Mystics. As you might guess...the result was not good. People have also attempted to use them for home tanning...again...HORRIBLE results.
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Post by Merlin on Apr 16, 2006 10:49:01 GMT -8
Look on the end of the tube. there should be a brand name. I suspect it is a reptiglo. I don't beleive the reptisun makes an 8.0
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Post by Marie on Apr 16, 2006 13:20:38 GMT -8
Hey IK,
The thing is sometimes the manufacture's recommendations are just as incorrect and dangerous. When T-Rex changed their Active UV Heat and started using the Westron Lighting builb with MacCargar's design, T-Rex did not change their packaging/instructions/recommendations. So their instructions still gave 6" as a minimum. When UV Guide UK tested one they found readings close to ReptileUV of course given they were the same design. **Distances less than** 10” gave readings higher than those found in nature (over 500uW/cm²) suggesting that a minimum recommended distance of 12”, as stated for the ReptileUV Mega-Ray lamps was more in line. Someone at another message board asked if that bulb was good. Given it is MacCargar's design I told him yes. Well it came out that he had it at 6". So I let him know it may be too close and gave him the link to the UV Guide. He also paid way too much--$75 (could of gotten the same bulb at Reptile UV for $39.95). So following manufactures recommendations are not always wiser either. It is places like UV Guide UK that you can get good objective and up to date information on many bulbs in one place. That is one of the reason I mentioned letting them test the Mystic bulbs you are using.
**Distances less than**added later
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Post by IguanaKing on Apr 16, 2006 13:51:31 GMT -8
I agree that it happens, Marie, but nobody should EVER give generalized advice about minimum distance over the internet if it is a bulb they have not used themselves. Manufacturer recommendations may also be incorrect and dangerous, but I think we agree that conventional wisdom of 6" to 8" is not always the best course to take. I understand your suggestion of letting UV Guide UK test the Mystics...so what is stopping them? Like I said before, I'm just really nothing more than the average consumer...I can't force them to test a lamp.
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Post by Marie on Apr 16, 2006 14:25:35 GMT -8
Sorry if it sounded like i was criticizing you for not being able to donate the bulb. I didn't mean it that way at all.
A lot of bulbs available here are not available there. They tested all the ones that they knew were available there and the ones people sent to them. And for them to buy bulbs from other countries they need to go through customs and pay import taxes. The people that have sent bulbs to them do pay high postage but given it is a "gift" the import taxes don't apply (I believe). I bought a EB kit for a friend in Canada and because I bought it and was giving it to her, she did not get hit with the import/custom taxes that can be more than the price of what they are getting. It could be similiar for UK.
Really what would be best is to get a meter like the Solarmeter 6.2 to know if your animal is getting the right UVB. Which they are pricey but have dropped in price. In my opinion they will pay for themselves in a short time though. Replacing bulbs before they have decayed and not replacing them when they have decayed (or are duds) is very expensive. A meter can save money in bulbs and vet bills.
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Post by IguanaKing on Apr 16, 2006 14:37:09 GMT -8
Yup...a good meter saves you from all kinds of headaches. No problem with your suggestion of donating the lamps, I didn't really take it as criticism. ;D Just thought there was a miscommunication...happens all the time on the internet. I think if they are sent via USPS, you really don't even have to worry about customs fees.
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