Lights for Beardies

[Ed the Head]

Does anyone know about this- It was recommended to me by the Pet Shop to put in a UVB ReptiGlo 10.0 tube 6 months ago- know i have reading on International herp forums that these REPTIGLO 10.0 tubes are very bad for your Beardie- They recommend ReptiGlo 8.0 or Reptisun 10- see some of their letters below:

Hello!

Thank you Sarah for posting that information. I will elaborate on it if that is ok.
As for anyone testing the bulbs, yes! Frances Baines is currently working with Exo terra & they have sent her some bulbs to be tested. I am not sure when the bulbs will be corrected, but, at least they are cooperating with the efforts to fix the problem. I would not purchase any upgrade from Exo terra until the testing is completed.
The Reptiglo 10 as well as the Zilla desert series T50 lights for starters were the worst ones, other than the compact Reptisun 10. The photo therapy phosphor which is the specific coating that was being used, was the incorrect mixture that was put onto the glass. It was lacking the protection that the normal coating usually put on. This was allowing the UVC emissions to penetrate through the glass. In some instances, they even used the incorrect glass which further complicated the problems. Also, the UVA emissions were lower in the Reptiglo 10 than the Reptiglo 8 as well, which is very hard on the eyes.
On top of everything else, since the photo therapy phosphor was being used, that was allowing a low wavelength of UVB to be emitted, which was borderline to UVC. That is a very poor UVB quality & dangerous not only on the eyes but for the overall general health & well being of your reptile. The wavelength that is required for D3 synthesis is 285 nanometers to 320 nanometers & those lights were producing some wavelengths under 285.
So, long term effects seen, other than health issues such as stunted growth, & eye problems would be metabolic bone disease because that directly affects the calcium absorption & the ability of D3 to be produced as well.

I hope that helps. Frances is working very hard to get Exo terra to comply. I do not think that they have gone as far as taking them off of the shelves, though I wish that they would.


Tracie

[Leos r gr8]

Thanks for this! I only use reptisun 10.0 in my beardies cages...I think its the best, no problems so far1
I wouldnt risk the reptiglo.

[Taryn7]

I did use a Repti Glo 10.. But when I heard this I switched to a Repti Sun 10 - about 5 months ago.. My 2 are doing very well with them

[Ed the Head]

5 months ago ! - It boggles the mind why the pet shops still sell them- i printed the comms about this and just faxed it to my local store-

I replaced mine last night with a Reptiglo 8.0- i hope thats better- cost me r280 !! for a 38cm - couldnt get any longer tubes

[Taryn7]

I have tried explaining to lots of people about the research done on Repti Glo 10.0's.. Everyones response is "I havent heard of there being any problems".. But that doesnt mean they dont exist.

Repti Glo 8.0's are fine.. But they are hard to come by.

[Ed the Head]

His cage is about 60 x 60 x 960 but the ReptiGlo 8.0 i found is only 38cm long so i hop thats long enough- I put it near his basking spot hoping that way it would be on him most of the time.

[Ed the Head]

BUMP * - this is important- please take note of this faulty tube

[Kthula]

Strange ,i have been using a reptiglo 10.0 in my beardie`s cage for about 6 months now without any hassles ,unless it causes problems over a long period of time

[Bushbaby]

Please dont bump topics.

[petboy]

As a petshop we have received no information in this regard from Hagen SA who are the Exo Terra agents here regarding the 10.0 bulbs - but i'll follow it up. The reason you will battle to get the 8.0's is that the 10.0's were brought out to replace them. The Reptisuns(i assume u are talking about the Zoomed ones) are quite a lot more pricey but should you require a shop like myself would be quite happy to order them in.

[Moreliahunter]

These globes radiate well within the limits that reptiles can tolerate. You have a faulty globe. I have been using them for years and no problem. You also have to replace them within 6 to 12 months as the uvb radiation decreases over its lifetime.

[Taryn7]

How can you be using the repti glo 10.0 for years - I dont even think the 10.0 has been around for more than a year..

There has been studies done on this globe.. If I can find the link.. I'll post it.

[Taryn7]

http://www.beardeddragon.org/bjive/view ... 34&t=68333

[Ed the Head]

Thanks for that Tracy- I have found this to be a serious topic of conversation on many forums internationally- Apparently Francis at ExoTerra is busy doing more research on it- Here below is what was also said- I am only trying to help, i do not proclaim to be an expert but couldnt just keep quiet after reading it frequently on many forums.

Again, you should listen to everything on these forums and then ultimately make your own decision. It seems its not ALL the bulbs but most that had a manufacturing defect.

Rather careful and change the globe than be stubborn and run the risk of hurting your dragon.

I am not sure if one is allowed to name the other forum links on here.

Hello!

Anyone who has used this bulb longer than a couple of weeks & their reptile has begun to show health problems, eye problems or weight loss does need to shut the light off immediately.
I recommend not putting in a UVB light for at least 1 week, maybe 2 weeks to allow the inflammation & irritation to recede. These lights are emitting dangerous levels of UVB, borderline UVC. My concerns are that there is no data so far that reports on long term effects of low levels of radiation on reptiles but we all know what it does to humans. So, my assumptions would be that their overall health would eventually suffer.
So it does take them some time to recover & start to become healthy again. So that is why Frances & I believe it best to allow a 1-2 week rest period from UVB exposure & then evalutate them after that time period.
I hope that the petstore will listen to you! So many of them will not. It makes me furious that they do not educate themselves on the products that they sell. Otherwise they wouldn’t sell that calcisand, either.

Tracie

I’ve seen alot of arguements lately regarding this bulb. I myself had this bulb on one of my dragons for roughly a month. During this time he had virtually no appetite, he kept his eyes closed and he was extremely lethargic. His temps were fine and he’d just been to the vet. I started researching his symptoms and it led me to a different BD forum. There had been several other cases like mine and they were all connected to this bulb (yes, I am talking about the tube). Around this time, we started having a large amount of people posting about symptoms their dragons had been displaying like mine did. They all had the Retiglo 10.0 tube bulb. We even had a thread regarding a beardie who eventually died from his symptoms. The coating on this bulb is letting too much UVC through which is harmful to beardie’s. When I pinpointed the bulb as the problem, I turned it off for a few days and replaced it with the Reptisun 10.0 tube. He was back to his normal self within a week. In my opinion, the only safe UVB’s are MVB’s, Retiglo 8.0, and the Reptisun 10.0 tubes. I hope this helped, Sarah.

[Ed the Head]

Thanks Taryn, not Tracy, sorry- thats what happend when you try and surf Reptile sites at work instead of working LOL!