Can anyone shed some LIGHT on this?

Can anyone shed some LIGHT on this?

Postby mailjvdb » Thu Aug 05, 2010 1:45 am

I wondered if some other lights out there might be efficient enough for D3 production in reptiles.

I've heard many people complaining about the lifespan of some bulbs sold for use with reptiles... Would any of the following bulbs be useful, as they have a fairly decent lifespan, say a good 10 - 14 months, before the spectrum gets drastically altered.

these bulbs are easily obtainable in 70w - 400w from places like builders and electrical stores, and the price is not to bad, initial setup is expensive though, but maintenance cheap.

Mercury vapour - Cr@p for plant growth, but apparently emits a decent amount of uvb.

High pressure sodium - Good/great for plant growth, fair amount UV, but most is absorbed by the outer bulb.

Metal Halide - Good/great for plant growth, more uv than high pressure sodium.

All these lights emit a decent amount of heat, and with a 70w you can feel a good amount of heat on the top of your hand held +- 15 - 20 cm beneath the light.

But i have no idea if it would be sufficient for reptiles. Whats your educated guesses on this? I've searched the net in vain with little to no answers. I recon it would work great with well-planted vivariums (the reason I'm interested in this), as the HPS and MH lights have deep-light-penetration, unlike fluorescent tubes, and most plants even flower under them, but how would it affect the reptiles in such a setup?
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Re: Can anyone shed some LIGHT on this?

Postby Silvrav » Thu Aug 05, 2010 7:39 am

mailjvdb, I can't see why not, and have to agree that over a long term, maintenance wise it will be a lot easier.

You have your heat, and you have your UV

Just take note, that the above ranges, although only 70w, does use a lot of electricity, although you also starting to get energy saver brands in these ranges.
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Re: Can anyone shed some LIGHT on this?

Postby Bushviper » Thu Aug 05, 2010 9:08 am

Many pet shops have UV meters which measure the amount of UV a light emits. There are various types of UV and you would have to make sure on which ones you want to check. If you can borrow one of these (I know Zoomed have a good meter) and try that on the bulbs you will know which ones are worth buying. Now to convince the pet shop owner and the guy at the hardware store to set up this experiment. The results will be interesting.
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Re: Can anyone shed some LIGHT on this?

Postby mailjvdb » Thu Aug 05, 2010 5:23 pm

Interesting subject indeed, and well worth investigating! I'll see what i can find, and then come back to the post. But as Silvrav said, the operating costs should be looked at, as they do use a bit more than average regarding electricity.

I agree with BV; in the end talk and paper is cheap, and this has to be tested. Then one has to weigh the cons and pros against each other and compare to normal reptile lighting. Maybe i can find one of those UV meters BV talked about, or even graphs or previous research by others.

If i find anything more on this, ill let you all know, just a bit busy at the moment with work since summer is FINALLY here (yeah), so it might take a while.

Later
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