# Lighting is confusing...



## agv0008 (Jul 11, 2012)

:huh:
Too much conflicting info on lighting. I don't want to buy a UV meter and start fussing over bulbs. I think I am going to line some mason jars with foil, go outside, and bottle my own sunshine. 

In all seriousness, I think I am going to just get a 100W powersun to start and just take my tegu outside alot. The Tucson sun probably works better than all those darn bulbs anyway. 

Will I will be ok with the powersun, D3 supplements, whole (bony) prey items, and plenty of outside time? I had problems with an iguana I had as a very young child, due to my ignorance of UVB lighting. It just has me worried a bit, I guess.


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## james.w (Jul 11, 2012)

The PowerSun will do just fine.


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## agv0008 (Jul 11, 2012)

Thanks. My local pet shop has a year guarantee on the bulbs they sell no questions asked. Seems worth it to get something they have and pay a little more, I think they are around 50 bucks.


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## james.w (Jul 11, 2012)

I agree, it makes it much easier when you can easily exchange a bulb if needed.


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## Thelegendofcharlie (Jul 12, 2012)

If you dont know already, UV production in any bulb declines in time. Do not assume the bulb is producing UV just because it "turns on". 
If you dont have a solarmeter a bulb cannot be trusted beyond six months.


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## Vince (Jul 12, 2012)

I personally use fluorecent tubes for my UVB, but if you can get them out in unfiltered natural sunlight on a near daily basis, that’s going to be worlds better than anything you can get from a bulb. Use the bulbs and change them regularly (about half the time suggested on the bulb directions since they tend to oversell the life span) for good measure, but those will be more of a supplement if they're getting natural sunlight often enough.


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## Rhetoric (Jul 12, 2012)

Powersun will be fine. I would suggest switching it after 6 months or so. I always date the bulb with a sharpie. I tried using tubes and an MVB but it didn't last too long. I have just been using an MVB and a regular bulb (for cooler end) for about a year and its been working just fine. Sunlight is the best but not everyone can have their tegus outside 24/7. During the warmer months we try to get Guru outside a few times a week even if its only for 10 minutes. Your tegu will be fine as long as you are replacing the bulb, keeping it a proper distance, feeding a proper diet and supplementing.


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## agv0008 (Jul 12, 2012)

It gets so hot here. Outdoor basking temps often go over 110 degrees. Would be a bit ironic if I had a reptile that couldn't go out because it was too hot. lol thanks!


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## james.w (Jul 12, 2012)

I can't keep anything outside in the summer.


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## laurarfl (Jul 12, 2012)

Most reptiles don't bask in the middle of the day because of the intensity. They are early morning and late afternoon baskers. The PowerSun will be fine, but I like to provide some natural sun whenever possible.


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## Neeko (Jul 13, 2012)

From what I've read, uvb is radiation from the sun that causes a reaction with skin to make vitamin d stick to your Bones or so... Why can't someone make a piece of metal with the same radiation as uvb so we can place it in an enclosure... Would make thing so much easier. I think I voiced this invention before.


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## Murkve (Jul 13, 2012)

Neeko said:


> From what I've read, uvb is radiation from the sun that causes a reaction with skin to make vitamin d stick to your Bones or so... Why can't someone make a piece of metal with the same radiation as uvb so we can place it in an enclosure... Would make thing so much easier. I think I voiced this invention before.



UV is just another type of light, just out of our visible spectrum. You know the old children's mnenomic: ROY G. BIV? That is the way to remember the order of the visible spectrum. That last color is violet. You know what comes after that? Ultra Violet, or UV.

While it is a type of light, and thus a type of radiation, what you are talking about is radioactive decay. Unfortunately, I do not know of any metal or substance that ONLY emits UV as a result of radioactive decay. UV might be emitted in tandem with other things, like Alpha Particles (Not too bad unless you eat the source), Beta Particles (Not too bad unless you eat the source), X-Rays (BAD), and Gamma Rays (VERY BAD). These things would be very bad not only for your reptile, but you. Likely doing one of three things:

1) Killing you.

2) Giving you cancer, thus killing you.

3) Turning you into the Hulk.

In short, "Radiation" just means energy that has been emitted from a source. Your computer monitor is emitting radiation right now in the form of visible light, and your radio in your car actually detects radiation in the form of radio waves. 

Your microwave actually gives off some comparatively low energy radiation. Plain old heat is more powerful than it. Microwaves are a form of light that vibrate at the resonant frequency of water molecules. (You know how if you jump on a bridge at just the right moments, it will "wave" higher and higher, that's resonant frequency in action) This basically gives the water molecules energy in a much quicker way. Again, it's not _more_ energy than plain old heating them, it's just more _efficient_.

Whoops. Sorry. It's summer, and being a Math Teacher some old habits die hard.

Education!


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## laurarfl (Jul 13, 2012)

UVB reacts with the skin to change 7-dehydrocholesterol into vitamin D3. The role of Vit D is actually to regulate the amounts of calcium and phosphorous in the body.

In a sense, someone has made that invention...the UVB light bulb 


haha, Murkve, I'm a science teacher/physiologist


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## Vince (Jul 13, 2012)

rhetoricx said:


> I tried using tubes and an MVB but it didn't last too long. I have just been using an MVB and a regular bulb (for cooler end) for about a year and its been working just fine.



That kind of funny because I recently tried both recently too, and ended up going back to the tubes.

Before I go any further, I want to state clearly that I'm not advocating one over the other. Setups are different and for some reason I don't think my enclosure has a good design for MVB's.

My using tubes in the enclosure was really a carryover from setting up our beardie's enclosure. My thinking there was that since the UVB from any bulb is less than what the sun puts out, having the tubes would be giving the beardie UVB whether they are in their basking spot or moved over on the cool side. I use the standard Zoo Med basking bulbs for the basking spot.

When I translated that over to the tegu's enclosure, that was before I knew that as often as not when the gu isn't basking, they're as likely to be in their burrow as they are to be just hanging out on the cool side. So the whole "always getting UVB when the lights are on" didn't play out the same as with the beardie.

Not long ago I thought it'd be a good idea to replace my basking light with a MVB and give the gu even more UVB while they're basking. Before this I had a fixed light fixture and used a variable voltage output with a probe and thermostat to keep the basking spot regulated at 110. So I did some tinkering to make an adjustable lighting fixture since you can't use variable voltage on the MVB.

So I buy Zoo Med's 160 watt MVB and put that in and set to trying to get everything adjusted for proper temps. The first thing I noticed was the UVB output from the MVB really wasn't any higher at close range than the dual tubes. It seemed to reach a little further than the tubes, but at the range I have things set to it was pretty much a wash. The thing that messed me up with using it though, was the MVB didn't focus the heat as well as the 150 watt basking light. I was having to adjust the MVB closer and closer to the basking spot while the temp gradient was getting smaller and smaller in the tank. So I ended up pulling the plug and going back to the original setup.

Like I said, I think I have an engineering issue concerning MVB's. :huh:


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## laurarfl (Jul 13, 2012)

That sounds right. The MVB doesn't get more intense, it reaches farther. The reason why MVB are often recommended is because owners like to place a UVB on top of the screen enclosure and 14" away. At that point and with a fine mesh barrier, the UVB is practically worthless. With a farther reach, stronger UVB output in a wider area, and providing heat, MVB becomes a more efficient choice for some. But in some cases, like yours, flourescents are better. I use both, depending on the enclosure and animal.


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## Murkve (Jul 13, 2012)

laurarfl said:


> UVB reacts with the skin to change 7-dehydrocholesterol into vitamin D3. The role of Vit D is actually to regulate the amounts of calcium and phosphorous in the body.
> 
> In a sense, someone has made that invention...the UVB light bulb
> 
> ...



Hah! I think we have something in common! I'm amazed that as a teacher, you have time for all those animals.


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## laurarfl (Jul 14, 2012)

I kind of work it in. I took time off from teaching, but this year I'm taking more on. I teach at a classical cottage school part-time. Middle School life science labs one day, 3/4 grade two days per week (lit, intro Latin, math, grammar, history, science). I also have two teenage daughters and a husband who help.


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## Murkve (Jul 14, 2012)

Ah! Nice!

I teach 9-12, with Algebra, Computer Programming, Digital Electronics, and Calculus. This is only my second year, so not too much experience yet.


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