UVB & heat for closed chamber

baldegale

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so, im in the process of planning a closed chamber build. i have a couple questions about the uvbs (as you can see by the title) so, i jave a bearded dragon aswell i use a T5HO 10.0 uvb bulb and was wondering if thats the same thing id use for my red foot? also, they have these things called t5 grow lights and i was wondering if theyre the same thing? they're entirely cheaper. would a 46" bulb fit in a 48" hood? im going to be building a 4x8ft enclosure and would i need two 4ft bulbs to run next to eachother or in a straight line? so now onto heat, i was planning on having one basking bulb on each side, the enclosure will be 30" tall. i have no idea how to rig this safely at all, also will i need more than one on each side? also, what type of bulbs should i use? i have about $500 to spend on this so give me any ideas. the tank it self is probably going to cost $200 without the lights or stand.
 

saginawhxc

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I have a 3x6 that is exactly 30" tall. I have dual CHE with one in the middle and one near the hide heating it perfectly to 82 degrees. I use no basking lamps, and have one single 18" uvb bulb over the far end over the food dish.

All of the lights are just screwed to the ceiling. For the CHE though I didn't use domes, but used porcelain lampholders mounted on octagon boxes and then wired up myself. Though for someone that wasn't comfortable doing their own wiring I would suggest driving hooks directly into the ceiling and then hanging brooder lamps directly from the hooks.

Personally I think two 4ft bulbs is way too much light for a redfoot.

Timer, thermostat, lamps, and bulbs should all cost less than $150 if you avoid pet shop stuff and purchase from home repair stores or online instead.

You do need the proper uvb bulb though. A grow light for plants is not the same thing and does not produce the essential uvb that out tortoises need.
 

naturalman91

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so, im in the process of planning a closed chamber build. i have a couple questions about the uvbs (as you can see by the title) so, i jave a bearded dragon aswell i use a T5HO 10.0 uvb bulb and was wondering if thats the same thing id use for my red foot? also, they have these things called t5 grow lights and i was wondering if theyre the same thing? they're entirely cheaper. would a 46" bulb fit in a 48" hood? im going to be building a 4x8ft enclosure and would i need two 4ft bulbs to run next to eachother or in a straight line? so now onto heat, i was planning on having one basking bulb on each side, the enclosure will be 30" tall. i have no idea how to rig this safely at all, also will i need more than one on each side? also, what type of bulbs should i use? i have about $500 to spend on this so give me any ideas. the tank it self is probably going to cost $200 without the lights or stand.


T5ho bulbs are good I prefer arcadia 12% myself but 10.0 is good to. And t5 grow lights are entirely different to uvb you need a bulb that specifically mentions uvb for a t5 fixture 48 inches and 46 inches are one in the same as long as it's t5

I think 2 bulbs is a overkill red foots aren't Sun worshippers like some other species are I use 1 4ft t5ho fixture in the middle of the enclosure kinda towards the back wall tho and 2 150w ChE on thermostat one che at each end and a basking bulb in the middle

Unlike bearded dragons red foots aren't found to extremely bright and harsh lighting

The fixtures are hung inside the enclosure with the cords going out a whole I drilled they hang on hooks. Let me know and I can take a picture so you can see if needed
 

baldegale

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T5ho bulbs are good I prefer arcadia 12% myself but 10.0 is good to. And t5 grow lights are entirely different to uvb you need a bulb that specifically mentions uvb for a t5 fixture 48 inches and 46 inches are one in the same as long as it's t5

I think 2 bulbs is a overkill red foots aren't Sun worshippers like some other species are I use 1 4ft t5ho fixture in the middle of the enclosure kinda towards the back wall tho and 2 150w ChE on thermostat one che at each end and a basking bulb in the middle

Unlike bearded dragons red foots aren't found to extremely bright and harsh lighting

The fixtures are hung inside the enclosure with the cords going out a whole I drilled they hang on hooks. Let me know and I can take a picture so you can see if needed
i feel like a complete dumby but what are CHE's? ive never heard of them before. and please take pictures when possible, because i understood when you told me that originally just didnt think they'd support it right. also, any suggestions on fixtures? cant find any at all. my whole tank cost with stand and everything but bedding and lights is about $260
 

naturalman91

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Here are the prices I paid for my fixtures and bulbs to give you a idea

CHE fixtures 15 dollars each or 30

CHE 20 each for 150w 40 dollars

35 for t5ho 4ft fixture

Arcadia 12% uvb was 23.99 plus 7.99 for shipping

And I use a house hold bulb and dome fixture I already had for basking light so comes up to 136.98 plus tax but if you already have fixtures it's not like you need new ones or CHE's either they last a long time
 

baldegale

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naturalman91

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so i could use a fixture like this? View attachment 201449
my biggest issue right now is still finding a fixture for the UVB, as simple as it may sound. can all the bulbs/CHE be ordered on amazon? obviously the household ones are able to

Yes a fixture like that but you can get them cheaper at a hardware store if you need them

And yes they could all be ordered off Amazon but might run a little more that way

I definitely got my t5 ho fixture off Amazon it was impossible to find locally any t5ho fixture should do for any t5 ho light granted they're the same size lol
 

baldegale

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Yes a fixture like that but you can get them cheaper at a hardware store if you need them

And yes they could all be ordered off Amazon but might run a little more that way

I definitely got my t5 ho fixture off Amazon it was impossible to find locally any t5ho fixture should do for any t5 ho light granted they're the same size lol
i couldnt find the arcadia on amazon but found it on another sight, ill look up the fixtures on amazon next. do you just have to drill through them or does it have predetermined spots to drill in to
 

naturalman91

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i couldnt find the arcadia on amazon but found it on another sight, ill look up the fixtures on amazon next. do you just have to drill through them or does it have predetermined spots to drill in to

Yea you won't find arcadia on Amazon buy you can find t5 10.0 there

Do you mean for my light cords to go through or the screws through the plywood to secure it to the frame? if you mean plywood to frame I just predrilled my holes before using screws so the wood wouldn't crack if you mean the hole for the cords I just drilled a 1.5 inch to 2 inch hole on the top and ran the cords out
 

baldegale

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Yea you won't find arcadia on Amazon buy you can find t5 10.0 there

Do you mean for my light cords to go through or the screws through the plywood to secure it to the frame? if you mean plywood to frame I just predrilled my holes before using screws so the wood wouldn't crack if you mean the hole for the cords I just drilled a 1.5 inch to 2 inch hole on the top and ran the cords out
i meant with the UVB fixture, cause i know the one for my beardie definitely doesnt have any predrilled holes to hang it from something. who knows im moving in a couple weeks into an even smaller room which makes things even more complicated because i cant start until then, it sucks
 

naturalman91

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i meant with the UVB fixture, cause i know the one for my beardie definitely doesnt have any predrilled holes to hang it from something. who knows im moving in a couple weeks into an even smaller room which makes things even more complicated because i cant start until then, it sucks

The t5ho fixture is used was meant as a grow light so it had hanging hooks just swapped the bulb for a reptile uvb one
 
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