Heating/lighting help

[Dessy]

Hello everyone! There is so much information about bulbs, wattages, distances from ground, types of bulbs, ect. It's kind of confusing for a beginner like me! So far Leos enclosure is nice with plants, a humidifier,orchid bark substrate. Buuuut im looking for new bulbs! I currently have an awful coil bulb (13W) (pictures attached) and im looking to replace it with this bulb that's being shipped to me. I also have a 100 w CHE which i feel does not do a good job of heating the enclosure.

The enclosure is 38 inches long and 24 inches wide. The height is 16 inches but leo is only about three inches away from his CHE. Pictures of my light fixtures are attached. I have also included an image of the bulb i ordered online.

Is the new bulb okay? Temps are always in 82-86 degrees but i cant get his basking spot higher than that, so i may order a higher wattage CHE. Thanks in advance!

 

[Dessy]

*I dont worry too much about his uva/uvb bulb now because the weather is still nice and i take him out for a hr-2hr walk everyday

 

[SarahChelonoidis]

3 inches seems incredibly close to a 100 W CHE. How hot is it at carapace height?

 

[Dessy]

The temp is 91.5

 

[Dessy]

It got up to 95 my temperate reader is slow

 

[SarahChelonoidis]

What are you using to measure temperatures? I would be concerned you're under estimating how hot it is until that bulb, especially if ambient enclosure temperatures are in the 80s.

CHEs aren't for basking, they are more for night heat. You want a bulb that makes light (visible and uva and uvb) and heat for day. Mercury vapour bulbs can provide this.

 

[Dessy]

Okay i will invest in a mercury vapor bulb. I use a digital thermo hygro thing i picked up at bed bath and beyond

 

[Tom]

Please read this for an explanation of what bulbs to use and why:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/

These might help too:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/