Help picking Mercury vapor bulb!

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mckenzieg

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Hi there!

I JUST posted this question elsewhere, but I need to know ASAP what kind of mercury vapor bulb to get my 10 month old sulcata who is not warm enough and is not eating. Please help if you can recommend a type or website to buy from. It's not showing up on Petsmart's page, but I've heard they have them but they are way over priced. Thoughts?

How do you feel about this one?: http://www.bigappleherp.com/Exo-Terra-So...b-125-Watt

or

http://www.bigappleherp.com/Zoo-Med-Powe...ategory=20

or

http://www.bigappleherp.com/Sun-Force-Me...ategory=20

MANY great thanks!
 

coreyc

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Hi I use a power sun an like it but I thinking about switching to sunforce I read it produces twice the uvb I have do a little more research on them
 

mckenzieg

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i already have a UVB so I'm curious if another lamp plus that wouldn't suffice?

Thanks for your reply, Corey!
 

DeanS

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Go on ebay and grab a 100 watt Powersun by Zoo Med...you can get one for less than $50 shipped...that's way less than you'd pay in the store...plus they provide UVA and UVB.
 

Seiryu

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Did you watch the little videos for each of the 3 bulbs bigappleherp sells?

I just did and some very interesting stuff.

Average micro-watts in the sun is about 150 mW/cm2

Note: These numbers are WITHOUT it going through a screen. Divide the numbers by 2 and that is what you'll get if your bulb is sitting on a screen.

Solar Glo - 100-110 uW/cm2 at 12" and 40-50 at 18"

PowerSun - 120 uW/cm2 at 12"

Sun Force - 225 uW/cm2 at 12" and 100 at 18"

MegaRay - 150-200 uW/cm2 at 12"

Note about MegaRay: This is no longer accurate as they just recently changed their bulbs. I just posted it so people can compare the outputs.

I know a lot of the Mercury Vapor Bulbs say they last a year, but they really don't. The UVB output is considerably less after 6 months of use.
 
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Maggie Cummings

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If you already have a UVB bulb and are just looking for something to warm up the situation why don't you just use a regular 100 watt incandescent bulb? That's just a regular house bulb. I use them in several habitats and they get pretty hot and really do the job and they just cost a couple of dollars for a 4 pack...
 

Kristina

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I suggested the MVB bulb both because her temps are WAY too low and I felt that the UV bulb she already has is not sufficient. We are talking about a lethargic baby that won't eat. Changes need to be made.
 
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Maggie Cummings

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kyryah said:
I suggested the MVB bulb both because her temps are WAY too low and I felt that the UV bulb she already has is not sufficient. We are talking about a lethargic baby that won't eat. Changes need to be made.

Yes, I know Kristina, but I recommended what *I* would do. She already has a UVB light on him, all he needed was something to warm him up, correct? I use incandescent bulbs in several habitats and they warm them up decently. What do you think that a MVB bulb is going to do differently?
 

Kristina

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Provide much more usable UV than her tube UV light.

I use incandescent bulbs also for heat only, but I don't think the UV in this case is sufficient.
 
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Maggie Cummings

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kyryah said:
Provide much more usable UV than her tube UV light.

I use incandescent bulbs also for heat only, but I don't think the UV in this case is sufficient.

So she needs something more than just heat then. I was the first person to say that he was too cold. She said she had a tube 10.0 bulb so I felt he just needed something to warm him up. He probably needs a calcium supplement also.
 

mckenzieg

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Thank you all for this. The only mercury vapor bulb that I could find in town yesterday is a 160 watt. SHOULD I USE THIS FOR A FEW DAYS BUT ORDER SOMETHING OF LOWER WATTAGE AND TAKE THIS BACK?? Also, big question here, CAN I USE THE MVB BULB IN THE LAMP I WAS USING WITH INFRARED: namely, http://www.petsmart.com/product/ind...-C881-DE11-B712-001422107090&mr:referralID=NA

Finally, do I leave the MVB on all night, or switch to infrared and a 50watt moon bulb that I bought?

THANK YOU--I took the day off work to figure this out. Your help is more than necessary and appreciated!!!

UPDATE: In one hour, the temps have gone up to 80 on the cold side, 90 on the hot side. My music room is HOT!!! Oh yeah, that's where he lives. When I first put him in there (I ONLY HAVE THE MVB and the humidifier ON RIGHT NOW) he ran away from the light. (This was after a baby food/calcium bath and a good misting.) He ran right over and started eating the living spring greens! He only took a few bites, but OBVIOUSLY that's a stellar improvement. A few bites is the most progress he's made in a long time. Now he is directly under the lamp and, i think, loving it.

Still--please answer the question about 160 wattage/on 24/7/should be used in this time of lamp. I don't want anything to blow!!!

THANKS!
 

Snapper

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Seiryu said:
Did you watch the little videos for each of the 3 bulbs bigappleherp sells?

I just did and some very interesting stuff.

Average micro-watts in the sun is about 150 mW/cm2

Note: These numbers are WITHOUT it going through a screen. Divide the numbers by 2 and that is what you'll get if your bulb is sitting on a screen.

Solar Glo - 100-110 uW/cm2 at 12" and 40-50 at 18"

PowerSun - 120 uW/cm2 at 12"

Sun Force - 225 uW/cm2 at 12" and 100 at 18"

MegaRay - 150-200 uW/cm2 at 12"

Note about MegaRay: This is no longer accurate as they just recently changed their bulbs. I just posted it so people can compare the outputs.

I know a lot of the Mercury Vapor Bulbs say they last a year, but they really don't. The UVB output is considerably less after 6 months of use.

So is the Sun Force a good choice then? This was very helpful, to see the comparisons
 

Yvonne G

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No, you don't leave it on 24/7. He needs the day/night cycle same as we all do.
 

Seiryu

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Snapper said:
So is the Sun Force a good choice then? This was very helpful, to see the comparisons
At this time, I don't know in terms of how long they keep those high numbers.

One person I talked to said that after a month or so of using it, the numbers were only at 15-20. Could have been a bad bulb, but they are relatively new.
 
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