Need light fixture advice.

[PixelAdams]

Getting my first tortoise next week, and I'm setting up my enclosure for her. I am planning on using a 100 W MVB bulb and a 100 W ceramic heat emitter at night. My original plan was to use the Zoo Med Dual Dome lamp, but it looks like that's not rated for use with a CHE.

What do you all use and what should I put these bulbs in? (I already have the zoo med lamp stand.)

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Yep. If it's the one I have it's a 60w max. Use a heavy metal reflector with the ceramic base. There will be a decal or an engraving showing the maximum wattage that it can handle. Home depot and any pet shop will have them. Don't buy the coil type bulb.

 

[Yvonne G]

I don't like those dual fixtures. I want my fixtures separate so I can place them where I want or need, and not stuck together.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

They come in a lot of reptile

I don't like those dual fixtures. I want my fixtures separate so I can place them where I want or need, and not stuck together.

They come in a lot of reptile "kits".

 

[PixelAdams]

Ok, going to the pet store today, probably gonna buy the zoomed mini deep dome lamp for the MVB, which I can hang on the lamp stand, and the porcelain clamp lamp for the CHE.

Does this sound like it will work?

 

[tortdad]

Do you have time to wait a few days for shipping? If so one of the board sponsors LLL Reptile (based out of Cali) will save you 40-50% or more from the pet shops.

That deep dome will be fine. You also have to take in to consideration the diameter of the dome. Some are 5.5" and some are 12". The wider the dome the more the heat spreads out. I would put your MVB in a 5.5-8" size dome so you have a confined basking area and put the CHE in a 10"-12" dome to spread that heat out. Also your set up will work best if you put that light on a timer. Zoomed makes one that looks like a standard plug strip but it's doubles as a timer. It works fine but I would go to Home Depot and buy a simple $5 timer. Your CHE will work best on a thermostat. The pet sores usually carry the 1000watt Zilla brand thermostat for about $55 LLL just sold me mine for $29.

 

[PixelAdams]

Do you have time to wait a few days for shipping? If so one of the board sponsors LLL Reptile (based out of Cali) will save you 40-50% or more from the pet shops.

That deep dome will be fine. You also have to take in to consideration the diameter of the dome. Some are 5.5" and some are 12". The wider the dome the more the heat spreads out. I would put your MVB in a 5.5-8" size dome so you have a confined basking area and put the CHE in a 10"-12" dome to spread that heat out. Also your set up will work best if you put that light on a timer. Zoomed makes one that looks like a standard plug strip but it's doubles as a timer. It works fine but I would go to Home Depot and buy a simple $5 timer. Your CHE will work best on a thermostat. The pet sores usually carry the 1000watt Zilla brand thermostat for about $55 LLL just sold me mine for $29.

Hi tortdad, those sizes for the lamps are about what I was looking at. I got 2 cheap timers, one for each lamp.

I'm not too worried about having a thermostat. I test ran a 60 watt CHE last night and it only heated a small part of the enclosure surface to about 72, so I'm returning it and getting a 100 watt CHE. I still don't think it'll overheat the tank at all though. I'll monitor carefully and buy a thermostat if it becomes necessary.

 

[tortdad]

Hi tortdad, those sizes for the lamps are about what I was looking at. I got 2 cheap timers, one for each lamp.

I'm not too worried about having a thermostat. I test ran a 60 watt CHE last night and it only heated a small part of the enclosure surface to about 72, so I'm returning it and getting a 100 watt CHE. I still don't think it'll overheat the tank at all though. I'll monitor carefully and buy a thermostat if it becomes necessary.

That's just my point. You should consider a thermostat as being necessary . The temp from that CHE will be constant but the temp in your house will change up and down several times a day. Having a thermostat is insurance that your tank will always be at optimal temps. As an added bonus you will save electricity because it will only be on when it is actually needed. I fought the "you need a thermostat" people for a while, then broke down and bought one. It's almost as important has having heat and UVB. Mine kicks on and off all day and night long, never on longer than a few mins at a time.

 

[PixelAdams]

That's just my point. You should consider a thermostat as being necessary . The temp from that CHE will be constant but the temp in your house will change up and down several times a day. Having a thermostat is insurance that your tank will always be at optimal temps. As an added bonus you will save electricity because it will only be on when it is actually needed. I fought the "you need a thermostat" people for a while, then broke down and bought one. It's almost as important has having heat and UVB. Mine kicks on and off all day and night long, never on longer than a few mins at a time.

Well I ended up getting a thermostat after all! It was more difficult to control the temps than I thought it would be, and I'm out of the house a lot so I want to make sure my tortoise's temps stay perfect well I'm gone. I posted about my finished setup over in the general enclosure forum, if you want to take a look at the final product.