Russian tortoise living without indoor UVB?

[Geng]

Whenever I come home from school I notice that my 80W MVB has been turned off. It's my dad's doing, because he fears fire hazard when nobody is home. The MVB can get really hot and can set things as a piece of paper easily on fire. I must say that the fear of fire hazard also worries me, although the lamp is stable adjusted .

I still have a 50W basking lamp running. It creates a 100F basking spot and my 1,5 year old tortoise spends lots of time under it. The 50W basking lamp doesn't bother my dad, and he suggest me to get rid of the (dangerous) MVB and get another 50W as extra heat source.

Would it be a good idea to ditch the MVB and get another basking lamp? An alternative would be running the MVB during the weekends when I'm home, and run two basking lamps during the working days. My tortoise gets outdoors time during the summer, but because it's cold/wet and winter is nearing she can't go outdoors for some sunlight.

 

[jaizei]

What type (brand) of MVB is it?

 

[SarahChelonoidis]

You'll still need day-time UVB though - you can replace the MVB with a 50W basking lamp if it's hot enough at carapace height for basking, but you'll need to add a fluorescent UVB tube too.

 

[Tom]

Mount the UV bulb safely and correctly and don't worry about it. Its no more or less dangerous than any other bulb in your house. Its not more dangerous than the 50 watt bulb.

They need UV.

You could get a 10.0 HO style strip light instead. These don't generate as much heat, but they still need to be mounted correctly.