What type/brand of uvb light bulb should I get?

NeonAmnesia

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Just several hours ago I adopted a Russian tortoise that somone had to give away because she was moving. Was given a fairly large enclosure but not sure. The previous owner gave me a heating lamp. I'm able to get some hides next week. The substrate is soil covered with some Timothy hay. I was given this entire thing, besides some things missing does this look alright so far?

So now I have left to get a uvb lamp. I was searching and came upon someone's very old post on here and mentioned those coil uvb bulbs cause eye damage or even cause lethargy? Is that true? If it is what type of bulb should I get?

Also idk why there's a yellow glare on the right20200125_211223.jpg20200125_211659.jpg
 

NeonAmnesia

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Another question I have, is it best to cover the lower front side of the enclosure too? I already covered the sides and the back.
 

Quadro

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Just several hours ago I adopted a Russian tortoise that somone had to give away because she was moving. Was given a fairly large enclosure but not sure. The previous owner gave me a heating lamp. I'm able to get some hides next week. The substrate is soil covered with some Timothy hay. I was given this entire thing, besides some things missing does this look alright so far?

So now I have left to get a uvb lamp. I was searching and came upon someone's very old post on here and mentioned those coil uvb bulbs cause eye damage or even cause lethargy? Is that true? If it is what type of bulb should I get?

Also idk why there's a yellow glare on the rightView attachment 285394View attachment 285395
Hello and welcome! Cute little one you have adopted . Yes definitely no coil bulbs I did at first and could have cost my baby her eye I would do the tube UVB bulbs which they recommend here not sure which exact one you will need they each put out different UVB at different inches from your tortoise so I’ll let the more experienced get into that with you. Good luck with your little one!
 

NeonAmnesia

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You'll want to buy a T5HO strip florescent UV with a "5.0" or 6° tube

Do they have to be as wide as my enclosure or as long as my enclosure? My enclosure is 36 in long and somehow I'm having a hard time finding the 5.0 one along with the hood for it.

I thought I could place it on the width but the width of my enclosure is 18.5 in and obviously there's only the 18 in one.

Tried searching on Amazon and it's even difficult to find. I have this repatrium store near me. They have 36 in one (forgot to check if it's 5.0) and it's around $26 for just the bulb.

Is it true that those compact ones cause eye damage? I'm also hearing it doesn't do that anymore and that's old news that people are caring around. But I honestly don't want to risk it though I just want to know if that issue is still recent.
 

Markw84

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Do they have to be as wide as my enclosure or as long as my enclosure? My enclosure is 36 in long and somehow I'm having a hard time finding the 5.0 one along with the hood for it.

I thought I could place it on the width but the width of my enclosure is 18.5 in and obviously there's only the 18 in one.

Tried searching on Amazon and it's even difficult to find. I have this repatrium store near me. They have 36 in one (forgot to check if it's 5.0) and it's around $26 for just the bulb.

Is it true that those compact ones cause eye damage? I'm also hearing it doesn't do that anymore and that's old news that people are caring around. But I honestly don't want to risk it though I just want to know if that issue is still recent.
A lot of issues to wade through to answer your question. I know if's frustrating, but the best answer depends upon how you plan on keeping your tortoise.

In Texas, you have plenty of sun through most of the year that will provide all the UVB your tortoise needs if you have an outdoor enclosure. Your enclosure now is too small for an adult Russian tortoise, so you will want to upgrade ASAP so outdoors may be your best option. You don't say where in Texas, so that still leaves quite a difference in climates, but mostly in the severity of winters, and the length of good outdoor time. So with an outdoor enclosure, either full time, or part time combined with an indoor enclosure, you don't really need a UVB light even if there is a 3 month period or so with no outdoor time. Will you be brumating (hibernating) your tortoise over winter? That would also take care of the winter months and any added UVB needs.

IF your tortoise will not be getting outdoor time at least a few days a week, you will want to provide UVB. I only recommend the T5 HO tubes. They are much more efficient and the tubes last quite a bit longer in my experience than any other choices. The "T5" refers to the 5/8" diameter fluorescent tube. There is also T8 tubes that are 1" diameter, but they are about 1/2 the strength of a T5 HO tube and only really would be recommended with an enclosure with very limited height above tortoise level to mount the fixture. I also would recommend a 10.0 or a 12.0 UVB tube. The 5.0 tubes put out much less UVB and need to be mounted lower to get effective levels for the tortoise. I like to mount fixtures in the 18" - 22" range above tortoise level. The 10.0 and 12.0 work perfectly for that and then give a nice broad effective basking zone. This is all assuming you are getting a fixture with a decent reflective hood to keep most of the UVB directed down.

So look for a T5 HO fixture with reflective hood with a T5 HO 10.0 or 12.0 bulb.

The length of the bulb/fixture, in my opinion should be about 1/3 to 1/2 the length of the enclosure. I think it is wise to have at least 1/2 the enclosure where the tortoise can get away from the UV if desired. I am becoming convinced that forced excessive UV exposure is not desirable. Mount a 65 watt incandescent flood bulb right next to and in the middle of the UVB to add heat to the basking zone. It is the bright light followed by the heat that attracts the tortoise to bask. The UV and heat need to be together.

I also add some LED lights to create a bright ambient light to the whole enclosure. Very energy efficient and those should be on a timer to give your tortoise a consistent photoperiod of about 14 hours. The UVB light only needs to be on about 4-5 hours midday.

I will get lots of disagreement on this forum, but no, the compact fluorescent bulbs do not cause eye damage any more - if you get a good name brand, UL listed bulb. This does not apply to the cheaper off-brand or Chinese bulbs, as they can have extremely variable emission standards and some test with even some UVC level outputs. But it really doesn't matter as compacts are never a good choice for tortoises. They put out too little UVB to create an effectively large enough basking zone for a tortoise.

Hope this helps.
 
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