Will any light fixture do?

[Gooch]

Hi guys, I currently have a duel light fixture (2 in one or what ever, seperate bulbs, one light fixture) for my tortoise. I just built a new enclosure for him, and I was wondering if I could just pet a metal screen on an angle in the corner of the table so the light fixture is resting on top of it, shining light and heat onto my tortoise. I hope you get the idea. Or the other option is I buy 2 clamp on lamps so I just clamp them on the sides. Can I just use any cheap light fixture dome thingy or do I have to buy some reptile one. This is the one I was thinking https://www.walmart.com/ip/Bayco-8.5-Clamp-Light/14003467 Thanks!

 

[Maro2Bear]

The smart and thrifty thing to do is always look beyond pet stores first. When purchasing light domes, make sure you get ones rated for the CHE or lamp wattage and have a ceramic type base. The cheaper ones for lower voltage, lower heat have plastic screw in mounts, id stay away from those.

Also, some people have had the clamps fail to hold properly so you might want to device a way the light can be hung straight down and not use the clamping mechanism.

 

[Markw84]

The fixture you posted a link to from Walmart will NOT do. It has a plastic base and won't hold up to heat well.
As Maro2Bear says, pet stores are too expensive to these type things and often, the ones you find there are really not best. This is the one most popular here on the forum for basking lights and Ceramic Heat Emitters.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/HDX-300-Watt-Incandescent-Brooder-Clamp-Light-HD-303PDQ/204684496

 

[wellington]

You can set them on the screen top, however, the screen will block a good portion of he UVB. If it's not for UVB lighting then don't worry about the screen blocking.
The fixture has to be metal dome and ceramic/porclein socket for Mercury vapor bulbs and ceramic heat emitters or any other basking bulb made for reptile basking. Walmart has them for around 9 bucks and Home Depot for around 12 bucks. You want the bigger domes. If your using a regular incandescent bulb then a plastic socket is fine. Like mentioned above, do not use the clamp.

 

[Tom]

You need to make some sort of over head frame to hang your fixtures from. You get the correct temperature under the domes by raising or lowering them. Also, those clamps always fail, and many a house has been burned to the ground because of it.

Further, you don't want a double dome because you want your heat lamp over one end and your CHE over the middle to maintain ambient.

Is this for a russian? Unless you live inside a refrigerator, you really only need one bulb for daytime basking and a long tube for UV. You shouldn't need a CHE unless you house gets unusually cold (Below 60) at night.

 

[Gooch]

@Tom I have a russian. My house stays around 65 ish during the day and night. I have one daytime basking and a tube uvb like you said