Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hello,
is there some one who knows about uvb lighting, as i was told by a man who breeds ackies, that the mercury vapor bulbs you see in street lights and the ones for plant growing give off uvb at a good rate. i use the activeheat bulbs which are very good, but very expencive £50. so all they are is a mercury vapor bulb, so what is the dif if any between the two. i know the first one gives of uvb as they warn you about it. i want to know how much they give off. thankyou for your time and help.

cheers danny.

All mercury vapour lamps produce UVB but the ones used for large scale lighting purposes such as streets and sport stadiums are designed to not emit it. The lights marketed for home use with reptiles have an outer casing that is designed to emit a certain, relatively safe level of UVB. I'm not familiar with MV lamps marketed for plant growth but it was my understanding that plants primarily utilize UVA.

T.B