Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am in the midst of building a new cage and i am wondering wheter or not i should put fixtures on the inside of the roof with screw in fixtures, or if i should cut bigger holes in the top and set the lights on top. I would think the fixtures on the inside would be better but i am looking for soem other input. Also fo a 6'tall by 30" by 32" cage should i have more than one fixture at the top or where should all these lights be placed. Thanks for any feedback!

If the lights are inside the cage you need to make sure the cham can't reach the bulbs or the hot parts of the fixtures, or get too close to the heat. This will use up some of your cage space. You'll need some type of basket or cage around them. If they are outside the mesh (what kind of mesh?) you won't have to worry about that. If the mesh is metal (I usually use metal mesh on my cage tops so it can withstand being heated), you can set the reflector fixture on the mesh as long as the bulb itself isn't touching anything. If you want to have a light on the cage side and the mesh is not metal, you can use a clamp lamp fixture and anchor it so the reflector hood does not quite touch the mesh. Probably have to anchor the fixture from something on the cage top or from a nearby shelf or piece of furniture.

if you have your lighting setup on the cage roof (full mdf board) so that you only have to screw in the bulbs into the sockets wouldnt a screen cage be a bad idea because it gives the chameleon a hot mest to grab onto to get even closer to the bulb.

If the lights are not actually touching the mesh and the mesh is fairly small wire, the heat will dissipate pretty quickly in a short distance. Most adult chams I've had don't climb on the top mesh much at all if the cage is tall enough, far enough off the ground, and has a lot of other climbing routes for them to use. Babies often hang upside down from cage tops, but you have to be more conservative in heat lighting for them anyway. The basking spot should be a bit farther off the cage surface for babies. You can always check the surface temp of cage wire with a hand held temp gun just to be safe...should do this anyway.

I dont think you fully understand what i am saying there. The cage top isnt mesh at all its wood with 2 small holes cut through the top for my dripper and humidifier. What i am sayin is should i put the small screw in fixtures inside the top of the cage so i can just screw in the bulbs from the inside and have no stainless reflector or should i cut bigger holes through the top and set the lights on there with the stainless cone reflectors on the top.

Oh NOW I get it! Either way you will still have to put some type of cage around the lights so the cham can't accidentally touch a hot bulb. I think I would put the reflector and bulb on the cage top not inside if it were up to me. It will use up less cage space, the bulbs will not be as exposed to spray (water on a hot bulb may explode it), and the wood cage top is less likely to overheat and possibly cause a fire.