Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi,

What wattage bulb would be needed to provide a 95-100 degree heat spot for a swift? The guy at the pet store said 100 watts... Was he right?

tc_legacy

Depends on enclosure. I would try lower wattage first. I use a 40 watt bulb in one set up and it reaches 96 constant, and with another use a 75 and it gets right to 90. Test and see what works for you.
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Randall L Turner Jr.
www.aircapitalconstrictors.com.

Hi,

Well, my tank is only a 10 gallon...starting small, may upgrade later. So probably a lower wattage, say 50, maybe 75 (?) would be okay?? I'd rather not buy one bulb of each wattage to see what works... The basking lights are a bit pricey..

tc_legacy

Here's a thought to consider. You can achieve virtually any basking spot temperature with a low wattage bulb, by simply raising the height of the basking spot/platform towards the bulb. The closer to the bulb, the hotter the temperature. I know many monitor keepers who are able to achieve basking temperatures of 150F with a 45W incandescent bulb(household light bulb).

Enclosures, when basking lights are used 'inefficiently', or in other words positioned too far away from the basking site, require a higher wattage bulb to achieve a given temperature, and bake the air inside the enclosure, virtually eliminating any vital moisture/humidity that was in the enclosure to begin with. I hate it when I see these people who have 250 watt lamps positioned down on their 40gallon enclosures; they simply don't know what they are doing to the air in the enclosure, and in turn the health and well-being of the captives inside(humidity/water means everything!).

I would say start out with a low wattage and simply raise the basking spot up closer to the bulb, until you achieve the temperature you are going for. It can be done.

As for 'basking bulbs' being expensive, the same bulbs that you buy at your pet shop/reptile shop that are specifically labeled as "reptile basking bulbs" can be found at your local Home Depot for a third of the price. There are no "reptile basking bulbs"(aside from perhaps the UV/HEat bulbs), they are just normal bulbs used in everyday life, with a sticker or box marked specifically for reptiles. In fact, I feel that there are better basking bulbs that are sold at Lowes/Home Depot, than the conventional incandescent bulb- halogen flood lamps. These lamps put out a great deal of heat per wattage(thus you do not need a high wattage bulb), and at the same time, puts out a good amount UVA and UVB radiation.

The whole "reptile basking bulb" is a gimmick, where so many unsuspecting buyers are lured into the train of thought that they are specially designed for reptiles, and that conventional light bulbs sold at home improvement stores can not/will not work. As I have said before here on this forum, virtually every material needed for reptile husbandry(aside from food and supplements) can be found at your local Home Depot or Lowes, for a fraction of what you will be suckered into paying for special "reptile products" at the local or online pet shop.

Good Luck, and happy herping.

Bob
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Treemonitors.com

Lizards that need to bask will not do well with bulbs sold at home depot they will slowly suffer than die. Closest you can get there is plant type bulbs and they do not have the UV lizards need.
They MUST have UV rays the reptile bulbs made for basking from reptile companies have them. I say this having used non UV bulbs before BIG difference.

You can duplicate infact buy better equipment at home depot/lowes but not basking bulbs.
The type of lizard he needs has to have UV .

Perhaps there may be a mixup in what we both believe to be 'basking bulbs'. When I refer to basking bulbs(as do the companies which manufacture bulbs labeled as 'reptile basking bulbs'), I am referring to incandescent bulbs that are used for thermoregulatory purposes; the bulbs that put out heat(the spotlamp white bulbs, red bulbs, purple bulbs, etc). I was not referring to fluorescent, full spectrum lighting, as I do not/did not think that these were the bulbs that the poster was talking about. I would not consider flourescent bulbs as being 'basking lamps', instead, I see them being more along the lines of 'supplemental lighting'.

Regardless, yes, I agree with you in that most conventional incandescent light bulbs do nothing as far as D3 synthesis, however have you ever experimented with, or has there ever been any statistically significant research performed on the Halogen flood lamps that I am speaking of? Based on what I have been able to uncover, in the studies I've read, which were performed involving the benefits/detriments of supplemental UV lighting on reptiles in captivity, there has not been any conclusive studies testing the benefits/effects of these particular bulbs(halogen floodlamps)on reptiles in captivity. So I would not go discrediting them just yet.

Speaking from my own personal experiences(working in two separate zoological institutions, as well as my own private collection), spanning several years, as well as through talking with many other keepers who solely implement these bulbs in their husbandry; the constant use of these bulbs have not shown to lead to any nutritional/metabolic deficiencies, as you frequently see in captive situations which offer nothing but incandescent lighting; and at the same time, these halogen lamps have allowed for many generations of captive bred lizards, snakes and turtles to be produced under these situations(many of which are considered 'high light intensity' species, like Swifts).

As I have mentioned, halogen flood lamps put out both UVA and UVB radiation(the exact values I am not sure of, although I am sure that one can check the output levels on any bulb manufacturer's website- sylvania, phillips, etc.).

As for plant grow lights(flourescent bulbs) not being sufficient enough for reptiles, I have to disagree with this. You also have to consider that most people who do have UV lighting(flourescent) in their enclosures are using them the wrong way(positioning the bulbs too high/far away from contact by the animal), and their captives are receiving absolutely no benefit from the bulbs to begin with. However plant grow lamps have been developed and tested specifically for the growth and culture of plants; organisms which are far-more dependent on UV light than any other organism. Heck, plants' entire lives are based around the utilization and takeup of solar radiation and virtually every aspect of their ecology and physiology ultimately comes down to UV absorbtion and sythesis(photosynthesis).

While yes, in reptiles(as well as many other organisms), natural sunlight/uv rays are important for many different metabolic pathways, however the needs and physiological requirements of heterotrophs cannot/will not EVER compare to those of autotrophs(plants).

I'm just curious as to where you got the information that reptiles require greater UV light intensities than plants?? Ecologically/physiologically speaking, that does not make any sense at all.

What I am saying here, is if these grow lamps are designed to facilitate growth and culture of plants in aphotic situations(no exposure to natural sunlight- such as indoors, etc.), they will be more than sufficient for organisms such as reptiles who aren't even as closely dependent on UV rays as plants.

As an amateur horticulturist/plant enthusiast, I grow many different plant species, cultivars, and varieties here at my house. I am extremely fond of tropical plants, especially Palms. While I do have several species that can withstand the frigid New York temperatures that we see up here, most of the plants that I germinate and raise are done so inside my house- in a windowless(the only extra room/space I had available for my plant hobby)room/closet space.

Many of the palm species that I grow are very dependent on high-light levels(Roystonea sp., Archontophoenix sp., Psuedophoenix sp., Syagrus sp., et al), as many of these are not species which originate/dwell in thickly canopied forests, and do not tolerate low light levels/shade. In my setup, I use the 'genereic' full spectrum plant grow lamps that Home Depot and Lowes sells to raise up seedlings and young plants, to the point where I can then sell them(usually as yearlings) once they are big enough. Keep in mind, this is all under artificial, "home depot lighting". If I am able to grow these extremely light-demanding species of plants(autotrophs) without any ill effects/deficiencies, I do not see how/why keeping a lizard under the same lighting would be insufficient..

Looking back at my post I clearly mentioned the exception of the UV/Heat combination bulbs, as those are not readily available/sold by home improvement stores. However the alternatives to a combination bulb are sold there, as I have mentioned above. If someone was really interested in some uv/heat combination bulbs, I would suggest checking out your local hydroponics shop, or online hydroponic supply store, as chances are, you can find several different bulbs which match this criteria, for cheaper than the reptile-marketed ones cost.

Cheers,

Bob
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Treemonitors.com

Speaking from my own personal experiences(working in two separate zoological institutions, as well as my own private collection), spanning several years, as well as through talking with many other keepers who solely implement these bulbs in their husbandry; the constant use of these bulbs have not shown to lead to any nutritional/metabolic deficiencies, as you frequently see in captive situations which offer nothing but incandescent lighting; and at the same time, these halogen lamps have allowed for many generations of captive bred lizards, snakes and turtles to be produced under these situations(many of which are considered 'high light intensity' species, like Swifts).

As I have mentioned, halogen flood lamps put out both UVA and UVB radiation(the exact values I am not sure of, although I am sure that one can check the output levels on any bulb manufacturer's website- sylvania, phillips, etc.).

I have only read that basking type lizards require higher UV than plants my own experience is several swifts-Ocellated skinks-Fire skinks.
I do find the Reptile type bulbs to have truly enhanced my Swifts colors not the light spectum but the UV they produce and the lizards just look better.
As you can see I am a big fan of these bulbs the prices arent bad at all esp if you buy online.
I dont dispute what you have seen in your proffession at all. I have heard that Phillips,Sylvania,etc make the UV bulbs which reptile companies than put in nice boxes and mark up the prices .
For the average person better safe than sorry unless they really know what they are doing. SO just best to buy the high UV type bulb.
I have used the spot light halogen bulb made for back yard light,etc and the spectrum was a slight yellow tinge that I did not like thus replaced it with a ESU UV basking daylight bulb.
The ocellated skinks did well with both but colors under the reptile light looked better hard to say how they would have done in long run with regular halogen bulb.
I think for average person with UV basking type lizard its a gamble to get a non UV type reptile light if only because these bulbs have the UV,spectrum the reptiles need and again so many bulbs to pick from at home depot,etc why risk getting the wrong type bulb.
You could do it but most including myself would be taking a risk to save a few dollars.

Malays, you should really try to open your mind to the cutting edge concepts Bob is trying to explain. What he is saying is old news for monitor keepers.

I suggest taking the time to understand your animals needs and figure out for yourself which bulbs will provide for those needs best and where to buy them cheaply. Myself, I don't like being patronized. I'm not going let some crappy book, faux scientific nonsense on a reptile bulb package, or idiot at a pet store, tell me what my animal needs or what bulb I should buy. I have become very familiar with every bulb in home depot, lowes and wal-mart.

Of course new keepers need specific advice that can meet their animals needs right away. Fortunately, this person (tc_legacy) had the wisdom to look for further information on this forum. He can take a short cut instead being like me and having a lot of unused bulbs that I've bought, tested, and set aside because they weren't right.

I suggest taking the time to understand your animals needs and figure out for yourself which bulbs will provide for those needs best and where to buy them cheaply

I do take the time understanding my basking lizards needs which is exactly why I will stick with Reptile bulbs which are only a few dollars more mail order than home depots bulbs which I am not convinced are what they need. You use what bulbs you like.

Posted by: tc_legacy at Mon Nov 7 20:54:09 2005 [ Report Abuse ] [ Email Message ]

Hi,

What wattage bulb would be needed to provide a 95-100 degree heat spot for a swift? The guy at the pet store said 100 watts... Was he right?

tc_legacy

The guy at your pet store knows swifts they need a hot basking spot and plenty of UV light so you have to get a UV reptile type bulb.
Lots great suggestions in swift forum and even anole forum for true UV bulbs. The bulbs run about the same regardless of what so why not buy a high watt bulb and go to home depot and buy a lamp dimmer( I recently bought one works great).
Than just lower it to get desired temp . They come pre wired you only plug it in and than plug your dome light to that.
swifts like all basking lizards need to get out of the hot area so put the dome light only on one end of tank.
A 10 gallon isnt to big but you can easily get a good basking spot using rocks and and cooler temp on other side of tank.
I think ESU makes UV incandescent spot ligts which direct the light directly down to give a hot area in a smaller area which is what you want in a 10 gallon.

The Sylvania halogen 35 watt par20 floodlight might work for your setup. It is available at Lowes. I have found it useful. There is no need for a dimmer. Adjust the temps by moving the bulb or basking site surface up or down. See below for pics of the bulb.