Bulb Wattage

SethR · Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2008 7:09 am Post subject: Bulb Wattage

First post here....

When i get my hatchling, i plan to make a small enclosure about 2x1x1.5'

With it i suppose i will use a ReptiSun 5.0 UV light and i will try out the Red/Blue Night/Day lights. I have been told i can get cheaper lights but it dosn't make a difference much as far as cost.

What do i get for wattage on these? do i start at about 60 and work my way up to 150 as his enclosure gets bigger? Do i need a cooling fan for the bulbs?

Thanks

txrepgirl · Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2008 11:18 pm Post subject:

Welcome to the Tegu forum family and good luck finding the Tegu baby that you want.How big are you going to built the enclosure and how tall is it going to be ?

SethR · Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2008 11:45 pm Post subject:

About 2(L)x1(W)x1.5(H) for it's first one and then i'll probably go straight from that to a 7-8ft. by 3-4ft

txrepgirl · Posted: Fri Apr 18, 2008 6:42 pm Post subject:

Sorry it took me so long to get back with you.I just noticed that you already gave me the info in you first post.I'm sorry for asking for it again.Well since I wasn't sure about the lighting I just called my reptile store ( not petco or some other lame pet stores ).We got our Tegus from them and they are very helpful there.He sad to get for your enclosure a 50W hight beam basking light ( light should be 8" away in hight from the basking spot ).With the UVB light it would be a 18" florescent light.Hope that help.

cwj108 · Valued Member Joined: Mar 18, 2008 Posts: 104

Hey! Congrats on getting a hatchling. I have my hatchling with a 100w (Gets it to about 105 F) on the basking side and a 50W(about 80-85F) on the cooler side. My enclosure is bigger(55gallon passed down from a beardie who outgrew it) so I need a higher watt.

The big thing with the size of the bulb has a lot to do with the enclosure and the lid on top(how open it is will determine how much heat is left out). If you havent got the tegu yet, set it up now and monitor the temps with whatever bulb you are planning to buy so that when he arrives you will have the right setup. If the smaller bulb isn't big enough then you can move up. The type of bulb can also factor in on the how much heat will be put out, I have bought some 50watt bulbs that do not seem to make much of a difference, and then others that can put out the heat!

Distance can be a big factor too, a couple of inches can change the temp a good bit depending on the enclosure. In my large beardie cage, if I move his 150W light back 4 or 5 inches, then his basking area temp can drop almost 10-15 degrees due to how wide open his cage is.

I hope this helps!

SethR · Posted: Fri Apr 18, 2008 10:53 pm Post subject:

Okay thanks a bunch for your help you two. Great advice.

cwj108 · Valued Member Joined: Mar 18, 2008 Posts: 104

anytime! not a problem

txrepgirl · Posted: Sat Apr 19, 2008 4:37 am Post subject:

Your welcome.We are glad that we could help

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