GE heat lamp 125 clear (R40)

[Mark]

I have a juvenile bearded dragon. I found a GE heat lamp 125 clear (R40) in my basement. Everyone keeps saying you can use a regular household bulb for heat and UVA light. Is this bulb ok to use for basking and UVA light?

Also I have a Reptisun 10.0 fluorescent lamp 18" on top of the tank. I have a Solar Brite 100 watt exotic pet bulb (which has both UVB and heat source). would it be ok to take out the GE heat lamp and put in the Solar Brite next to the Reptisun 10.0 fluorescent or would this be too much UVB??

 

[Germ]

Yes, you can use any white or clear bulb (with the exception of fluorescents of course) of sufficient wattage to provide heat for your BD. The only way to tell if any bulb will work for you, is to have an accurate thermometer & measure your temps directly at the basking spot after the lights have been on for a few hours to be sure the enclosure has reached normal operating temperature & everything is warmed up in it after cooling off throughout the night. A digital thermometer with a sensor\probe that can be placed or attached on\to the Basking spot to measure the temps specifically at that point is highly recommended & is what should be used.

UVB should be provided at the Basking Spot because if your temps are setup correctly, that is where your BD will spend the majority of it's time, leaving some areas of the enclosure UVB free should they feel the need to get out of it, this is generally the cool side.

As for the Solar Brite MVB, it looks suspiciously like a regular MVB. Have not seen or heard of them in 3 or 4 years since there were a few trying to say a regular MVB provides UVB when it does not. It takes a specially formulated MVB bulb to provide UVB. I am not really familiar with this Bulb or it's manufacturer, as I mentioned haven't heard of anyone using one for years. Tried a google to see if I could find out anything on them & all I find are 3+ year old reviews that were not very good. Personally, I would be very leery of using this bulb. Your Reptisun 10.0 will provide ample UVB if setup properly & is one of the bulbs that the majority of us use in conjunction with a white light emitting heat bulb.

Personally, I use Halogen floods for heat in all of my enclosures.