My beardie Lzzy is a little over a year old and has a vertebral injury due to calcium deficiency. The vet I took her to was extremely knowledgeable and recommended I use the mercury vapor bulbs for UV instead of the t5 I've been using. So I bought the bulb and I've gone through two in the past 4 days. They keep burning out. I had purchased the Zoo Med 100w mercury vapor UVB. Any idea what I'm doing wrong? These are awful expensive to keep having this happen and I want to get the light situation figured out so Lzzy can start moving in the right direction health wise. I've tried searching online cause I'm wondering if its my light fixture that is causing them to keep blowing but I can't find any information one what I need.
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Mercury Vapor Bulb issues
- Thread starter MMUSCARI
- Start date
It could be the fixture -- or the wattage of the ceramic your using make sure the wattage is adequate to the fixture if its the bulb is too high for the fixture its going to blow- the MVB is not going to adequately give Izzy the UVB rays she needs --- most do not so I would recommend just getting a regular clear bright white basking bulb for her example would be a Exo terra Intense basking bulb or a Zoo Med Repti basking bulb - there are other clear bright white as well but please do not use a Daytime bulb they have a coating on them called neodymium coating which is a rare earth mineral, decreases the CRI or Color Rendering Index which affects the overall brightness. It does this by cutting the yellow color range out to make it appear brighter but since reptiles are very sensitive to light & can see more of the spectrum than we can it is best to use a bright white light for basking instead. I always recommend another long tube UVB fixture when using a MVB - they do not emit enough UVB rays that the dragon needs especially w/ the distance and the placement - the MVB sitting on the screen is going to have the UVB rays blocked approx 30% --- distance and placement for the T 5 is key here depending on the screen - the Zoo Med is it the Solar Glo ? They put out good heat but not so much UVB -- also the MVB need to be replaced every 6 months if your using them as a UVB source -- it is recommended that they have a back up for UVB by the long tube fixture - you want her adequately getting UVB --- please tell me what kind of screen your using --- please start using the T 5 again I can help you get it set up for your tank --
I do have the t5 bulb still in place as well with my MVB. I figured out the fixture I have isn't able to handle the bulbs I was using so I've ordered the correct fixtures I need. It's a reptisun t5 that I'm using. I'm not sure what kind of screen mine is. It came with the tank my husband got me.
Please post a pic of the screen- what brand and bulb are you using for the mvb
I'm planning on using the Zoo Med Powersun 100w MVB as soon as my new fixture is delivered. For now I have an 80W Zoo Med Powersun MVB shining on her cooler side and regular basking bulbs on the warm side until my new fixtures arrive.
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Ok wide holed screen is good- please make sure using a digital probe thermometer- you do not want to burn her up temps 95-100 place probe on the spot she basks at- try a 8-10 inches under the 100 watt mvb- but make sure your getting temps w/ a digital probe thermometer- can't stress that enough your long tube fixture the T 5 can sit on top of the screen w/ the basking decor directly under the uvb distance 8-10 inches I would get rid of the 80 watt on the cool side - you want temps in the 80's during the day - the T 5 should be changed out in approx one year I recommend one month prior to - the powersun is a good heat source but in my opinion too expensive for that and it gives little uvb after 6 months- you can still use it for heat after that so it's good you have the T 5
Her temps run 80 on cold and 95 on warm. She is having calcium deficiency tremors (due to lighting issues) and he recommended the MVB on both sides as long as temp is okay and also the T5 as supplement to hopefully correct the issue. With her vertebral injury, her front lega give her issues from her calcium deficiency I had to modify her tank and basking area. He said it wouldn't her to have MVB on both sides to be save she's getting enough. She's also being fed critical care for now to build up her strength cause she quit eating due to the first vet I went to giving her a steroid she should have never been put on so right now her tremors are worse. Thankfully the other vet I went to for a second opinion was way more knowledgeable than the first. She probably wouldn't have made it if it wasn't for him.
Ok I still recommend taking the 80 watt out she needs to be able to get out of the uvb rays if she wants having 3 in the tank is too much - you don't want to over uvb her- and the T 5 is going to give her the adequate uvb she needs - much more so than the mvb
Well right now that's all I have with the t5 until I get my new fixtures. I plan on taking it out once the new ones come in. The t5 is what I've been using and yet she's having issues even though I dust her food properly.
I am going to see what some others think- they can advise you more on this - I will get back w/ you
Here is a response I got
I would double check the surface temps. I'm not crazy about the PowerSun bulbs because the one I tested (admittedly small sample size) was dim and the output dropped off rather quickly over a short period of time. Since the T5 is in place (not clear if it's a 5.0 or 10.0) that should make up for lack of UVB, so I'd focus on getting the surface temps right using the MVB. It could be that the T5 is not putting out enough power for some reason, or something else could be at play. Probably a good idea to keep basking surfaces flat and easily accessible in this case as well, since mobility may be an issue.
Just replaced the t5 in January and it's a 10. I replaced it before it hit a year of use.
Make sure the T 5 is correctly placed and distanced - the screen is the determination for that- fine mesh inside the tank 12-15 inches wide holed on top 8-10 inches w/ the basking decor directly under the uvb- the screen blocks 30%
Hi Lizzy you can return or exchange these bulbs at no charge tell them it’s defective and doesn’t work. Go to Petsmart or petco. Also keep in mind that a good Mercury bulb is the powersun. However it’s extremely powerful and can get deadly hot and it needs to be 17-18 inches away from the Beardie. Read the packaging & all Mercury bulbs need to be far away from the Beardie and it has heat and UVB in one so no other bulbs in the tank. A Better choice is the zoomed basking for heat and the Reptisun 10.0 T5 for uvb and leave heat and uvb on for 12-14 hours per day more like 12 in the winter and 14 in the summer. But, in your Beardies case I wud do 14 hours per day since he’s been without uvb. U can order the Reptisun on Amazon. I’ll attach a photo. Also make sure the tank is soft proof padded with towels or a pillow Beacaie his bones are very brittle he needs lots of Uvb, lots of good protein; crickets, Dubias and superworms and make sure u do calcium powder sprinkled 4 times per week but only once per day. Sprinkle it like salt on fries on the veggies or proteins and once per week on a noncalcium day u sprinkle herptivite which is vitamin powder. My Beardie was a rescue and had MBD and I revived her and she’s got soft basking spots and fall proof tank. I’ll send pics.
