Unhealthy love for the lamp

ankan333 · #1 09-06-2011, 02:18 PM

My female grandis has her favorite spot at the UV lamp. She sleeps there at night and moves there as soon as the light goes off. In the morning when the light goes on she stays there until it gets uncomfortable for her, but the accumulated UV exposure has given her burns on the tail..! I put a horizontal bamboo stick right next to the lamp to give her a better option, but still she prefered the lamp..

Yesterday I tried to cover it with mesh and was very pleased with myself, but at the picture you see the result :P

Now I have to get a more dense net to cover it, but I wanted to know if anyone of you have had the same problem?

JSmithGirl · #2 09-06-2011, 02:56 PM

What a cutie. Often times it seems like warmth is never enough for them. You said she moves away once it goes off? I would try putting the UVB on a timer to help prevent it from getting too hot and from her burning herself! I personally keep my Giant Day's outside in a nice size set-up that way they receive UVB but they are not directly on it. Any way you can mount the light outside the tank?

missiechrissie · #3 09-06-2011, 06:31 PM

Hello.

Is the viv warm enough?
My laticauda male was eerily fond of the lamp as well, but after I upped the general heat in the viv, the fondness has faded to the point of him going for days without even getting near the lamp!....

Just a thought.

My best
Chrissie

daggekko · #4 09-06-2011, 10:28 PM

Hey, I laughed really hard when I enlarged the picture! It is almost as if she is glaring unhappily at you!

Try some window screen(Fiberglass kind-NOT the metal kind[I think it is aluminum]). This is very fine and she WON'T be able to get onto the lamp. Sounds like the enclosure might be a bit cool since she goes there as soon as it is turned on and leaves once it warms up. Those bulbs put out very little heat. Do you have another heat source?

ankan333 · #5 09-07-2011, 01:30 AM

Elsa is a real charachter! I think of her as the smart one and my male Bertil as the pretty one

When he is chewing a large cricket or worm, she always tries to steal food from him.. that's how they both escaped from the terrarium once, she chasing after him and he trying to protect his meal. So now I try to always feed her first.

I think the tank is warm enough, it's 26 degrees (79 farenheit) in there.. I have heating mats attached to it but I don't have them on during the summer since my appartment is quite warm anyway. Or maybe I should? What do you think is the optimal temperature for them?

daggekko · #6 09-07-2011, 06:19 AM

Yeah that is a little cold. You want the overall temperature to be in the mid 80's with a basking spot that is about 95F. That would be why she gets onto the bulb right away(its not hot at first).

hexentanz · #7 09-08-2011, 03:24 AM

This issue is one of the main reasons why it is recommended not to place bulbs inside an enclosure.

The second is that it is a safety hazard for your whole household.

26°C is pretty low. Where are you measuring your temps (all over the tank or just one location)? Do you have a digital reader or analog? What is your enclosure size and what other lighting are you offering?

ankan333 · #8 09-08-2011, 12:29 PM

I realize the danger of having the lamp inside, but if I put it outside the effect would dissapear.. I already have a linear UV bulb outside, and it is covering the whole "net area" at the top. I think I just have to get some better net to cover it with.

And the temperature, I only measure it at one spot, at the door with an analog reader, quite far away from the lamps. Besides the UV-lamps the geckos also have two basking spots. I didn't measure the temp there, but I checked with the hand at the distance where they would sit to check that it felt alright, warm but not too hot.

The tank is quite big, 100 x 60 x 100 cm, and I guess that makes it more difficult to heat. I have heating mats on the sides, but they probably won't increase the temp enough. Do you know if there are infrared lamps you could use for heating? The idea seemed good to me at least..

bradley · #9 09-08-2011, 12:49 PM

I would use a halogen spot bulb such as a 50 watt but a 35 would probably do. For a tank that size you could use two to allow both animals to bask seperate if they wish

hexentanz · #10 09-08-2011, 01:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ankan333

I realize the danger of having the lamp inside, but if I put it outside the effect would dissapear.. I already have a linear UV bulb outside, and it is covering the whole "net area" at the top. I think I just have to get some better net to cover it with.

And the temperature, I only measure it at one spot, at the door with an analog reader, quite far away from the lamps. Besides the UV-lamps the geckos also have two basking spots. I didn't measure the temp there, but I checked with the hand at the distance where they would sit to check that it felt alright, warm but not too hot.

The tank is quite big, 100 x 60 x 100 cm, and I guess that makes it more difficult to heat. I have heating mats on the sides, but they probably won't increase the temp enough. Do you know if there are infrared lamps you could use for heating? The idea seemed good to me at least..

For a tank that size I would strongly recommend switching to two lucky reptile bright sun bulbs in 70W (heck you may even need only two 50watts so buy them from a decent shop that will accept returns). I am surprised you are not using one to begin with as most regular bulbs will not provide decent light beyond 50-60cm. The geckos will really appreciate the light it gives off. Checkout the lucky reptile site for more info on them! In the majority of cases you can do away with heat lamps and mats when using these things.

When reporting temperatures to people you should really take measurements all over or you could get the wrong advice in return.