uv bulb wattage.

[ravan]

possibly a stupid question, but i was just wondering about uv bulbs...

i use a 10.0% uv globe for my dragons, and in need of a new one soon... but i have seen a 26 watt, and a 15 watt... so my question is, what is the difference?
which wattage should i be using?

i am also using a 10.0% globe for my frogs, and was wondering if this is too strong?
can i use a 5.0 %?

thanks!

 

[bigi]

i am no frog expert but the 10.0 is for desert animals, definately can use 2.0

 

[porkosta]

The difference between the 26 and the 15 watt is the distance that the UV reaches I believe.
Pretty sure your frogs only need a 2% globe as 10% is for high UV demanding animals such as the dragons.

 

[ravan]

awesome, thanks guys

 

[Profanicus]

26 watt is a brighter and more powerful bulb, you would use the lower wattage bulb in a smaller enclosure. For beardies I would say go the 26.

In terms of equivalency to standard incandescent bulbs, I think a 26w compact fluoro is like a 100w incandescent, while a 15w compact is more like a 60w incandescent.

10.0 is too high for frogs unless it is shining through heavy mesh that blocks most of the rays. Most recommendations I have seen all argue between using 2.0s and 5.0s.

 

[Profanicus]

The difference between the 26 and the 15 watt is the distance that the UV reaches I believe.

Yes but that is not the only difference; the higher wattage bulb produces more UVB (which is why it takes more distance for that UVB to dissipate). So closer to the bulb you will find much higher UVB levels in the 26w than in the 15w.

 

[Bushfire]

The wattage refers to the power needed to make that bulb work properly. Therefore the lower the wattage the lower amount of electricity it uses. The 10.0 /5.0/2.0 refers to the UVB output. The higher the output the stronger the UVB. The distance these bulbs need to be from the basking spots varies but generally is 30 cm, this will be stated on the box of most bulbs.