Some questions about Mercury Vapour Bulbs...

[Sam123ni]

Hello. I'm new to the forums, and have had my bearded dragon for almost 2 years now. See, my dilemma is this; he needs a bigger tank, and seeing as I believe in the "more is better" philosophy in terms of space, I'm opting for a 55 gallon tank for him. Now, as this is the case I have been thinking of trying out a Mega Ray MVB. I just would like to know if they are really worth the extra money (of which there is a lot) and also is it true that they must be used alongside different bulbs as they can only be kept on safely for 6-8 hours a day?

Thanks very much for any help in advance.

[Sam123ni]

No-one can help me?

[Sam123ni]

Anyone at all?

[Domizzard]

would like to know the answers too
free bump!

[TheMetaphysicalNinja]

Don't think so, think they are fine for 12 hrs a day. Never heard anything different anyway lol.

I've heard a lot of people say that their reps respond better to MVB's over tubes, and their outputs proven better, and they last longer (2 years I think as opposed to a UVB tube 6 months)

The main issuse with them is you cant stat them, s oyou have to be very careful when setting them up to be sure they don't overheat your basking spot. but other than that i've heard nothing but good things about them.

http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/lizar...ent-i-did.html

That's a intresting read. Sorry, cant get you the other link, gotta get going to next class lol!!

[lee young]

Search 'Megaray' in the habitat and lizard sections and you will find all the answers you need....

[Sam123ni]

Originally Posted by lee young

Search 'Megaray' in the habitat and lizard sections and you will find all the answers you need....

Ah, this would be useful actually as I was searching in the Equipment section. Thanks.

[Gaboon]

Originally Posted by TheMetaphysicalNinja

Don't think so, think they are fine for 12 hrs a day. Never heard anything different anyway lol.

I've heard a lot of people say that their reps respond better to MVB's over tubes, and their outputs proven better, and they last longer (2 years I think as opposed to a UVB tube 6 months)

The main issuse with them is you cant stat them, s oyou have to be very careful when setting them up to be sure they don't overheat your basking spot. but other than that i've heard nothing but good things about them.

http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/lizar...ent-i-did.html

That's a intresting read. Sorry, cant get you the other link, gotta get going to next class lol!!

Im also looking into getting some of these bulbs. Cant you stat them with a dimmer stat?

[xautomaticflowersx]

Unfortunately you cannot use a thermostat with MVBs at all. So many people use a ventilation system with small fans to help remove some of the excess heat. This thread is rather long, but it does show you an excellent example of using this sort of ventilation system... http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/habit...t-x-4ft-x.html

[dan.hobley]

these shouldnt really be used more than 8 hrs a day as the light is so intense (better intended for late morning/mid afternoon light and a lower wattage 40 or 50w bulb should be on backup attached to a dimming stat especially for when the mvb goes off. also its better to have a 2% uvb flourescent bulb running the lenght of the viv as this produces more light (beardies love light) and the light it produces is close to daylight. the flourescent tube should be on 10-12 hrs and the mvb 8 hrs and the bulb statted on all the time.

hope this helps.