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Burning bulb smell

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4.9K views 7 replies 4 participants last post by  Malc  
#1 ·
Hey,

New here but need some advice!

So long story short - while at work, my ball python's heat bulb blew (slightly shatter but the guard caught it - was a 60w). Weve replaced with a 100w because that was all thats available to us but set the thermostat slightly lower so to not fry it until we can get a replacement thats more suitable tomorrow.

However since installing the new bulb, there has been a burning smell. First I thought maybe it wasn't twisted enough into the holder, so I checked that but now there is still a faint burning smell still.

Is this normal with brand new bulbs? We became new owners in June and its fine first time replacing the bulb.

Thanks!
 
#3 ·
I
#4 ·
set the thermostat slightly lower
Click to expand...
Thats pointless. All it will do is reduce the temperature in your enclosure.
60w or 100w, the thermostat will keep the temperature its set to. The wattage of the heater won't change anything.
What is concerning is the use of a bulb. Royals need a fairly constant temperature, you arent keeping that bulb on constantly are you??
 
#6 ·
ian14 said:
Thats pointless. All it will do is reduce the temperature in your enclosure.
60w or 100w, the thermostat will keep the temperature its set to. The wattage of the heater won't change anything.
What is concerning is the use of a bulb. Royals need a fairly constant temperature, you arent keeping that bulb on constantly are you??
Click to expand...
It did in my leopard lizard's viv- the 60w bulb I tried wouldn't reach the required 100+f on the basking rock, even with the stat on its max setting, but got no hotter than 95f. The 100w bulb I replaced it with reaches 102f before turning off.
 
#5 ·
Using a lamp as a heat source is fine for temperate species which don't need a controlled temperature 24/7 as they can be turned off at night, allowing for temperature swings associated with such regions in the real world (or in desert regions which are scalding hot in the day and cold at night). Whilst there is a temperature drop in the regions Royals are found, it still stays relatively warm in the hours of darkness, so turning the heat source off at night is not something you want to do. But this then means if using a lamp as heat for a Royal, it will be on 24/7 and thus you are depriving the snake from a normal day/night photoperiod, which is very important for a nocturnal snake such as Royals... Just because the snake has shed OK and you are hitting the correct daytime temps doesn't mean that you have the husbandry right...

Can't offer any reason why the lamp you have fitted smells - but that can't be good for the snake or pleasent for you either. So it would need replacing, and IMO a CHE would be the better choice
 
#8 ·
60w, 100w, 150w, 200w, 250w or 300w heaters / lamps, in a traditional setup will provide a 32c hot spot. It's the thermostat that controls the temperature. If a higher wattage heater / bulb is used it will just reach that set point quicker, and will last longer than a lower wattage heater / bulb.
 
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