Habitat - Indoor :: Wattage Amount and Type of Bulb

[SARAM521]

Hello All,

Introduction first.
I am new to this whole website and have been looking through the forum posts and the unbiased info on the main site and cannot find the answers to my questions. I work at a nature preserve and came into owning two RES hatchlings thanks to a woman who stopped by the preserve saying she couldn't take care of them. I thought about releasing them into our man made ponds where we have other RES, but we will soon be dredging (basically emptying) the ponds and I felt their chance of survival would be slim to none in that situation. I brought them home, put them in a ten gallon tank that has a submersible filter and turtle dock. I have no heater currently (but will put one in very soon for fall) as my house is normally 80 degrees and I figured that would warm them just fine. I thought an in-water heater during summer in MY house would be too much for them. I have a 75-watt zoo-med turtle-tuff bulb that I'm pretty sure emits no uva or uvb rays, just heat only. I have it in a lamp fixture suspended about 18 in. from the tank. I'm sure it needs to be closer, I just don't really know how close, considering the wattage. The two RES hatchlings (about 1 1/2" each) seem to be doing well so far; I've had them for almost two months.
Here are the questions (FINALLY, right?):
What wattage level is safe for such small turtles to endure?
Can anyone give me the name of a specific brand uva/uvb/heating bulb I can buy? I've heard about one called Reptisun but cannot find it in pet stores or online.
Lastly, how close should the bulb be positioned to the tank? Is a 12" rise between the bulb and the tank the standard distance across the board?

*Please forgive me if any of these Q's have already been posted and answered. I haven't run across them yet.

[SpotsMama]

You're correct - the halogen bulb isn't emitting the UV that your turtle will need but it is a nice bulb. The advantage over a regular household incandescent bulb, of course, is that it's shatterproof.

There are two paths to take to provide heat and light:

1. Two separate bulbs - an incandescent (or your halogen will do) for heat and a fluorescent for UVA and UVB. This is the typical configuration for a smaller setup (tank less than 55 gallons). Both lights should be positioned over the basking area.

a. The correct distance from the basking area for the heat bulb is determined by the temperature it generates. The temp on the basking area needs to be around 88 or 90 degrees (or a bit higher if your turtles like it hot). You must measure the temperature with a thermometer - you can't tell by how it feels. You'll have to experiment some - raising and lowering the bulb - until it produces just the right temperature for basking.

b. The correct distance for the fluorescent bulb should be determined by the manufacturers specifications. Some, like a typical 5.0 UVB tube fluorescent, need to be very close - 6 or 8 inches from the turtle. Some, like a Reptisun 5.0, which is very strong, need to be further away and you need to carefully follow the instructions provided regarding the break-in period. A good bulb that a lot of people use is a 26 watt Repti Glo 5.0 compact fluorescent bulb. Just follow directions on the distance.

2. The other alternative for light is a one-bulb solution. A mercury vapor bulb (MVB) provides both heat and UVB but is too powerful for a small setup. It's recommended for 55 gallon tanks and up. Since you've got two turtles, they're going to need some space so you might consider bitting the bullet and getting a large tank with good equipment, that is if your circumstances will permit. This would be the recommended long term solution. The best bulb is a T Rex 100 watt flood light. It is quite powerful and requires a ceramic fixture that is rated for the wattage.

[steve]

I hope there is a plan to save the turtles in that pond.

I like all the brands SpotsMama mentioned and the best place to order them is online. bigalsonline.com, drsfostersmith.com are the two big ones. Smaller shops like lllreptile.com, reptiledirect.com are good too. Avoid buying bulbs from places like eBay.
Larger stores like Petco and PetStore sometimes match prices, so it might worth the effort to ask.

[marisa]

You should be able to find a number of retailers that sell Reptisuns on-line. I bought mine from www.bigalsonline.com.

If you intend to keep them in the 10-gallon, or even a 20-gallon, I'd use a regular lightbulb if that halogen light goes for the heat. Use whatever wattage will get the basking area temp in the range of 88-90F (checked with a thermometer to be sure it's correct). You can clamp it over the basking area or even use a floor fixture if you have one with a flexible neck. If you use a higher wattage, make sure whatever you screw the bulb in to is ceramic.

For the UVB light, a ten-gallon is rather small, but if you upgraded, a Reptisun 5.0 tube flourescent would be good. The bulb should be 6-8 inches from the basking turtles for maximum benefit; at 12 inches, your turtles would receive a relative small amount of UVB rays. You could go with a 10.0 as well, but the distance from the turtle should be a few inches or so greater.

[SARAM521]

Thanks for the advice guys! I feel empowered!

[SpotsMama]

Do you know what the plan is to save the wild turtles in the pond? Or is there one?

[DavidY]

Cool, a nature preserve! What kinds of animals do you have there? Is it mostly rehabilitated local wildlife or is it more exotic? Welcome to the forum and I'd love to hear more about your work.

[SARAM521]

Hey everyone. Sorry I haven't gotten back to answering your questions. Unfortunately, there is no structured plan for saving the current turtles or fish that live in the ponds. I was VERY sad to hear this from the director at my job. There is, however, an attempt to restock the ponds after they are emptied. The reason I've been given for the ponds being dredged is that a lot of sediment has collected in the ponds, which apparently isn't good for them. I can't remember the reason why it's bad, though. The director was saying that in order for the ponds to thrive for another 20 years or so, this has to be done. She thinks that some of the turtles will have an ok chance of surviving for a while without pond water, but she is going to try and do this whole process quickly so we don't lose many turtles. I think the fish a re pretty much all doomed though. I love fish as well. The preserve doesn't have exotics, only animals that are native to GA as well as the preserve's land, which includes RES (even though they're invasive). I'll keep you guys posted on how the ponds are after the big drain! Pray for the RES!

[Bumby's Mom]

I have one of the Reptiglo 5.0 UVB bulbs in my 10 gallon over the basking area. This bulb alone makes the basking spot 86-89 degrees depending on how warm the house is. Right now it is at 89 and the hatchlings are enjoying it.