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Well today i was doing a water change and the water was really warm. i know you should not have water as warm as that. but i think it is because i keep both lights on all day one for ubv and one for basking. is there a certain time when i can turn on the basking light and a certain time when i can turn on the ubv light. Should i figure out when he basks and turn on the heat light than turn off the ubv light so the water will stay cooler?

Can you tell us the exact temp
By checking with a Thermometer

Both the basking and UVB light have to be on so he can dry up and absorb UVB ray

If the water is really hot than i suggest you turn off your heater than check where the temp is

If its 76-78 then just dont use the heater during the day
Turn the heater on at night

Thats all i can say until you can tell me the temp

If you can, you could also try a compact florescent UVB bulb to cut down on heat. I heard they work pretty well.

If the room temp is about 10-15 degrees more than the water temp, then you probably won't need the basking light. However, it's not recommended to have just a fluorescent light as the sole light source for your tank.

I meant it to be used with the heat lamp. From oobie's description, I thought they had two lights in two fixtures.

yes i have 2 lights in 2 fixtures.

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kenaz, you really should post that question under Habitats-Outdoor. You'd probably get a better response.

oobie58, a flourescent UVB light isn't really going to make much of a difference in the water temp. In the past, when it's been really hot, I've turned off the heat light and let my RES bask under the UVB light alone (some people have had problems with their UVB lights, specifically Reptisun compact flourescents, and their turtles' eyes, and I confess I've never had my turtles basking under this brand and type of bulb alone).

What wattage is the heat light? If it's making the water that warm, you should check the basking area temp because that also could be too warm. You could try using a lower wattage heat light (use a regular lightbulb) and see if the water says cooler (the basking area should still be 88-90F, though). If the water is warm because the room your turtle is in is really warm, you're going to have to lower the water temp with another method, like partial water changes.