I am sending my MR bulb and shade back for an exchange...What I would like to know is..As a temperary measure I am using my understairs light, you know the clip on type. I have a 40w bulb on this, Will this be sufficient heat for a few days.I know no UV will be ok just for a few days, but will 40w give Teddy enough warmth? I do want to make sure she's ok just till the new bulb and shade comes :) Hopefully asap!!

Hi,

I think its a case of try it and see what temperature you get. I use small 60 watt regular spot bulbs for some of my turtles and these pump out plenty of heat. And you don't have to have a minimum distance as there's no UV involved so you could position the bulb closer than you normally would an MVB lamp to get the desired temperature.

Hi

I have removed my MR fromKeya's enclosure as it said if you notice any irration to the eyes remove it straight away. I had noticed that keya's eyes seemed a bit sensative and thought it was the substrate that was too dry, so started to spray it every night. I looked at the bulb and found a bubble in the silver covering on the bulb. I think I am going to give up with MR's as they seem to have lots of problems, luckily I just brought a solar glow for a back up so I was able to put that in keya's pen. Powersun are not much better as they just blow, all these bulbs are just too expensive. It is so hard to know what is the best to use
Jane

Hi Jane,

I think you've done the right thing with the Megaray.  I posted last night that ReptileUV who make the Megaray had made a statement on their website that some MR bulbs have left the factory with a fault. The bubbling you have described matches what they are saying. I suggest that you contact the supplier of your Megaray for advice.

Heres the link I posted

http://www.tortoise-protection-group.org.uk/site/130.asp?tID=6606

I think Teddy is sulking!! Big time!! She seems very quite :( Not so active as before now her bulb has gone! I have place a 60w normal house bulb in her enclosure to give her heat, It is hot enough in there for her...But why is she sulking?? Does she know that the bulb is different? Is she clever enough to realise that the normal MR bulb has gone. Am hoping for the replacement to arrive Thursday. What's your thoughts??

Hi, your tortoise may be reacting to the reduction in light.  For a mediterranean tortoise a household light bulb is very dim, so although your tortoise is warm enough, he is not stimulated by light and so is inactive.

Thats what I thought, I have to bear in mind that the MR bulb is much stronger aswell...So 60 w isnt enough for her...This wont harm her will it?? I am expecting my replacement bulb thursday.She is eating which is good but she's not very active and looks sad :( which makes me sad too :( This will not cause any problems will it?

Hi Dave

Thanks- I hope that it has not damaged Keya's eyes, her eyes seemed abit irritated when I brought her in doors under the lamp in October, but I would never have connected it with the UV I thought it was the atmosphere that was a bit dry. What do you use for UV?
Jane

Hi Claire,

I agree with Ozric, the quality of light will be much reduced and I firmly believe that tortoises respond to good quality light. There is a line of thought that tortoises can see into the UV spectrum and a household bulb produces no UV. If its only until Thursday , it'll be fine, nothing worse than a grumpy tortoise though is there!

Hi Jane,

I use all kinds of bulbs to be honest but the majority are manufactured by Megaray. I'm currently trying a T Rex Active UV heat 100w bulb. The UVB readings are intially good and the bulb has great test results from the UV Guide.

This latest blip only affected a number , not all,  Megarays and I know the UK supplier is trying to get the batch numbers of the affected bulbs. If you have any concerns at all drop an email to darren@megaray.co.uk or give him a call on the number on the Kimbos reptile world website.

Thank you for your replies! I am rather worried now :( Teddy is very quiet, I hope she's not ill...She was perfectly normal before I removed the MR bulb. Now she's very quiet and hardly moves from her spot...I understand that lack of light will cause her to slow down...I havent fed her today, I am trying to reduce her feeds as she is a little big for her age..please assure me she's fine. As a newbie, I feel concerned for her...

Hello,

I honestly think its the low light level combined with the gloomy cold weather over the last couple of days. I quick whizz round the tortoise forums tonight and a lot of people seem to be noticing the same behaviour this week.

Is your replacement MR due tomorrow still?

Hi Dave, Yeah I hadn't thought about that! The weather has been very cold recently, Im in Dartford Kent. YES It's probably a combination of the cold and lack of light too. I am keeping my fingers crossed it will come tomorrow. Teddy seemed to liven up a bit this afternoon when I got home from work, so I fed her...Felt awful for not feeding her :(, just gave her few leaves..She was happy to eat. lol Hopefully she'll be her usual self once the bulb I put back. Thanks for you help :)

I can safely vouch for the poor weather conditions in your area, I'm in Abbey Wood just up the road.

Hi

Claire I hope your lamp arrives tomorrow and everything is back to normal

Dave
Do you know much about the solarglo's?  and how long do the T Rex ones last for?

Thanks
Jane

Dave, I know Abbeywood! My parents have friends there, Is your surname Kent by any chance? lol

Jane Ohh! so do I, It feels like forever without it! I noticed that too with Teddy, once I had cleaned it out and had a change around she has a nose around for hours, checking it all out lol..

Hi Jane,

I haven't personally used the T Rex Solarglo lamp and I haven't come across any testing done on them. I have just got hold of one of the new T Rex Active UV Heat 100w bulbs, I've only powered it up briefly to test the initial UVB output and it was putting out a respecable amount, though not quite at the levels of a new Megaray. The other thing I found was that it struggled to reach a basking spot temperature above 32C at 12 inches, this may be because I didnt leave the lamp on for long enough though. I've not got any tortoises awake to point it at a the moment so I won't know for a little while how it measures up. It got a very good review with the UV guide, the UVB output doesn't appear to deteriorate rapidly like some bulbs

http://www.uvguide.co.uk/mercvapournarrowfloods.htm#uvheatnewflood 

I think they may be a good alternative to a Megaray.

Oh and Claire,  no my surnames not Kent, close though!

Still no sign of my replacement bulb and shade :( I was really hoping it would arrive today...Teddy looks soooo sad, Its making me sad too :(...

Dave..Ohh nevermind, you know it can be a small world :) Thought perhaps you may have known my family, my dad is well know, everyone knows him lol

Claire,

The only other suggestion is to go to a DIY store and pick up a Halogen spot bulb like this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sylvania-Halogen-PAR30-Diameter-Edison/dp/B001QP6SGS/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&s=lighting&qid=1264699442&sr=8-12

I use halogens up to 150watts to provide additional light and heat for some of my tortoises. They dont give out UVB but the quality of the light is good (better than the "sunlight" bulbs sold for reptiles) and the temperatures will easily reach those of a MVB lamp. The big ones will need a ceramic socket because they get very hot. You might have to lay out for a lamp holder if you are waiting for a replacement for your current one, I wouldn't use them in a standard plastic fitting or something like a desk lamp.

They're useful bulbs to have as spares if your MVB lamp blows.

Dave Thank you for the idea! Wished I had known this before, now I know :) I will keep a back up in future...Wasnt planning on this :( Its seems a long wait...If it dont arrive tomorrow I shall be on the phone!!! Thank you for the idea.I shall remember this!!
What "MVB" mean lol...ohh I know Mercury Vapour bulb?? yeah lol

:( Am still waiting :( Never again will I return my bulb without a back up :( Had I known i'd have to wait this long, I wouldn't have sent back without a spare.

Hi Claire

I am in a similar situation, but I did buy a back up but that is playing up too, so don't blame yourself for not being prepared, lamps are like cars brilliant when they work but chaos when they pack up. 

Dave - I am reading the info on UK Reptile uv link and trying to absorb the information to get a better understanding how it all works, so get prepared for questions coming the TGP way!!!! in the meantime I am going to resort to my Powersun UV strip light, all of this is taking me into realms that I never dreamed I could or was capable of going I am trying to break it down into bite sized

Jane, Keya & Molly

:( Still waiting Not happy! :(

I am happy today, my bulb and shade has arrived!!! Just one question, I now have the Zoo Med deep dome shade... Is there meant to be a clamp in the box with this one? as there wasnt one in the box :(

Hi Claire, glad its finally arrived!  With my dome shade (not sure if it was the same as yours) I didnt have a clamp, attached to mine was a chain to hang it, I used a hanging basket bracket to hang it over the enclosure.

It may be helpful if you could post a link to it or a photo, for us to advise

Regards Vivienne