Different Temp with Mercury Vapour Bulbs

Lankyrob · 11-06-10, 07:57 AM

Ok, had 125w bulb in my Monitor cage and temps been totally fine. Had to replace teh bulb - got another 125w bulb - now temps are too high.

has anyone else experienced this - the only difference with the setup is the new bulb but basking temp is 25f higher than it was before??

As the mercury vapour cant be put on a thermostat any ideas about keeping the temp down? Apart from turning it off more often - dont want to do this too much because then the monitor wont be getting as much UVA and UVB..........

infernalis · 11-06-10, 09:10 AM

That's a tough call Rob.

MV lamps are variable, just a minute difference in mercury pressure can affect the performance of the lamp dramatically.

Unfortunately at the factory quality control allows for a 20% margin before they reject the lamp. (They are expensive to manufacture, so the plants hate to cull any they can get away with selling)

Can you move the location of the lamp??

Oh another more important thing, MV lamps should last years not weeks, makes me curious since the original lamp should still work fine, What manufacturer was it? is the new one the same manufacturer or a different one.?

Lankyrob · 11-06-10, 12:41 PM

The previous bulb has lasted a few months but i did whack it this morning which is why it blew!! It is a solar glo, replaced with same brand, make, model etc.

The shop actually said they would replace free of charge as it went within six months (i neglected to inform them of the collision!!)

Unfortunately it is placed as high in the viv as it can go so not really any other place to put it.

infernalis · 11-06-10, 01:18 PM

I'm at a loss then. Not a lot of options, except maybe vent the heat out a bit with some air holes?? (in the roof of the enclosure.)

Lankyrob · 11-06-10, 04:46 PM

Yeah, thats all i could come up with too. The other thought was if ther was a type of vent that could lock into the edge of the glass doors to give a vertical mesh effect at the edge of one of the doors..........

red ink · 11-07-10, 08:39 PM

They tend to be a bit hot when brand new mate as they're "burning in". From exprience they drop about 5C after a couple of weeks.