My old man leopard gecko, Gak is in a 20 long glass enclosure, and has been for many years. He came to us from his previous home using a red heat lamp, which is what we’ve been using until recently we found out the boxes lie and reptiles CAN see some form of light from the bulb >:(
I’d like to get him switched to a CHE, but they don’t have the handy distance-temp chart on the boxes like the heat bulbs do, so I’m having trouble determining what wattage would best suit his needs.
With the clamp, his heat lamp sits probably 1.5 feet from his basking spot, so I’m not sure if I need a 100 watt CHE bulb like I do his red heat bulbs, or if I need to go smaller.
Some companies who don’t have the chart on the box will give that information to online retailers for their listings, if you search the product online. For example, here’s Dubia’s listing for an Exo Terra 100w CHE with distance-temp included:
Would a CHE bulb be fine to go in my ceramic base dome clamp light base that currently holds the heat bulb, I’m getting mix online answers and trust you guys the most, sorry for the silly questions!
I always recommend the wire basket type of housing for CHEs. They get so warm at the base that some of the domes just kind of superheat and can cause fire hazards with the wires involved. The wire baskets let the excess heat disperse with the base more easily.
This was an issue with them years ago, so that may have changed in more modern builds. Using a dimmer or thermostat is also highly recommended. I haven’t used them in over a decade so I could be giving dated info.
With luck you’re gonna see more people pop in with more advice. =)
I have been using CHEs in domes for over a year with no issues. One thing I will say is that my 100 watt bulb will get to like 700*F (the dome only gets to about 300 I believe) so make sure to keep everything away from it.