Sun Lamp?

[SailBoat]

This is what Teddscau uses: Arcadia Parrot Pro UV Flood - ReptilesRuS

The Arcadia bulbs are supposed to be the best UV lights. Their UVA and UVB output (or whatever the term is) is far more appropriate for birds than what other brands' bulbs...radiate? I don't know, I'm up early, so my brain isn't working properly quite yet.

Not being mean here, but can you explain just how a common light bulb produces UV Light Wave. At present, I am only aware of a tinting process that provides a color 'like' one would see outside, at noon, on a bright sunny day.

Understand that tanning beds are very different and without great care can Blind and seriously Burn!

You don't know about UV bulbs? I don't know exactly how they work, but they do emit ultraviolet waves. For example, you've got UV filters for water (pools, drinking water, fish tanks, etc.) that house an ultraviolet bulb inside them, killing germs and other pathogens as they pass through the filter. We've got one for our well so we don't end up with E. coli or whatever. Not to mention there's plenty of sterilization systems which use UV technology to sterilize stuff.

Okay, just did a quick search, and apparently the bulbs emit UV rays by...well, here: How does a UV Lamp work? - Southern Lamps, Inc.

X-rays, visible light, microwaves, radio waves, ultraviolet, gamma, infrared...they're all just different wavelengths and frequencies on the electromagnetic spectrum. In the same way we can use technology to create infrared lamps, microwaves, and X-rays, to name a few, we can also use technology to create ultraviolet light.

UV lights aren't your average lightbulbs. The run of the mill lightbulb can't create UV. UV bulbs are specially designed to produce ultraviolet light by emitting energy at the appropriate wavelength and frequency.

UV bulbs and fixtures are a staple in reptile, amphibian, fish, and coral husbandry, and it's now gaining popularity in the avicultural world. I'm unable to bring my birds outside since it would involve trapping them in a cage, hauling said cage up the stairs, and then placing it outside on a calm warm day. So, to make the best out of a less than ideal situation, I provide my birds with both regular lighting and ultraviolet light. The UV bulbs (assuming you get the proper bulbs since there's a lot of complicated technical jargon concerning...confusing stuff) allow my birds to see in the UV range and have a richer colour experience thanks to the UVA emitted from the lights, and the UVB emitted converts the oils on their feathers into vitamin D (or maybe it's a precursor to vitamin D?) for them to ingest. Obviously, you don't want to be using reptile UV bulbs for birds since the UV emitted can lead to injury (a lot of reptile bulbs have a really high UVB output since many reptiles live in the desert where the sun is constantly beating down and reflecting back up off the ground).

The whole UV thing is confusing. However, many avian vets recommend UV bulbs with an appropriate output to be used in captive birds who don't have the opportunity to go outside very often. It should be noted that UV bulbs often can't be put into any old fixture. You have to make sure the fixture is compatible with UV bulbs, or else you're wasting your money. That's why I can only get the puny Arcadia Flood-Pro instead of their 4' T-8s. I'd love to have huge bulbs like that, but the wattage required...they don't make fixtures for that wattage. If you were to put those bulbs in a typical 4' T-8 fixture, they'd explode. Freaking stupid that they make bulbs with a wattage requirement that DOESN'T EXIST.

On a side note, you have to keep an eye on your birds when using an ultraviolet light (or taking them outside to soak up UV direct from the sun). Exposure to UV can make them hormonal, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't use it. Many animals have markings that are only visible when exposed to ultraviolet light. The same goes for plants. Plants use ultraviolet displays to attract pollinators and encourage animals to eat their fruit to disperse their seeds. There's a whole world out there that humans were never meant to experience.

YES, I know exactly what a UV arc bulb is and I know that 99% of what claims to be UV based light is nothing more than a tinted traditional light bulb.

Teddscau, I thank-you for being the first one in years to provide clarity as to what a UV arc bulb is comprised and how they in fact work. That said, My question was: "how a common light bulb produces UV Light Wave" As we both know, they do not!

IMHO, UV arc bulbs are just plain dangerous in the vast majority of Avian use!

For Avian use: Providing light using 'Day Light' series light bulbs is far safer and will provide the 'light clue' needed to provide the mental stimulation they /we need to get us all though the humdrum of Winter.

At the end of the day, that is what our Avian Vets are looking for regardless of the 'terms' that are being bandied about.

 

[MonicaMc]

I finally pulled the trigger and got my birds some lighting last year. It wasn't necessarily that they needed 'sunlight' or whatever but my house is SO dark and they literally needed some legit light. They are by a window but there are by no other lamps or lighting so I had to get them something.

I bought them this:

- 8.5 inch clamp light

- Zoo Med Avian Sun 5.0 UVB Fluorescent Lamp, 26w

I hung it over their cage as per the bulb instructions. It goes on when I get ready for work (around 6:45am) and I turn it off when I return from work around 5pm, so they get roughly 11-12 hours of (day)light a day, year-round. They've had it now about a year and they are well-adjusted to it. I have had no issues with it as of yet and will continue to use it for my birds.

How close is the bulb to the cage?