Lighting help

[Greenhalgh88]

Hi. I’m new to this forum. I need some help with my lighting. I have a bio active Terrarium for my tiger salamander with live plants. What kind of light do I use for the plants and not give off heat so it won’t hurt the tiger salamander. Thank you

 

[JoshBA]

A cheap led fixture/bulb should be sufficient, but it depends on your plants' needs. The cheap screw-in LED bulbs sold as incandescent/fluorescent replacements actually work pretty well for low light plants. However, leds do produce some heat, especially with the higher wattage fixtures designed for plants (although even lower wattage bulbs give off considerable heat). You could raise the light a few inches above the terrarium lid to minimize this issue.

 

[ellenc]

An aquarium fluorescent fixture works. It can be raised on blocks on top of the terrarium at both ends to minimize heat.

 

[emergent]

Hey, I'm new to this forum also. I'm coming from the dart frog hobby. I use a Fluval Aquasky LED for my 29 gallon tank. It doesn't produce much heat and the plants are all prospering nicely. My tank stays around 73 F. You can pick it up on-line or in pet stores for around $80.

 

[vettdreamn]

Speaking of lighting help....anyone use a black/blue light (for glowing tank decor) with a lotl tank with live plants? I am purchasing all my "stuff" to set up my tank next week to start cycling but before I invest in what I think i want, i would like to make sure it will work and not cause issues.

 

[axolotl nerd]

Speaking of lighting help....anyone use a black/blue light (for glowing tank decor) with a lotl tank with live plants? I am purchasing all my "stuff" to set up my tank next week to start cycling but before I invest in what I think i want, i would like to make sure it will work and not cause issues.

i dont have any gfp axolotls (until this summer anyways, one of the females i’m getting is gfp) so i don’t have a blacklight. i also have live plants so also not a problem for me personally. the only real problem is that lotls are known to be very sensitive to light (no eyelids!)
i personally leave a light on in the room during the day which i turn off at night to sleep (axolotl is in my bedroom)
i leave the light on because 1) my axolotl is accustomed to light and doesn’t seem to mind it and 2) to facilitate growth in my java ferns

good luck!

 

[Pigalit]

Speaking of lighting help....anyone use a black/blue light (for glowing tank decor) with a lotl tank with live plants? I am purchasing all my "stuff" to set up my tank next week to start cycling but before I invest in what I think i want, i would like to make sure it will work and not cause issues.

I have pretty much that exact setup except for the live plant. My light can change from normal light to blue light and to night light. Generally, blue light suppresses extension growth; plants grown with blue light are usually shorter and have smaller, thicker and darker green leaves compared to plants grown without blue light - from google
Maybe look into getting a similar light that I have if you want to grow larger plants while also being able to have glow in the dark setup.

 

[Tolkien]

I'm sure you can find a night light plug in at Ikea. It will work great for your salamander. You will definitely find what you need there. Undoubtedly, there should be a lamp over its terrarium. And for night time, you can buy an LED nightlight. Generally speaking, a solar lamp on a flagpole gives great lighting. I don't know if you can attach it to the wall, but I don't think it should only be used on the flagpole. It gives perfect lighting for the eyes. I hope you can set it up so that your pet is comfortable and enjoys his time.