Whats the best UVB bulb for a beardie?

Question

when i got my beardie back in feburary the breeder sold me a UVA, UVB, and heat bulb. he told me to leave it on 24/7 so i did, it hasn't burned out it just doesnt get as hot as it used to. i recently got him a 110 gallon reptile lounge from craigslist, it doesnt have a lid so i need a bulb i can put into a lamp and not a light fixture.

Answer 1

If you're looking for a bulb, there are a variety of Mercury Vapor Bulbs you can use to fit the bill.  They put out a lot of heat, and have good UVB percentage outputs. I've heard Sunforce are pretty decent, but have not used them myself.   The downside is they are quite expensive and some have a habit of burning out early.  I'm not familiar with a reptile lounge, is it a mesh sided enclosure?  If so, they're really not the best for beardies, they let a LOT of heat escape.  So you will need to get a few more bulbs to keep the general temperature of the enclosure up if its mesh.

And you don't need to leave it on all day/night.  12 hours on/12 hours off is a fine cycle.  You're beardie isn't programmed to handle 24 hours of sunlight every day all day.  And its hard on the light.  

Answer 2

The best bulb is the MegaRay MVB, it can only be ordered from http://www.reptileuv.com/  That has heat&UVB all in one.

The best Fluorescent tube is the ReptiSUN 10.0.  This has only UVB light, but no heat.

Also, don't leave the light on 24/7. That is very stressing for beardies. They need complete dark&quiet to sleep. They also should not have heat at night, unless temps drop below 62 degrees. They need a drop in temps at night to sleep.