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Vivarium Lights

VIVARIUM LIGHTING

Vivarium lighting is an essential component of any successful enclosure setup. From the right wattage and bulb type to the types of lighting fixtures, there is so much to consider when it comes to vivarium lighting. Fortunately, with the right knowledge and research, you can determine the best lighting for your particular setup. Explore our tips, tricks, and case studies to ensure that your vivarium lighting setup is optimized for your unique space.

The Basics Of Lighting

When setting up a vivarium, it is important to understand the key lighting terms such as lumens, LUX, candela, Kelvin, PAR, FC, and watts. These measurements help understand vital aspects needed for any type of vivariums light source. Knowing these measurements can help ensure that you have the best lighting setup for your enclosure’s plants and inhabitants.

The Lights Color

The color spectrum is the range of hues that all visible light emits. On a full spectrum, the colors start with red and end with violet. In addition, the range includes all the colors in between. Different colors have different wavelengths that affect how our eyes perceive them.

For example, blue and violet light has shorter wavelengths, while red and orange light has longer wavelengths. We measure those wavelengths in units of Kelvin (K).

In most vivariums, you will generally see lights being used in various shades of white. It’s common to refer to these shades as temperature. For instance, 2700k would be considered warm white, whereas 6000k might be cool white.

The light’s color will affect how vivarium plants grow.

The Lights Intensity

Our eyes perceive light intensity in the form of brightness. The brightness of the vivarium’s light source is vital to the well-being of the overall ecosystem. Luckily, there are a number of ways to measure that brightness.

LUX and PAR are the two common ways to measure the brightness these lights emit. LUX is very useful when deciding on the right amount of light the inhabitants in the enclosure should receive. PAR is useful for measuring the amount of light that’s available for plants.

Knowing how to accurately measure the brightness of lights for your plants will it much easier to replicate a natural habitat.

Best Lights For A Vivarium

Now that you understand some of the basics of lighting, it’s time to figure out what the best lighting will be for your vivarium. That brings on a new set of challenges that will be simple to break down. Before overwhelming you with all of the different types of lighting currently available, there are still things to consider. Like the size of the enclosure, what inhabits it, and does the tank have an aquatic section. So let’s start with what type of vivarium you have.


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