# ceramic bulb problem? (not getting very hot)



## Jim2109 (Mar 30, 2009)

ok so i bought a 250W Lucky Reptile 'Dark Spot' ceramic bulb today because i couldnt get my night temps high enough.

how hot should it be, as in how hot to the touch? ive got 100W spot bulbs, and they burn to touch. infra red temp gun says in excess of 100 degsC which sounds about right

my brand new ceramic, after running for around 4 hours, is warm to the touch, not hot, and infra red temp gun says 36 degsC (which is pretty much what it feels like)

common sense tells me that this probably isnt right. its a 250W heating device that is barely hotter than ambient! do they have a break in period or something? or does this one sound faulty?

the shop i bought it from is over an hour round trip so im really hoping i dont need to take it back. but it doesnt seem right that its so cold, and ive got water dragons arriving tomorrow so i need to get it sorted one way or another.

thoughts anyone?

P.S. light bulbs work perfectly in the same socket, i already tested that. running it without a stat makes no difference.


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## Mitchellz (Apr 26, 2009)

i use a 50 W for a 10 gallon tank for my leo and its hot...That's weird....


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## Jim2109 (Mar 30, 2009)

ive been searching through old posts, this ceramic is definitely not right. it should be MUCH hotter. im going to have to take it back tomorrow and swap it i think. it costs almost as much in petrol as it does to buy another ceramic though lol


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## suez (Jul 8, 2007)

Jim2109 said:


> ive been searching through old posts, this ceramic is definitely not right. it should be MUCH hotter. im going to have to take it back tomorrow and swap it i think. it costs almost as much in petrol as it does to buy another ceramic though lol


yep i would say def faulty if its not heating even without stat .250 should burn your hands off.


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## Jim2109 (Mar 30, 2009)

gonna have another play with it in the morning and try it out in a different socket, just to rule out every possible problem. if its not working then il take it back and swap it. pain in the ar5e, but i guess its one of those things


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## suez (Jul 8, 2007)

Jim2109 said:


> gonna have another play with it in the morning and try it out in a different socket, just to rule out every possible problem. if its not working then il take it back and swap it. pain in the ar5e, but i guess its one of those things


you need to make sure the holder is equiped to take the wattage of the bulb .you probs know that already.i think if it was the socket it wouldnt heat at all.


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## Jim2109 (Mar 30, 2009)

sockets are ceramic with high temp mains cable (0.75mm, should be good for well over 1kW so that isnt an issue)

the only possible problem aside from the ceramic bulb itself is either bad wiring, a dodgy bulb holder, or a dodgy fuse/plug. however a 100W spot bulb in the holder works absolutely perfectly and my wiring is generally pretty tidy so im not really doubting myself on that.

its got to be the bulb, i need sleep, so il test it again tomorrow and then get another. it wont be another Lucky Reptile one though thats for sure.

as another quick question, how long do they generally take to get upto temperature in other peoples experience?


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## suez (Jul 8, 2007)

get very hot to touch within mins: victory:


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## Paulusworm (Jan 26, 2009)

Definately sounds like a faulty ceramic, especially if the fittings work fine with a different lamp fitted. 

My 100w gets way too hot to touch within minutes and the 3ft viv it's in gets up to temp quite quickly. Take it back because something definately isn't right with it.


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## Jim2109 (Mar 30, 2009)

tested it again and it doesnt get hot at all, literally doesnt change in temperature. the heat it had last night was just from its proximity to a spot bulb, it was absorbing the heat from that. it rattles as well, as if the element is blown. and when i got it the bag it should have been sealed in inside the box was already open, so i wonder if it hasnt been taken back once already and just put back on the shelf!

going to take it back in a minute and swap it for a different bulb, not going to trust another lucky reptile one unless they can demo it working for me in the store!


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## reptile boy (Apr 7, 2009)

*bulb*

i had a 150watt lucky reptile ceramic bulb is it yellow? if soo myn use 2 goo red hot burn ya finger off!!


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## Dan Bristow (Jan 12, 2008)

ensure the connectors inside the holder are bent out enough. the connectors on the lamps themselves can differ to the ones on lights bulbs so may not be getting a good contact.apart from that you can always put a multimeter on the ceramic and see what the resistance of the element is. should be a few hundred ohms. i had 3 which all blew on me in the same day!!all open circuit.replaced them and now they are fine.


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## fastbaz (Aug 12, 2007)

i have a 150 watt ceramic and that is too hot to touch runs really well on its pulse stat... so yours should be really hot in a couple of mins


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## Jim2109 (Mar 30, 2009)

replaced it with a new one of the same type. 350 degsC surface temp now, i think its working!! i think 250W was a touch overkill, 100W would have been a better idea. i need 250's for my new viv, so might get myself a 100W for this one and save the 250W for later, otherwise im going to end up with my basking lights switched off all the time to keep the temperatures in check because the ceramic is too efficient lol


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## Paulusworm (Jan 26, 2009)

Jim2109 said:


> replaced it with a new one of the same type. 350 degsC surface temp now, i think its working!! i think 250W was a touch overkill, 100W would have been a better idea. i need 250's for my new viv, so might get myself a 100W for this one and save the 250W for later, otherwise im going to end up with my basking lights switched off all the time to keep the temperatures in check because the ceramic is too efficient lol


Jim we're gonna have to change your user id to 'Goldilocks'. The first one was too cold, this one's too hot. Hopefully the next one will be just right :lol2:.

Glad to hear it's all sorted now :2thumb:.


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