I have a 55 gallon tank (48" long), with my two turtles in it. I'm looking into getting a strip light instead of a flood bulb. My question is, should I get a 48" light fixture, or 2 24"? The aquarium has a plastic divider at the top, and I'm not sure if a 48" light will melt that.
You can use a strip light for UVB, but you will still need to use some sort of flood/halogen/spot light for heat. Fluorescent bulbs don't give off a significant amount of heat, so you won't be able to achieve proper basking temps using only those. If you decide to use a fluorescent in conjunction with your flood light, either two 24" or one 48" will work. As I said, they give off very little heat, and you don't need to worry about them melting the plastic bracing on your tank. If you decide to use a fluorescent bulb for UVB, make sure you are using a quality brand with a high strength of UVB, such as Zoo Med's Reptisun 10.0, or Exo Terra's Repti Glo 10.0. Welcome to the boards! If you have any further questions please don't hesitate to ask.
