I'm shopping around for a new/better UVB setup for my beardie and realized I have a few questions about this whole UVB light thing. Some of these may have been answered on one of the other threads I've posted in the past, but this post is also kind of intended as a place for beginners to come if they're clueless about this
Things I already know: reptiles need UVB to produce vitamin D3 in order to properly absorb calcium, which prevents MBD; UVB lights decay over time and eventually stop putting out UVB; full-spectrum bulbs do not necessarily provide the right amount of UVB light, if any, hence a straight UVB bulb is needed.
So. Talking about fluorescent bulbs, Zilla and Reptisun each sell fluorescent bulbs but they seem to rate their UVB outputs differently? Or maybe I just need to read the fine print. Zilla's bulb packaging will say things like "Desert 50" or "Tropical 25" and mention things like "UVA" and "full-spectrum" and "high-intensity." ZooMed's Reptisun lights, however, are rated as "10.0" and "5.0" and only mention UVB output and penetration.