I do have a question regarding the availability of Halogens moving forward. All the retailers I've talked to said that the US will be (is currently in the process of) banning the use of Halogens will this follow suit for the reptile industry and their Halogens as well?
Since the focus of the ban is for lightbulbs for home use, bulbs made for the reptile hobby are actually currently exempt! Unless anything changes, heating bulbs will be safe. In the off-chance though that heat bulbs are banned in the future, alternative solutions such as Deep Heat Projectors and Ceramic Heat Emitters should be able to fill their void alongside other energy-efficient light sources such as LEDs.
Since their enclosures are really large, ceramic heat emitters won't be effective, as they can't radiate enough heat to properly heat the area. Their enclosure can actually drop to as low as 70°F at night, so if your house remains at or above this temperature, there's no need to supply any additional heat at night! If you do need to supply additional heat, we would actually recommend Radiant Heat Panels, or using other means to heat the whole room to an appropriate temperature.
Since you already have a fantastic UVB bulb for them, we would recommend going with a halogen for heating. This will give you more flexibility, since you can use a thermostat to dial into the exact temperatures your skinks will need!
Sounds like your light may have been defective, as halogens are typically pretty sturdy and lon-lasting. If you ordered it through us, you can contact our customer support team through the "contact us" link on our site, and we can help you get a replacement!
Zilla actually makes a Mini Halogen Reptile Bulb that uses the T3 standard! As long as the bulb supplies an appropriate amount of light and heat for your reptile, it should be fine!
On the flipside, a combination of a halogen bulb and a T5 UVB bulb allows for more fine control of heat and UVB levels independently of each other. While mercury vapor bulbs are perfect for some setups, independent heat and UVB are better for others, which is why we outline the pros and cons of each so people can make a better informed decision.
