# Lighting Schedule



## Shell (Aug 23, 2012)

Just went out to pick up two timer's for the heat lamp and the light lamp. Now my concern is when to turn the light on and turn it off. With winter coming its getting darker earlier but in the mornings I have no idea what it looks like out there since I get up at 11am. Is there a rule to when to start the day with lamp light and then when it should be shut off?


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## Skittles (Aug 2, 2012)

Hedgehogs need 12-14 hours of light every day, there are no rules to exact times. Just do what works best for your and your hedghog's lifestyle


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## Shell (Aug 23, 2012)

Ok, I really wish he'd come with a strict manual, but that sounds good.
Thank you.


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## artistshrugged (Sep 5, 2012)

I have mine set to turn on at 8 am I think? And then it turns off at 8:30 pm. I'm not 100% on when it turns on because it is always on when I get up haha. 

As Skittles said though there is no hard and fast rule. I just tried to approximate daylight hours, but I wanted the light to be off while I was still awake enough to spend time with him.


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## Skittles (Aug 2, 2012)

Shell said:


> Ok, I really wish he'd come with a strict manual, but that sounds good.
> Thank you.


You have no idea how often I wish the same thing


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## SquiggyTheHedgie (Jul 26, 2011)

Squiggy's light comes on at 7am and off at 8pm, since thats about the times that the sun works here in the summer, so I try to keep it that way year round


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## Shell (Aug 23, 2012)

I wasnt planning on keeping it on all day as I thought the light that comes through the window would be enough. I was just going to set the timer in the dark hours, early morning, and around 8pm. Is that ok to do? I'm always worried about a bulb bursting or something and catching fire.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

I would set it for all day, to be honest. Sometimes when it's cloudy or if a storm's brewing, the outside light gets very low, almost night-time low. So it's best to have it on all day, just in case. I can't imagine how a light bulb would burst unless it was a higher wattage than the lamp can handle. If you have the correct wattage for the lamp and you don't see any issues with the wiring or outlet, there shouldn't be any dangers to having it on all day.


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## Shell (Aug 23, 2012)

Your right. Now that I think of it, I've kept my light on all weekend and it's fine. What would you condsider the best voltage for the bulb? 60 watts or would less be better?


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

Check the lamp that you're using for light - it should say somewhere on it what the highest wattage of bulb is that it can handle. But yes, if you have the lamp shining right on the cage, you shouldn't need any higher than 75. I think Lily's light was either 60 or 75 watts.


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## Shell (Aug 23, 2012)

My lamp says 120 but I'll sticking in a 75. Thank you for all your help.


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## Lilysmommy (Jan 7, 2009)

No problem!


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## nikki (Aug 28, 2008)

You said you got two timers? one for your heat light? The heat light, or CHE, shouldn't be on a timer, it should be on a thermostat that keeps the cage a steady temp.


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## Shell (Aug 23, 2012)

Sorry for the confusion. I meant one timer for my ceramic space heater, and one for the lamp to keep it light during the day.


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## Shell (Aug 23, 2012)

I'm still on the light schedule :roll: 
I know hedgy's need 12-14 hours of light, but is too much light bad too? I mean going into the wee hours of the night? I am turning the light on at 10am when I wake up and turning it off again at 2am (14 hours) because I come home for work at 10pm, then stay up late on the computer with Percy infront of me in his set up until 2am. As soon as we go to bed I can here him on his wheel but it does start getting light again through the window at about 7am. That's only 5 hours of true darkness for him. It doesn't seem very much. Is that ok? My room is very dark, so I almost always have the light on. This is the last lighting question...I promise.


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## moxieberry (Nov 30, 2011)

Toss a blanket over his cage a few hours before you actually go to sleep, it'll give him darkness before the room is actually dark.


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## Shell (Aug 23, 2012)

I must be really over tired because I just thought of that a few seconds ago, put the blanket over top of his cage, then came back on here and saw your post. I feel like a fool. I've seen people do it with birds, so I should have thought of that right away.
Thank you! I'm done with the lighting questions. 
Next....LOL


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