I've had Themis, my breaded dragon, for 6 years now. Before I had gotten her my brother had (still does have) his own beardie. He chose to for the first 6 months or so of owning his bearded dragon to use ExoTerra dessert uvb bulbs for her. Now I'm not sure what exactly caused this, but during those 6 months he went through 7 or 8 uvb bulbs with the longest lasting 2 months and the shortest less than a week. In none of these cases did he break the bulb, it simply went out or wouldn't turn back on in the morning. Also, we tried changing lamps to see if that was the cause however it wasn't. So when I got my beardie five months after him I made sure to stear clear of the brand he had gotten. Obviously the brand I chose was Zillas dessert uvb bulb! I was very afraid that the bulb was going to break fairly often like it had with my brother and I'd spent almost double on this bulb than he was paying for his so that made me extra worried. Because of my concern I kept tabs on the bulb in all the ways an uneducated on the matter young teenager could and would check the brightness of the bulb every day as well as how the bulb looked and take a picture of both once a week (and I was going to every day if something odd seemed to happen, but it never did). These bulbs are fantastic! I have never had a problem with them in the years that I've had my baby Themis. Actually, I've never once even had a zilla uvb bulb go out on me. Not even when I didn't have the money to get a new one when it really needed replacing. The one thing I must say is I replace mine every 6 months apposed to 12 months. I find that after 6 months the light is significantly dimmer, the curls of the bulb seem more gray when compared to a new bulb, and I find it to be oddly funny that the base of the bulb turns a sort of tan. In my experience zilla makes an exceptional dessert uvb bulb and will always be my go to for uvb bulbs!!

Works well. Light has not died nor has my reptile so I can not complain. I recently bought a zilla kit that comes with the lights and fixtures and the tank. Like a starter kit. This bulb is better than the one that came with my kit. If the junk bulbs that came with your kit make you think poorly of zilla they do make good stuff. I don't know if they give junk bulbs in there kit though just so you buy more or what. This replacement bulb is good to go.

I recently discovered that Exo Terra UVB bulbs have almost no UV output!!! I was very upset after using them for years. I have switched to Zilla bulbs and will continue to use them for many years to come.
A little backstory. A licensed veterinary technician that I work with has a lot of reptiles and a passion for exotics. She bought a meter that reads UV output and Exo Terra bulbs have almost none. Nothing compared to what they advertise. Zilla bulbs held up to their promise. I'm very hurt by the ordeal and will now invest my money in Zilla products. I'm sure my tortoise will be thankful, too.

These bulbs have helped me to save a tortoise who came to me with multiple deformities from lack of proper UVB and nutrition. However, people buying them for the first time need to understand that the UV is much more intense from these compact florescent bulbs than from straight ones. If you install this bulb at the same height you would place a standard bulb, you will end up with animals with "sunburned" eyes. There's a lot of info out there saying that CF bulbs are dangerous. They're not -- IF placed appropriately. Placed too close, they can cause blindness

Bulb was as described. No problems works great.