Birds lamps for birds with little light?

[finchbob]

I have a large bird lamp in my bird room but it only really gives decent light to the higher part of the room, the lower part, which is where I house all of my bengalese foster pairs doesn't get much light in it, no direct light shining in.

I have a few gouldian pairs in spots where it's a bit dark too but I bought smaller bird lights for their cages specifically, which gives the best light of all but only to that specific pair of birds.

Does anyone know if the foster parent bengalese will benefit much from the same smaller bird lights? Buying the lights like this is expensive because it works out to be about 40 dollars per cage for the bird lump + fittings. I'm not trying to breed the foster parent bengalese, they just sit on eggs and raise young of other birds who refuse to either sit on eggs or look after the young.

I'm asking all this because I know of breeders who swear by bird lights, that they've had great breeding results since getting bird lights in all their cages. I just wonder if it it's necessary for foster pairs because the aim isn't to allow those pairs to raise their own young, but other birds.

Could more light actually harm foster parenting results? More light means the birds would be more active, i'm not sure if this would mean they would be more or less happy to sit on eggs and raise young.

[Sally]

I have a light on every cage, even those cages that house non-breeding birds, but that is because I enjoy seeing them, and they don't show up well without the lights. I see no need to buy expensive lights, though. You could get those clamp-on lamps that have a reflector hood at any big box hardware store, then put whatever bulb gives a pleasing light (to you). I use the bulbs marked daylight or sunshine, but I don't depend on them to supply the birds with the 'daylight' they need--for that, I make sure they have plenty of vitamin D3. I also use shoplights for fluorescent tubes, or smaller under-cabinet types--whatever fits the situation.

[ac12]

I do as Sally mentioned.
Clamp on light with a DAYLIGHT compact flourescent bulb.
At Home Depot, I think the clamp on lights were about $6.
The bulbs were $6 for a pack of 4 bulbs.
I use the clamp on lamp cuz I have a stack of 4 cages, and the only way to illuminate the lower 3 is from the side.
The other "problem" that this method creates is, now you have to put ALL the cage lamps on a timer. So they go on and off at the same time, or to stagger the lights off for banks of cages.