A ceramic fitting is not an upgrade on a plastic one, it is the only correct choice. Reptile heat bulbs run hot enough to degrade a plastic holder over time, and a degraded holder in a humid vivarium is a fault waiting to happen — which is why ceramic is what every keeper eventually ends up with.

This is a ceramic ES lamp fixture with a coated metal mounting bracket, measuring 10.5 x 10 x 6cm, and it takes all Komodo screw-fit heating and lighting bulbs up to 200w. The bracket is sturdy and has 4 mounting apertures so it can be fixed properly rather than balanced. The cable is a long one at 172cm with a switch on it, and the whole fitting is heat and UV resistant for a longer life.

• Ceramic ES lamp fixture with mounting bracket
• 10.5 x 10 x 6cm
• For screw-fit heating and lighting bulbs up to 200w
• 172cm cable with a switch
• Heat and UV resistant
• 4 mounting apertures for fixing

A heat source needs a thermostat, and this is not one. This is a holder and a bracket — it provides no temperature control at all, and an unregulated heat bulb in a vivarium is how animals get burned or overheated. Pair it with a thermostat suited to the bulb type you are using, and keep the bulb itself out of reach of the animal or behind a guard, because a reptile will sit against a heat source until it does damage. Check the bulb wattage against the 200w limit before fitting.

Who it's for: reptile keepers replacing a tired fitting, and anyone setting up a vivarium who has bought the bulb and now needs somewhere to put it.