You need to have a lamp that would be safe to use with a CHE, because they can get extremely hot and can potentally damage the lamp, by melting, etc. If you're not 100% positive that your lamp can be used with a CHE, they sell some at Petsmart/Petco for around $20-$30. If you look on the box it should say somewhere that it's compatable for CHE's. Then of course you need to know what the wattage of the CHE bulb is, and the max watts that the lamp can sustain.