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Confusedalex Confusedalex AditiLuna Confusedalex Confusedalex Repfanatic Acgecko Confusedalex Americanchld Zgobbler14 Confusedalex Uny399 Confusedalex AditiLuna Uny399 AditiLuna Berserker AditiLuna Berserker Dislimbed Confusedalex Confusedalex Confusedalex AditiLuna

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#1725368

Confusedalex
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Is this all ok?

alright well i just got my new leopard gecko, he is a Hypo Morph i bought him for $89.99 and he is about 8 inches long.
-i have him in a 20 gallon (long) tank. and i was wondering if i had my set up good, ill explain it as best as i can before i can get some pictures up...
-I have paper towels for the substrait
-i have 3 hides.... 1 on the cool side, 1 moist in the middle, and 1 most on the hot side....
- the one on the cool side and one of the most ones are home made out of a small cardboard box cut in half and covered with duct tape so it doesnt get wet and ruin.- the 1st moist hide is the cardboard one with wet paper towels in the bottom. and the second one is a small plastic round tub thing... and it has moist moss in it.. ( he doesnt like that one very much...he prefers the one made from cardboard and papertowels... lol)
-I have just a small climbing log that goes about half the length of the cage...
-a small water dish...
-another dish with some large mealworms in it. and then i have a few crickets roaming in his cage. not alot though 4 max normally...
-then i have a normal house light bulb sence the heat lamps and heat emmiters made the tank 107+, so right now with the normal light, the hottest part is about 93... is that ok?

thats basically the whole cage and its set up... does anything sound wrong? do i need to add anything? is he gonna be a happy gecko?
-i do plan on getting more for this tank and maybe breeding them

-thanks

05/04/08 09:51pm

#1725423

Confusedalex
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Message To: Confusedalex In reference to Message Id: 1725368

Is this all ok?

Water dish-

Temp on Hot side of cage-

Inside Moist Hide #2

Moist Hide #1- gecko inside! :)

Just the old aquarium light that heats up the cage a tad... (not main heat source! a light bulb is... :D)

just a hide

The actually tank (20 gall long)

And my Gecko.....

If you guys see anything that i need to change, or that needs improvement, please tell me..
-Thanks alot!

05/04/08 10:45pm

#1725547

AditiLuna
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Message To: Confusedalex In reference to Message Id: 1725368

Is this all ok?

I love the innovation! So smart how you made everything!

A few suggestions...

- You only need one moist hide (i’d put it closer to the warm side just cuz wet and cold sounds uncomfortable)
- I have moss in one of my hides and only mist it when she’s shedding-and thats her favorite- I think she feels more secure in the hide after digging under the moss.
- Don’t let the crickets run around. They can chew on the gecko while he sleeps, and actually wound him. Drop them in, if they dont get eaten, take them out after 15 min. If your gecko isn’t eating them (mine just wont eat crickets cuz shes spoiled) feed him silkworms or something else thats nutritional but don’t just let them live in there. Also because you have wood in there the crickets will eat the wood and pass on dangerous things to your gecko.
- Make sure everything you made your hides out of is non toxic- especially the tape
- The water dish should be large enough for their whole body to fit-shallow enough to not touch their belly if they don’t want it to. I dunno how important it is to be that big but it is recommended and my gecko likes to stand in it while she drinks, so maybe thats a gecko thing?
-93 degrees should be perfect. Some people recommend 92, some 95- so you’re just right :)
- I’m sorry to say this, but if you have a boy-and you want more geckos-you’re gunna need a bigger tank. Two males will fight, and a male needs at least two females to breed with (or else he will overbreed the one female and she will get stressed). Two females could share a 20 gallon, but it depends on how territorial they are-and larger is recommended. I’m sure before you start buyin’ and breedin’ you will do more research and figure out the best way to make use of what you have. You obviously know how to make use of what you have!

Good luck with everything-hope that helps :)
-

05/05/08 01:46am

#1726146

Confusedalex
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Message To: AditiLuna In reference to Message Id: 1725547

Is this all ok?

alright awesome, thanks a ton! all the crix are out and i took out the piece of wood cuz it stressed me out. lol. i want to keep the 2 moist hides because im trying to figure out which one he likes better, so far he hasnt even gotten in the one with moss in it, he loves my getto one, h ahah

05/05/08 06:01pm

#1726657

Confusedalex
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Message To: Confusedalex In reference to Message Id: 1726146

Is this all ok?

bump?

05/06/08 12:06am

#1726728

Repfanatic
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Message To: Confusedalex In reference to Message Id: 1726657

Is this all ok?

Do you have an under tank heater? That is a must since leoapard geckos need belly heat in order to digest their food properly. That thermometer only measures air temperature. You need to get 2 digital thermometers with probes to measure the warm and cool side ground temps. I don’t think duct tape is a very good idea. An edge could peel off and then your gecko could get stuck and injured. For a moist hide all you need is a tupperware container with a hole cut in the side or lid with papertowels or moss in it. This hide needs to be placed over the heat pad or it won’t be serving its purpose of helping your gecko shed. You need 3 hides. The humid (moist) hide on the warm side over the heat pad, the warm side dry hide and a cool side dry hide. You need to rethink the hides and get proper temperature guages. Leopard geckos are nocturnal, so they are really not too fond of light. If you need a light to bump the temps then get a heat lamp and a red or black night light. Here’s the dry hides I use Link and Link. Good luck.

05/06/08 03:55am

#1726803

Acgecko
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Message To: Repfanatic In reference to Message Id: 1726728

Is this all ok?

I have to agree with Repfanatic, geckos need an UTH bad things happen when they don’t. I too worry about the tape it will disintegrate over time and they may try to eat it. Also when some adhesives heat up they put off fumes which could harm animals.

05/06/08 08:16am

#1729400

Confusedalex
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Message To: Acgecko In reference to Message Id: 1726803

Is this all ok?

alright well im gonna get my UTH prolly today, i had no idea they NEEDED it. all the research i did told me that it was just an option... if i get this UTH, do i need to keep the heat light on? or will this heat pad keep the heat to a good temp? my tank is a 20 Gallon long if you guys didnt catch that..

-thanks

05/08/08 03:40pm

#1729577

Americanchld
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Message To: Confusedalex In reference to Message Id: 1729400

Is this all ok?

You need to temps gages, these will tell you whether you need a light on all the time or just the uth.

05/08/08 05:52pm

#1729693

Zgobbler14
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Message To: Americanchld In reference to Message Id: 1729577

Is this all ok?

u shouldnt use moss because crics like to lay there eggs in there

05/08/08 07:38pm

#1729851

Confusedalex
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Message To: Zgobbler14 In reference to Message Id: 1729693

Is this all ok?

i just got my UTH heater. i got one for size 10-20 gallon tanks cuz i have a 20 gall (lol)... and i stuck it to the bottom of the tank and i let it heat up for about 5 mins, and it doesnt seem very warm, does it take awhile to heat up to full heat? and should i put it inside the tank under the paper towels? or under the tank (on the bottom)... i have it on the bottom of the tank now... but my tank is on a stand so there is no like floor under the tank, is that going to affect the amount of heat it gives off?

-thanks

05/08/08 09:43pm

#1729896

Uny399
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Message To: Confusedalex In reference to Message Id: 1729851

Is this all OK?

what do you mean there is no floor under the tank and yes don’t put it under the paper towel to easy to burn the leo put it under the tank. it takes about a hour to heat up.do you have a digital thermometer?if not you need to get one or you will burn the leo

05/08/08 10:33pm

#1729942

Confusedalex
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Message To: Uny399 In reference to Message Id: 1729896

Is this all OK?

no floor as in.. the stand only has a frame that the tank sits in

05/08/08 11:34pm

#1729946

AditiLuna
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Message To: Acgecko In reference to Message Id: 1726803

Is this all ok?

hm, I have never heard that they NEED a UTH either, just that it’s important that the ground be warm for their tummies for digestion. If my probe is touching the ground where the gecko lays, and its around 92-96, heat comes from red bulb (not painted red)...shouldn’t that be fine?

05/08/08 11:40pm

#1729959

Uny399
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Message To: AditiLuna In reference to Message Id: 1729946

Is this all ok?

um maby tape it to the bottum just to make sure but that should be fine and the digetel thermomerter do you have one?

05/09/08 12:01am

#1730007

AditiLuna
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Message To: Uny399 In reference to Message Id: 1729959

Is this all ok?

ya, the one with the probe is digital - the cool side one is the chap round one tho.

05/09/08 01:37am

#1731278

Berserker
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Message To: AditiLuna In reference to Message Id: 1729946

Is this all ok?

Unless you’re keeping that light on 24/7 they NEED an UTH. Leopard geckos are not a basking species, thus undertank heat is best. The light would have to be a black light or a deep red light to provide a correct light cycle. I wouldn’t let the heat go over 92, too much heat isn’t good.

05/10/08 06:06pm

#1731624

AditiLuna
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Message To: Berserker In reference to Message Id: 1731278

Is this all ok?

many people argue that it should go up to 102 for proper digestion. I don’t know about that- it seems high- but I like it at 95 ish on the hot side and 85ish on the cool side, and she has 3 hides, so she can choose. Usually she stays on the hot side, so I think it’s ok. But I will consider getting a UTH with my next paycheck, thanks :)

05/11/08 01:21am

#1731986

Berserker
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Message To: Confusedalex In reference to Message Id: 1725368

Is this all ok?

You’re tank seems fine, though I wouldn’t trust duct tape near heat for fear of fumes being released, and what won’t harm us can harm little animals. Also, I heard duct tape contains asbestos, scary thought. No more than one gecko per tank. They are a solitary species and will fight each other or over breed and you risk losing them. Not to mention the risk of them getting sick.

05/11/08 01:54pm

#1732082

Dislimbed
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Message To: Confusedalex In reference to Message Id: 1725423

Is this all ok?

I’d keep the light. Mine basks all the time. People say use a UTH for belly heat, but thats why the light shines on to whatever you have below it and absorbs heat for belly heat. Both regular lights and infared lights work.

05/11/08 04:16pm

#1742476

Confusedalex
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Message To: Dislimbed In reference to Message Id: 1732082

Is this all ok?

ok, i have another question, you guys were sayin somethin about a different thermometer because i have the wrong kind..... is this the kind that u guys are talkin about??

somethin like that? or am i completely off track here? a picture would be nice! :)

-thanks

05/21/08 04:05pm