Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I'm doing some research on setting up a cage before I get my first CG. In the past, I've had leopard geckos, white's tree frogs, and RETF. Any tips would be great.
Here's my plan:
--The tank I have is kind of a weird shape. The longest part is 24", The widest part is 12", and it's 18" tall. Should I stick with one, or could I fit 2 females (comfortablly) in this, with all appropriate hiding places, visual breaks, etc.? It has a screen top, and I will get gauges to monitor temp. and humidity.
--I keep reading 1,407 different things to use for substrate. I want naturalistic, so no paper towels. I've read everything from using a soil mixture to orchid bark to coconut fiber. What is the best to use? I live in Ohio, so something that will help hold in humidity would be great, however I know from experience with my past pets that you should be cautious about using substrate that can be ingested and possibly cause impaction. Is this not so much of a concern with CG?
--Plants to include pothos, philadendron, and possibly creeping fig. I know lots of people also use fake vines. How do you suggest keeping things up & vertical? I never had much luck with this with my white's because they were so fat that they were constantly destroying the cage setup.
--Lighting - again I've read some mixed things. They don't need full spectrum lighting, they do need it. I have a bulb leftover from my last white's that is full spectrum so I'm planning to use that. Duing the winter I have a CHE and undertank heater I can use to regulate the temp.
Any other suggestions or nice websites to look at?

I don't think an undertank heater is effective for these animals, as I don't think they thermoregulate that way. Better to use a radiant heater like your CHE or heat the room. Remember, CG's do not need high heat at all. 70-80 deg F is a great range for these guys.

My opinion is to keep the cage somewhat simple at first, then try other things when the geckos are feeding and established. And by simple, I mean newspaper substrate, humid hide box with a moist substrate in it, fake plants (the silky ones they sell) and maybe a few real plants in pots.

UV lighting - well, it can't hurt. Even if they hide most of the day, they still might benefit. I know alligator lizards do great when given full-spectrum light, and alligator lizards hide alot too.

Good luck. They are awesome geckos. I just love that you don't need to have crickets each day for them. Makes it easy.
-----
Mark

>>I'm doing some research on setting up a cage before I get my first CG. In the past, I've had leopard geckos, white's tree frogs, and RETF. Any tips would be great.
>>Here's my plan:
>>--The tank I have is kind of a weird shape. The longest part is 24", The widest part is 12", and it's 18" tall. Should I stick with one, or could I fit 2 females (comfortablly) in this, with all appropriate hiding places, visual breaks, etc.? It has a screen top, and I will get gauges to monitor temp. and humidity.
>>--I keep reading 1,407 different things to use for substrate. I want naturalistic, so no paper towels. I've read everything from using a soil mixture to orchid bark to coconut fiber. What is the best to use? I live in Ohio, so something that will help hold in humidity would be great, however I know from experience with my past pets that you should be cautious about using substrate that can be ingested and possibly cause impaction. Is this not so much of a concern with CG?
>>--Plants to include pothos, philadendron, and possibly creeping fig. I know lots of people also use fake vines. How do you suggest keeping things up & vertical? I never had much luck with this with my white's because they were so fat that they were constantly destroying the cage setup.
>>--Lighting - again I've read some mixed things. They don't need full spectrum lighting, they do need it. I have a bulb leftover from my last white's that is full spectrum so I'm planning to use that. Duing the winter I have a CHE and undertank heater I can use to regulate the temp.
>>Any other suggestions or nice websites to look at?

You can keep 2 females in a cage that size.

Red cypress mulch works well for reptiles that require high humidity such as crested geckos. If you're going to feed them crickets substrate ingestion could be a problem, but if you just feed them Crested Gecko Diet and baby food it shouldn't be a problem.

Crested geckos are nocturnal, so they don't need full spectrum lighting, and they usually hide during the day anyway. A CHE will produce too much heat, and it will dry out the air in the cage a lot, and since crested geckos are arboreal an undertank heater is useless.

Crested geckos do just fine at around 75 degrees during the day and temps can drop to mid 60's at night. They can have a basking spot near the top of the cage that is in the low 80's but if the whole cage is that hot it can kill them. If the room temp is too low you can use a 15 or 25 watt red bulb during the day to heat the cage.
-----
MY COLLECTION:
1.0 '04 Columbian BCI
0.1 '05 Blood Python
0.0.1 Hypo Sonoran BCI
0.2 Ball Pythons

MY WISHLIST:
A Northern Blue-Tongue Skink
1.1 Brazilian Rainbow Boas
1.1 Hogg Island Boas
1.0 Salmon BCI
0.2 Columbian BCI
1.1 Sumatran Short-Tail Pythons
1.1 Borneo Short-Tail Pythons
1.1 Suriname BCC
1.2 Spotted Pythons
2.4 African House Snakes
2.4 Bearded Dragons
1.2 Rankins Dragons
2.6 Crested Geckos
2 ferrets

SnakeFreak hit it right on the head, Crested's need no supplemental heat if kept in a facility or room with an ambient temp around 75.

They don't need special lighting however in a naturalistic setting some light is desired. However, often the lights raise the temps higher than desired so beware.

I won't get into naturalistic setup as their specific forum may be better suited for those answers. I will mention that open topped aquarium don't hold humidity very well. VCentalation is important in providing humidity just not all at the top some vetalation towards the front will allow better cross flow of air while still maintaning humidity.

I have no useful links at this time. However the Crested forum maybe a better source for that.

Good Luck
-----
Jeremy

"I am become death, the destroyer of worlds" July 16, 1945 Robert Oppenheimer

1.1 Double Het "Sharp" Snow RTB's
1.1 Hypomelenistic RTB's
0.0.16 Hypomelenistic RTB's
0.2 Pastel Hypo RTB's
1.0 Double Het Stripe Albino RTB's
0.1 Suriname RTB
0.0.15 Normal Suriname Hybrid's
0.1 Anerthrystic RTB
3.6.17 Red Bearded Dragons
1.1 Rhinoceros Iguana's
1.0 Green Iguana
1.0 Ball Python
1.1 Cream Golden Retrieviers
1.0 Pomeriaian
0.3 Catus Terribilis
0.1 Spouse
1.0 Child