Reptile & Amphibian Forums

how do i go about making a cage for my leos.? do i need to use a screen top or can i put vents in the cage and use a slidding plex. glass for the front and have the rest boxed in with air vents? and if i us the melamine can i use heat tape still?

I recommend plastic caging for leos. Easier to clean, easy to heat, easy to move, stackable, etc.

Dragons-for-You makes great ABS cages perfect for Leos. So does www.precisioncaging.com and www.herpcages.com except they use HDPS, which is similar in weight and function. These cages are rather inexpensive considering how easy they are to use and how well they are made.

I made my own cage for our leo, sort of.

I purchased a 26in.x18in.x6in. polyethylene box from Smart and Final. It is a Cambro poly food box, way better than Sterilite or Rubbermaid storage boxes from Walmart.

Anyway, I made a lid from pine 1x3's, some pine molding to make it look nice and to make a lip around the box edges. About 8" is screened for a heat dome, and the rest is covered with pegboard. I found solid PVC pegboard from usplastic.com and used that instead of fiberboard pegboard. Anyway, works great! It is heavy enough that the lizard cannot push it off, but light enough for me to easily lift it off.

Melamine can be heated with heat tape. Melamine is OK but plastic lasts far longer.
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Mark

Better to stick to hard woods, woods like pine and cedar can be toxic if the gecko can get to it in any way... just FYI. I've even stopped buying those scents in candles too, but that is just my overkill.
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0.1 Albino Leo Gecko
0.1 Crested Gecko
1.0 Dear Boyfriend
Departed: Harvey and Spock

I know you asked about DIY cages, but I'll throw this in anyway.. I actually think that glass tanks can make great cages. They are inexpensive. The new tops are secure and functional. The new fixtures for lights are made for top-of-tank mounting.

A great setup can be an undertank heater below and a fluorescent UVB light above. I have found that just a fluorescent will help keep the air from getting too cold while the heat pad provides the basking heat and some air heat. Can't argue with success. I've seen 10-year-old geckos in a setup like that all of their lives. Even though leos hide most of the day and do not need UVB according to most literature, it doesn't hurt.
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Mark