Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have been monitoring the temperature of my leos terrarium. During the day temp ranges from 80-85 cool side, 85-90 hot side. At night the hot side stays at 86-88 where the cool side goes to 76-80.

I am planning on getting a thermostat but until I get one should I just turn off the UTH at night to sumulate a nighttime drop? Or leave it on and let him just move over to the cool side?

There are hides for him on both sides but I am conserned about there being too warm a place for him at night and night time temperatures not really being simulated.

I also recently aquired a digital thermometer and it has a probe. On the hot side should I be measureing the temp at the surface or burry the probe some? I also notied that the hot side temp can varry several degrees at times if I am takeing the temp right over the UTH or in the corner where its the hot side but not directly over the UTH.

Finaly should I be misting down his hide on the hot side or putting damp moss on one of his hides? I assume the hot side is better than cold.

I would appreciate your advise. So far this fourm has been helpfull.

The temps are fine for the nighttime - if the Leos want to move to the cool side, they will The only time heat should be removed at night is if the tank is heated with a light bulb.

Its best to measure the temps right over the heat pad, but spot checking other areas around the tank is usefull too in order to give you a full picture of the temps. The temps right above the heat pad should be 88-92.

As for probe placement - it should be placed where the Leo is lying. This is easiest to do with a non particulate substrate...what type of substrate are you using? If your leo is a baby then you do not want to use a particulate (loose) substrate as they are at a higher risk for impaction. Leos less than one year should be housed on paper towels, non adhesive shelf liner, tiles or reptile carpet. Adults Leos can be housed on any of the above substrates or on fine grain playsand if you really want a loose substrate. No other loose substrates (calci-sand, vita-sand, crushed walnut, millet seed, gravel, pine/aspen/cedar shavings, etc) should ever be used for any age Leo.

No need to spray down the tank as this will increase the overall humidity - which is not advisable. You do, however, want to have a humid hide in with them at all times so they can choose to be in a higher humidity area if they want. This also greatly aids in shedding. You want three hides - a warm hide, a cool hide, and a humid hide. This allows the leo to choose warm, cool or humid without ever having to sacrifice comfort. For my humid hides i use a tupperware container with a hole cut in the side, lined with damp paper towels. I generally place it near the warm side, but not directly on the heat pad.
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1.1 Bearded Dragons
2.2 Leopard Geckos
1.0 Uromastyx (Mali)
1.1 Corn snakes
0.1 Mexican Black Kingsnake
1.0 Bairds Ratsnake
1.0 Rosy Boa
1.1 Green Anoles
1.1 House Geckos
0.0.2 Flying Geckos
0.0.1 Red Eye Tree Frog

What do you mean playsand? Where do I pick that up? Would it be better to put damp moss in the hide or spray it down occasionaly?

Also what about that stuff I think its called alpha bedding or I forget. It looks like rabbit food but its skinnier and longer. Do you mean playground sand? Can I pick that up at like home depot and are there different grades of playsand or is it a standardized thing?

You dont want to spray down the tank - you want a humid hide. The humid hide can be lined with either damp paper towels, or damp spagnum moss...i prefer to just use paper towels as the moss gets really messy.

Again, i personally dont recomend using sand due to the fact that its messy, can be difficult to heat and does carry a risk for impaction...i highly recomend using a non particulate substrate which are safe, easy to clean and easy to heat and monitor temps on. My personal favorites are eighter non adhesive shelf liner or tiles.

If you feel very strongly about using sannd then you can buy playsand at home depot in 50lb bags. You want to make sre you get the fine grain stuff - not the stff that is more like gravel. You can tell just by looking at the bags.

How old is your Leo?
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1.1 Bearded Dragons
2.2 Leopard Geckos
1.0 Uromastyx (Mali)
1.1 Corn snakes
0.1 Mexican Black Kingsnake
1.0 Bairds Ratsnake
1.0 Rosy Boa
1.1 Green Anoles
1.1 House Geckos
0.0.2 Flying Geckos
0.0.1 Red Eye Tree Frog

I couldnt say for sure but hes an adult hes not a juvenile or sub adult.

I understand where your comeing from. I want whats best for my leo ultimately. I am concidering getting another one but this time a younger one and have seen many warnings on useing sand with juvies. I would never concider putting a juvie in with sand. I dont think the one I got now will have any problems but in the end I will likely switch to something else. I just would like something more natural looking than paper towels.

My concern with paper towels is that it seems like a lot of trouble for cleaning allong with the fact that its un attractive. Plus it seems more wastefull.

I have looked and looked and everything that looks natural seems to be a no no. I think tiles seem like the best option but I have a few concerns.

Arent tiles harder to heat? Would I need to add a heat lamp? Currently hes in a 20L tank with a UTH on one side. What kind of tiles are these are they a specialty reptile terrarium tiles or someting you pick up at a hardware store or stone factory? Are there certain tiles to avoid? Do the tiles stain easily or are they especialy porrus? Should I get unglazed, glazed? Does this prevent me from useing certain types of feeder foods? How thick of a tile should it be? And do you just put them on the glass bottom of the terrarium or do you put a substrate between the tiles and the glass bottom?

When you said to have a small bowl of calcium out for him did you mean put some Rep-Cal calcium supplement or you talking about putting some calcium carbonate in it?

I just wanted to say thanks for all the advise you have been giveing me lately. You have been a great help. Sorry if I seem to be asking you a thousand things at once.

Thanks.

Tile is definately the most natural looking substrate available. Its funny, a lot of people feel sand is most natural - but when you actually look at the habitat of the Leo and the terrain they are designed to walk across - its not loose sand. Lizards that are designed for life in loose sand are usually burrowing creatures - streamlined and slender to make it easier to move. Leos are heavy bodied and have tiny little toes which sink in deep sand. Their natural environment is more hard packed sand, rocks and so forth, so textures tiles are really the most "natural".

In my experience they are not harder to heat then any other substrate - in fact, due to the nature of the material they are pretty good heat conductors. An undertank heater should do just fine - and you will likely find it gets too hot and needs to be controlled via a thermostat or dimmer device. Use your digital thermometer with the probe taped to the tile over the heat pad to monitor the temps.

The tiles you use are jst regular tiles you can buy at any home depot type store - they come in a variety of textures and colors to suit your preference. You can use pretty much any type of tile without any issue - they tend to be sealed so its very easy to clean them with a damp sponge. You can buy the small 6x6 tiles or the larger 12x12s. You may need to either rent or purchase a tile cutter in order to get them to fit properly if you want to layer the entire tank floor with them. You can buy a manual tile cutter for 20-30$.

Some people choose to use aquarium sealant to seal the tiles in place permanantly, or you can just lay them in the tank and fit them snuggly so they are secure. You can put a layer of substrate beneath them if you want - a thin layer of sand or a sheet of non adhesive shelf liner - although many people just put the tiles down on the tank floor.

You can feed all the same insects as you would on any other substrate - in fact its even safer because you dont have to worry about the Leo ingesting substrate while diving for a cricket.

As for the calcium - you want to leasve a dish of the rep-cal calcium supplement in the tank at all times. This allows your leo to lick the calcium as they see fit - in addition to dusting the insects.

No problem - questions show that you are interested in taking proper care in your animals - which is what really counts!! I could talk reptiles all day (and often do....)

On a quick side note, if you get another Leo (which i suspect yo will - they are addictive, i swear!) make sure you dont put them in the same tank. a common mistake of new leo owners is to house their geckos together...there are many reasons why this is inappropriate, especially when one or both of the Leos are younger - which i would be more than willing to go into detail with you if you want but i feel this particular post has rambled on long enough Jst make sure you have a separate tank set up for any additional Leos.

Your Leo will be very happy and healthy in your care, i suspect :-D
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1.1 Bearded Dragons
2.2 Leopard Geckos
1.0 Uromastyx (Mali)
1.1 Corn snakes
0.1 Mexican Black Kingsnake
1.0 Bairds Ratsnake
1.0 Rosy Boa
1.1 Green Anoles
1.1 House Geckos
0.0.2 Flying Geckos
0.0.1 Red Eye Tree Frog

I went to the Home Depot and peeped out the tiles they had. I think I am going to go with a slate tile. Its not sealed like glossy but it looks natural. I dont know if I should put a sealant on it the slate sealants I saw were expensive so I will go without sealing it for now but am concidering it if it will make cleaning easier and keep the slate from getting stained. The sealants wont harm the leo will it if I make sure to wait a few days before putting it in the terrarium?

The main decision I have is there are some nice 12x12 tiles but they are 1/2" thick. There are some 1/4" thick tiles but they are 6"x6" and relatively flat and untextured. I would like to use the 12"x12" ones but am concerned that they are too thick a tile or too heavy. I think it would look better though if I can get away with it. Less tiles makes it look like one piece instead of a checkerboard grid and the tiles are fairly flat. For some reason those are more expensive. You said its likely I will have to use a thermostat or dimmer if I switch to tiles so would the 1/2" thick tiles be better than?

Thanks again.

A tip for cleaning if you are using the slate tile - Leos tend to poop in one area of the cage, once you establish which area this is you can lay down a small peice of paper towel and then just remove it every few days and replce it with another

As far as depth and heat etc - its really something you will just have to play around with. You may need to add additional heat lamps or something to get the temps where you need them to be. Most people who use tiles dont have a hard time with it though - i would give it a try and see how it goes, i think you will be fine :-D
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1.1 Bearded Dragons
2.2 Leopard Geckos
1.0 Uromastyx (Mali)
1.1 Corn snakes
0.1 Mexican Black Kingsnake
1.0 Bairds Ratsnake
1.0 Rosy Boa
1.1 Green Anoles
1.1 House Geckos
0.0.2 Flying Geckos
0.0.1 Red Eye Tree Frog