Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am not trying to be a bother and I know this has been asked before, but what are some other subsrate choices for leos besides sand and paper towels? I want something natural looking that will not have as much a risk of impaction as sand. Any ideas? Also, I did do a search and less than 1/3 of the 300 hits had to do with leopard geckos. Thanks, Jake.
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0.3 Normal Leopard geckos
1.0 High Yellow Leo
1.2 Albino Leos
3.1 Frilled Dragons
1.0 Juvi. Gold Bearded Dragon
0.4 Adult Bearded Dragons
0.0.4 D. Leucomelas
1.0 Adult Albino Corn
0.1.1 Normal Corns
1.1 Creamcicle Corns
0.0.1 Crimson Corn

i use astro turf. i use green. for a more "natural" look you can get it in brown. cheap and easy to clean.

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~Kayla
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1.0 Leo Gecko's *Astrid* - was told he was a her at first
0.0.1 Pictus Gecko *Raine* - too young to sex
1.1 Hollond Lop Bunnies *Panda, Oreo*

I don't know about anyone else but I use repti-bark. The pieces are generally large enough that the leo's can't swallow them. You can also use astro turf, slate, tile, shelf liner, or even newspaper.
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0.2.0 Normal Leopard Gecko's
1.0.0 Patternless Leopard Gecko
0.1.0 Veiled Chameleon
1.0.0 Bearded Dragon

No type of bark should be used with leos...it can be toxic to them... Anyway, if you want a sandlike look you can crumple up construction or packing paper until it gets soft, and then lay that out. You can also use tile...I have a 20L with 2 12" tiles and then a small amount of sand at the end (you can use the construction paper in any empty space, or just cut tiles to fit). Some tile can be very attractive and natural looking, and is cheap and easy to clean. You could also use slate if you wanted. There are a lot of choices...but do NOT use any bark! Crushed walnut shells and lizard litter are also not good choices. I'm gonna avoid the topic of sand...lol...if you did a search you'd see my opinion on it.
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Christina

0.3.1 leos (soon to be 1.3.1!)
-0.1 tangerine het rainwater albino w/jungle background (Blinkers)
-0.2 jungles (Vahz & Skissor)
-0.0.1 albino (supposed Tremper)(Spitfire)
-soon to be 1.0 tangerine rainwater albino
1.0 australian shepherd/cattle dog (Foster...although he was being fostered before I got him...that has nothing to do with his name...It's after the beer!...lol since he's australian and I'm a college student!)

Hrmm I've been using repti bark for 2 years on all my adult leos and I've never had any problems. Maybe I should consider astroturf.
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0.2.0 Normal Leopard Gecko's
1.0.0 Patternless Leopard Gecko
0.1.0 Veiled Chameleon
1.0.0 Bearded Dragon

I dont' know much about reptibark...I just know that woods like cedar are extremely toxic to leos and will kill them.
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Christina

0.3.1 leos (soon to be 1.3.1!)
-0.1 tangerine het rainwater albino w/jungle background (Blinkers)
-0.2 jungles (Vahz & Skissor)
-0.0.1 albino (supposed Tremper)(Spitfire)
-soon to be 1.0 tangerine rainwater albino
1.0 australian shepherd/cattle dog (Foster...although he was being fostered before I got him...that has nothing to do with his name...It's after the beer!...lol since he's australian and I'm a college student!)

Yah cedar, pine, anything with sap that produces fumes is bad. Repti-bark is marketed for herps it's safe unless they eat some. So as long as the bark is big enough the leos won't eat it.
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0.2.0 Normal Leopard Gecko's
1.0.0 Patternless Leopard Gecko
0.1.0 Veiled Chameleon
1.0.0 Bearded Dragon

Thanks for the reply. How hard is it to clean the slate?
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0.3 Normal Leopard geckos
1.0 High Yellow Leo
1.2 Albino Leos
3.1 Frilled Dragons
1.0 Juvi. Gold Bearded Dragon
0.4 Adult Bearded Dragons
0.0.4 D. Leucomelas
1.0 Adult Albino Corn
0.1.1 Normal Corns
1.1 Creamcicle Corns
0.0.1 Crimson Corn

I don't have slate...but I dont' think it's difficult...When you really have to wash it I'd think you'd just take it out and wash it with soap and water and rinse it real well. when you just want to give it a quick once over I'd think a damp paper towel or something would do it.
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Christina

0.3.1 leos (soon to be 1.3.1!)
-0.1 tangerine het rainwater albino w/jungle background (Blinkers)
-0.2 jungles (Vahz & Skissor)
-0.0.1 albino (supposed Tremper)(Spitfire)
-soon to be 1.0 tangerine rainwater albino
1.0 australian shepherd/cattle dog (Foster...although he was being fostered before I got him...that has nothing to do with his name...It's after the beer!...lol since he's australian and I'm a college student!)

I've used reptibark in the past (for about 2 years) without problems although I've since seen some documented cases of impaction.

I now keep all my leos on alfalfa pellets. I've been using these for about 6 years now and have never had a problem.

-Alice

I'm not sure, but I think you have to be careful to keep alfalfa pellets dry so that they don't mold (I'm sure you knew that if it is indeed true, but you didn't say it, so I thought I ought to).

-Demona

I use it and it makes an awsome substrate!

Yes, you do have to keep them dry. But, this isn't a real problem with leos.
-Alice

I use ceramic tiles that i got at home depot. They do look nice and come in variety of colours and textures (i've tried to get the ones with the most texture to them so the geckos don't slip). They fit most of my tanks quite well too.

I've worked with my geckos to have them poop in the bathroom area (covered in papertowels) for easier daily cleaning, however i do take the tanks completely apart every 3 weeks for a full cleaning, tiles, glass, hides etc.

The tiles hold the heat from the under tank heats very well.

This setup is only for my leopard geckos. My crested geckos tank is lined with papertowels only.

Red
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Crested Gecko Zeek:1.0
LEOS: Boo: 1.0 normal , Bronx & Nala: 1.1 blizzard,
Lily: 0.1 patternless, Abby: 0.1 albino, Zoe: 0.1 reduced pattern, Dot: 0.1 hypo
Chip: 1.0 papillion (small dog)

We have two leos and we use slate for 70 percent of the tank area and the other 30 percent is with ecoearth in case they like to dig a little (which they do). It makes the tank look very nice!
We use the same set up for our fat tails.
Betty

I'm planning on aquiring a few fattails this year and i was wondering about which setup i'd do for them. I was thinking that the tile substrate would work with an extra large humid hide with jungle mix in it or something. Depending on their size of course. I like the tile setup, in my 20 gal long tanks 2 fit nicely on each side with a space about 5-6 inches in between. This allows space for the food and water dishes, keeping them away from the heat. I also have one of my males tanks setup with the space on one side which is his bathroom area. In my 40 gal tank 3 tiles fit nicely at the back of the tank all the way across. The space at the front (5" or so) has the sticky tile down with rocks,logs and their food/water dishes.

Red

>>We have two leos and we use slate for 70 percent of the tank area and the other 30 percent is with ecoearth in case they like to dig a little (which they do). It makes the tank look very nice!
>>We use the same set up for our fat tails.
>>Betty
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Crested Gecko Zeek:1.0
LEOS: Boo: 1.0 normal , Bronx & Nala: 1.1 blizzard,
Lily: 0.1 patternless, Abby: 0.1 albino, Zoe: 0.1 reduced pattern, Dot: 0.1 hypo
Chip: 1.0 papillion (small dog)

np
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0.3 Normal Leopard geckos
1.0 High Yellow Leo
1.2 Albino Leos
3.1 Frilled Dragons
0.0.4 D. Leucomelas
1.0 Adult Albino Corn
0.1.1 Normal Corns
1.1 Creamcicle Corns
0.0.1 Crimson Corn

I will as soon as my son comes home. I am not so good at posting pic's. That is his department.
I will try and post a pic of the leo's and of the fatties.

here are the pics...#1

#2

I like the sounds of the slate the best, so could people with these types of setups post pictures of them? I like the idea of haveing some ecoearth at one end, is there a problem with inpaction with that stuff? Also, what if I were to put some of the ecoearth between the peices of slate so the cix don't get under there, is that a good idea? Thanks again for so many responses. Jake.
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0.3 Normal Leopard geckos
1.0 High Yellow Leo
1.2 Albino Leos
3.1 Frilled Dragons
0.0.4 D. Leucomelas
1.0 Adult Albino Corn
0.1.1 Normal Corns
1.1 Creamcicle Corns
0.0.1 Crimson Corn

I don't have any great pics of my setups but i'll post what i have. As for the ecoearth, i would assume that any loose substrate would cause impaction...don't quote me on that though. Many people have used loose substrates with no problems while others have had impactions. I would also assume that the crickets could dig under it so i don't think it would be much help, but again i don't know for sure, i use mealworms in a bowl.

Red
P.S. the pic is of my 40 gal setup, slightly different than the way it is now....i had to change a few things, like the cave on the second level is now on the floor.

>>I like the sounds of the slate the best, so could people with these types of setups post pictures of them? I like the idea of haveing some ecoearth at one end, is there a problem with inpaction with that stuff? Also, what if I were to put some of the ecoearth between the peices of slate so the cix don't get under there, is that a good idea? Thanks again for so many responses. Jake.
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>>0.3 Normal Leopard geckos
>>1.0 High Yellow Leo
>>1.2 Albino Leos
>>3.1 Frilled Dragons
>>0.0.4 D. Leucomelas
>>1.0 Adult Albino Corn
>>0.1.1 Normal Corns
>>1.1 Creamcicle Corns
>>0.0.1 Crimson Corn

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Crested Gecko Zeek:1.0
LEOS: Boo: 1.0 normal , Bronx & Nala: 1.1 blizzard,
Lily: 0.1 patternless, Abby: 0.1 albino, Zoe: 0.1 reduced pattern, Dot: 0.1 hypo
Chip: 1.0 papillion (small dog)