Heating question...

[Scag]

whats the differance between heat tape with a thermostat and a undertank/heatpad with thermostat?

I'm think of getting a leo and I was wonder wich would be the best route to go. I've used the undertank befor but heat tape is kind of new to me :?

Edit: i've used undertank on a timer not a thermostat

 

[joseofsa]

heat tape is baseicly and unassembled heat mat. It is cheaper than buying 40+ heat mats for your snake rack. i do not have any geckos so i cannot say if heat tape is for it or not but if the just need a hot spot to "chill" on(lame i know) like a snake does then yeah i would go for it. also you have to assemble the plug that supplies the power to the mat. personaly i would just buy a mat because it sounds like you are just gonna heat one tank and tape is meant for racks IMO.
hope this helps

 

[Alice]

don't use heat from below for your gecko - they try to burrow when they are too hot... my ex and i kept geckos for years and you do best with a lamp as heat source. so the heat is very high in a small area and cooler in the rest of the cage. for a leopard gecko, a common household bulb will do (they don't necessarily need UV). depending on the size of the cage it should have about 100 w so that the hottest point gets to 35° c.

 

[Scag]

It's all clear now, yea i am just gonna get one leo and do it on a time and just monitor the temps with a thermometer. Thank you for clearing up whats what and how for.

 

[Scag]

don't use heat from below for your gecko - they try to burrow when they are too hot... my ex and i kept geckos for years and you do best with a lamp as heat source. so the heat is very high in a small area and cooler in the rest of the cage. for a leopard gecko, a common household bulb will do (they don't necessarily need UV). depending on the size of the cage it should have about 100 w so that the hottest point gets to 35° c.

so i should get a five dollar lamp and 50 cent blub instead of a 13 dollar pad(which would be placed towards the top coner of the tank) and 5 dollar timer?


btw I was thinking 10 gallon for one leo should I go bigger or smaller?

 

[Alice]

for one leo i'd go with at least 80/40/40 cm, best with a wall he can climb on. a well fed gecko moves a lot. the normal bulb will be ok, and for a 80/40/40 tank 80 w will be sufficient at normal room temperature. place the bulb on one side of the cage so the gecko can choose his temperature zone and offer him several hides (they like cork bark). as they sleep by day, he will not sunbathe regularly, but will sometimes use the higher temperatures. if it is warm enough in your room (about 22° c) you can leave the heat off in the night. if it's too could for that, you can use a 40 w red lamp.

btw - don't everfeed him. an adult does very well on one meal a week, a juvi can be fed every other day. they tend to grow very fast and live very short if you powerfeed them. and very important: don't forget the calcium (sepia for brids is great) and the vitamins (d3 is very important, corvimin is great) or your gecko might get weak and deformed bones.

 

[Scag]

don't use heat from below for your gecko - they try to burrow when they are too hot... my ex and i kept geckos for years and you do best with a lamp as heat source. so the heat is very high in a small area and cooler in the rest of the cage. for a leopard gecko, a common household bulb will do (they don't necessarily need UV). depending on the size of the cage it should have about 100 w so that the hottest point gets to 35° c.

I was gonna use paper towels instead of substrate should I use cocfiber so it can burrow if it wants :?

 

[roach dude]

if its a baby leo only ever use paper towels, because sand and other sub-strate can be swallowed and impact his stomact which can in turn lead to dead. Also i use a heat pad and my leo seems to be doing fine!:?

 

[Alice]

for a baby, papre towels are fine, but the adults love sand - plus, it's very easy to keep clean. leos are hardy and can deal with conditions that are not perfect. but natural heat comes from above and they love a sunbath from time to time.

 

[Mushroom Spore]

best with a wall he can climb on

Wait, since WHEN can leos climb walls? :?

 

[iturnrocks]

Wait, since WHEN can leos climb walls? :?

Im gonna take a guess here and say hes talking about a textured wall like a piece of bark or something. Not talking about actually climbing glass.

ps. when someone says leos to me, Im thinking leopard frogs- in other words I know nothing about leos.

 

[roach dude]

just wondering what temperatures should the hot and cold parts of my leo tank be??????

 

[Mushroom Spore]

just wondering what temperatures should the hot and cold parts of my leo tank be??????

Here, you can use my top secret information bank. But remember, it's a secret! Don't want just anyone being able to go out and discover things on their own, now do we?

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q="leopard+gecko"+"care+sheet"&btnG=Google+Search

 

[roach dude]

wow! Thats an amazing source....i've never heard of this.....g-o-o-g-l-e before!?!

 

[Alice]

i didn't mean glass walls of course, leos can't climb them - try my article 'pimp my tank' in the article section . but they will also use cork bark and thick brachnes to climb on. the coolest part of the cage can be around 26°c in the day. 22° c at night are fine.

 

[Scag]

Here, you can use my top secret information bank. But remember, it's a secret! Don't want just anyone being able to go out and discover things on their own, now do we?

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q="leopard+gecko"+"care+sheet"&btnG=Google+Search

you know sometimes people just want to hear anwser from people who own them and not people who own a webpage that could be right or could be wrong and with no real peer review who knows right?;P I know if someone here is wrong you'll go out of your way to prove that they are wrong and leak the right info.

 

[roach dude]

Yea thats what i wanted a peer review not a silly google webpage ;P

^^^^^^i like this guy!