Night Temperature Advice

DebbieL

New Member
Messages
16
Location
St. Louis, MO
I've only been a leo owner for a week now and still trying to figure everything out. At night, although my home AC is set to 73, the probe in my leo's cage shows the temp only gets down to 75/76. I read that night temps were supposed to be in the lower 70's. I'm not sure what to do. Is the 75 temp harmful to him? I do have a cool moist hide for him but if his tank temp is only 75/76, it may not offer much coolness. Also, should I be providing a small area of warmer belly heat for him overnight? If so, what temp should the probe read for this? So much to learn! Thanks in advance for any advice.
 

acpart

Geck-cessories
Staff member
Messages
15,119
Location
Somerville, MA
Good to be asking questions. I need a little more information in order to answer yours:
What are you using to heat the cage, heat mat, overhead light or both?
When you say "the probe in my leo's cage shows the temp only gets down to 75/76. " do you mean on the hot side, cool side, floor or air?
I'll try to give more specific answers when I know more about your situation.

Aliza

** also please be sure to put your posts in the correct section. I'm moving this one now.
 
Last edited:

DebbieL

New Member
Messages
16
Location
St. Louis, MO
Good to be asking questions. I need a little more information in order to answer yours:
What are you using to heat the cage, heat mat, overhead light or both?
When you say "the probe in my leo's cage shows the temp only gets down to 75/76. " do you mean on the hot side, cool side, floor or air?
I'll try to give more specific answers when I know more about your situation.

Aliza

** also please be sure to put your posts in the correct section. I'm moving this one now.


Thank you Aliza! I've been using an infrared red bulb to heat the tank because when I purchased my gecko that is what the pet store told me to get. Over the past week, however, I have learned I need a UTH and I have one arriving tomorrow. The night temp I mentioned only going down to 75/76 was shown by two probes, both sitting on the substrate, one on the warm side and the other on the cool side. I was turning the lights off at night because I was told the nighttime temp was supposed to drop to the low 70s, which I could not attain leaving a light on. Now I'm hearing from many owners that they either leave their heat settings the same 24/7 or, if anything, just lower them slightly at night. The say that while that leopard geckos can tolerate drops in temp at night they do not require them. It sure would be more consistent and easier to maintain the same temp all the time. Do you agree with this line of thinking?

Thanks again! Debbie
 

acpart

Geck-cessories
Staff member
Messages
15,119
Location
Somerville, MA
Hopefully you'll get a thermostat with your UTH so it doesn't get too hot. I've found that the heat mat heats up nicely in about 6 hours, but it takes sometimes as much as a few more days for it to completely stabilize. Once I've established that my heat mat is keeping the floor of the cage on the hot side in the low 90's I don't worry at all about any other aspects of the temperature. In the summer, my (no AC) living room can range anywhere from the low 70's to the mid 90's. In the winter, it can get down to the mid 60's. In my opinion, that's what "thermoregulating" is all about. In the winter, most of the geckos are in their warm hides, which trap the warm air rising from the heated floor. In the summer, most of them are in the lay boxes (which double as humid hides) on the cool side of the enclosure. We all (geckos and humans) in the house get a bit chilly in the winter and a bit hot in the summer but we stay healthy.

Aliza
 

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