Help me make them the best home possible! Guidance and advice appreciated

[summit]

Hi there, I have wanted to try keeping a Gecko for some time now, I have a bundle of questions I am hoping some of you can help me with, but so as not to overwhelm, I thought I would start with the terranium, as the title suggests, I want to give them the best home possible that I can, so input and guidance would be very much appreciated!

I am looking at the Exo-Terra glass terraniums, are these a good choice? I need something with front access as the will be a little higher up and it would be harder to go in from above, I am open to other suggestions.

Size, I was looking at the 18"w x 18"d x 24"h or the 24w x 18"d x 24"h, will there be a significant difference between the two? Will be be just as happy in the slightly smaller of the two, as it will fit my space better?

 

[CHAMpion]

When it comes to geckos the more floor space the better. Exoterra's are taller than they are long. A ten gallon is perfect or even a twent long.

 

[Foreverandever]

I agree. I would go with your basic 10 gal or 20 long tank with a simple mesh lid

 

[Barbel]

I am assuming you want a leopard gecko, you didn't specify. If so, you definitely want a tank with more floor space. If you want to keep one or two you will need a 20 gallon long. Ten gallons are a little too small, even for one. The more you want to keep the bigger it will need to be.

 

[2bacop]

you can make (or buy) a terranium, that has a lot of floor space and is not an exo terra. There is a picture of one on here somewhere I will try and find it. That way they have the floor space but it still opens from the front

 

[2bacop]

Theres a lot of them in this thread, and a couple of the exo-terras so you can see good layouts if you decided to go with that.

http://www.geckoforums.net/showthread.php?t=22299

 

[2bacop]

I found a site that sells them, they are called Visionariums

http://lllreptile.com/store/catalog/-/visionarium-stackable-terrarium/

 

[summit]

thanks for your replies, what drew me to this tank in particular is the front opens up to get him out as well as it has a screen top that opens, this would be handy for me since it would be going on a high shelf, making coming in to get him from the top difficult, but going in from the front easy, does anyone know of something that may be better suited where the front opens rather than the top?

So a leopard gecko does not like to climb, is that why height is not important? so I would gather any glass enclosure with a floor space of at least 18x12 preferrably 24x12 will be good for a leopard?

I am still undecided on the type of gecko, its down to either a leopard or a crested gecko which I know are quite different, if I went the route of a crested is height more important due to climbing in which the ones I had picked out might be better suited?

You can see the ones I am talking about here:
http://www.mrpets.ca/Products/Product.aspx?ID=7359&&categoryid=6

The one I had my eye on most has a floor space of 24x12 the same as a 20 gallon I believe, and a height of 24" which I thought would give me the height if I wanted to get a crested, what do you think?

 

[acpart]

If you decide on a crested gecko, the exoterra is really nice. My crestie is in the 12x12x18 and doing fine, though something bigger would be good as well (especially if you want more than one).

If you want a leo, the height is kind of a waste. There's another choice at a very good price at www.glasscages.com. THey have a sliding front enclosure with a granite looking frame that's a bit pricey, but if you look at the stackable tanks (here: http://www.glasscages.com/?sAction=ViewCat&lCatID=5) you will find some at a very good price with front opening. THis is what I use primarily, though I also have one visionarium and one glasscages sliding front tank. Unfortunately, they do not list the size that works best for me, which they will make for you if you order it: it's called the "half 29" because it has the same length and width as a 29 gallon tank, very similar to a 20 long actually, but is only half the height. It's around $35-40 and for another $10 you can get a screen top. The place is in Ohio, but has an extensive list of shows and other deliveries throughout the country. That has worked out well for me as well.

Let me know if you have any more questions.

Aliza

 

[2bacop]

thanks for your replies, what drew me to this tank in particular is the front opens up to get him out as well as it has a screen top that opens, this would be handy for me since it would be going on a high shelf, making coming in to get him from the top difficult, but going in from the front easy, does anyone know of something that may be better suited where the front opens rather than the top?

So a leopard gecko does not like to climb, is that why height is not important? so I would gather any glass enclosure with a floor space of at least 18x12 preferrably 24x12 will be good for a leopard?

I am still undecided on the type of gecko, its down to either a leopard or a crested gecko which I know are quite different, if I went the route of a crested is height more important due to climbing in which the ones I had picked out might be better suited?

Did you skip over my posts? LOL the ones I left the link for are the ones that open in the front

 

[Retribution Reptiles]

There are pretty much 2 options in which IMO you have. A visionarium or exo terra does provide long tanks now with the front opening. Visionariums you can get from LLLreptile Supplies and i do believe the only carrier/shipper of the larger exo terra tanks would be big apple supply.

I own a visionarium and i personally didn't like it due to the fact that the bottom corners are curved and it's quite a pain attempting to put in something like reptile carpet or even paper towels. I have no experience with the exo terra tanks but everything that i have seen up close appears to be pretty decent.

 

[summit]

I think I am leaning towards a crested gecko, I like the idea of a show tank with live plants, and perhaps a waterfall, its a tough decision, if I did go with the crested, it appears the exo-terra is a pretty decent choice, will a 18x18x24 provide enough room for the little guy, should I spend the extra and go for the 24x18x24? or is this now in the wrong part of the forum? lol

Did you skip over my posts? LOL the ones I left the link for are the ones that open in the front

LOL no, I checked it out, and got some good ideas, but I am way up in BC canada, so I was a little hesitant about shipping, and the border, so I was more looking for something I could pick up locally, thanks for the info though.

 

[acpart]

I think 18x18x24 is fine for a crestie. My crestie is in a planted tank which means its droppings fertilize the plants and I don't have to clean it. There is some good info about starting a planted viv on the Black Jungle web site: www.blackjungle.com

Aliza

 

[2bacop]

I think I am leaning towards a crested gecko, I like the idea of a show tank with live plants, and perhaps a waterfall, its a tough decision, if I did go with the crested, it appears the exo-terra is a pretty decent choice, will a 18x18x24 provide enough room for the little guy, should I spend the extra and go for the 24x18x24? or is this now in the wrong part of the forum? lol



LOL no, I checked it out, and got some good ideas, but I am way up in BC canada, so I was a little hesitant about shipping, and the border, so I was more looking for something I could pick up locally, thanks for the info though.

Ah, I see