Housing Project - Suggestions?

[insertexpletivehere]

Long story short, one of our cats has decided that he would like to try to eat all the reptiles so we're moving them all upstairs to my studio (after we do much needed reno up there).

The studio has this weird closet in it:

As you can probably tell, we used to keep on of the cat litters in there, then used it to store bags of litter. I should have vacuumed it before taking the photo but whatever.

The more I look at it the more I think it would make a great enclosure. I'm planning on cleaning it (obviously), sealing the wood, installing sheets on plastic around the inside, replacing the current door with a 3/4 plastic 1/4 screen door and installing both a light misting system and ventilation fans for air flow. Excess water will drain through the bottom and into a collection pan.

I'm having some issues with lighting though. The room has no windows so there isn't a natural light cycle. I don't want anything to overheat in the closet so most regular lighting is out. The only thing I can think of is those led lights that you press but I don't think they would give off enough light. How important is a light cycle for cresteds? My current 4 have a natural cycle in our living room due to the windows.

Any tips or suggestions? Is it way too big for a few adults? I was planning on having multiple feeding areas.

 

[indyana]

I think a light cycle is fairly important; I use a UVB fluorescent on mine as well. You could probably attach a small fluorescent fixture to the ceiling and not have it overheat the entire closet. It will warm up a little, but the gecko could move farther away from the light if it bothered them. Mine tends to bask right under my lamp most of the time, so she doesn't appear to mind the warmth. Make certain the mist system is set up to output below the level of the light fixture, as you wouldn't want it to get direct misting.

Sounds like an interesting project!