Newbie question

[stoneyboy]

Hi all, I am new to leopard geckos and reptiles for that matter. I recently purchased a pair of geckos from a fella with the entire setup. Currently there is a fiberous material as the substrate resembling bark mulch etc. I noticed that when I put worms in for feeding, they burrow in and disapear into the substrate. I am wondering for this reason, is it not better to have reptile carpet as substrate? Are there any benefits to using this type as opposed to reptile carpet?? I am enclosing a picture for reference.
Thanks for your help!!!

 

[nwtampaguy34]

Yes get rid of that stuff. Ok to put into a humid hide but not for the total substrate. Go with paper towels, Ceramic tiles, repti carpet (however there nails can get stuck in the fibers) or zoo med clay excavator substrate when mixed with water it gets real hard like cement. But if you use it make sure you dont put any over the area where your heat mat is.

 

[Neon Aurora]

Loose substrate is risky, as it can cause impaction if ingested. All of the solid substrates mentioned by the poster above would be a better choice. =)

 

[PFGeckos]

I'd recommend staying away from the reptile carpet even though, like somebody said, it's less risky than the loose substrate. I tried the reptile carpet because it looks nice, but after a while it starts to smell bad, and whatever's causing it to smell can't be good for the gecko, who has to live with it. I've also heard rumors of gecko nails getting snagged in it.

 

[janeelindaa]

I use lino for my geckos tried paper towel and they ate it, sand, they ate it, lino works lovely and makes the worms easy to get for them too

 

[Drawberry]

Reptile carpet is not meant to stay in the tank forever.

It requires regular cleaning. Which can be done as simply as soaking the carpet in the sink with some soap and giving it a good rinse then letting it air dry or even throwing it in the wash. I prefer hang washing to be sure it stays in good condition.

I have two carpets, one green and one brown (i prefer the brown) that I switch out when one's being cleaned.

Smell's can accumulate from improper cleaning of the carpet or leaving dead crickets in the tank, which smell HORRENDOUS.

Another substrate option is natural slate tile!
As long as it's not treated, and has enough texture so your lizard friend isn't slip slidin' around.

 

[Shrapnailed]

I use paper towels as this makes for easy clean up and helps the geckos in "spotting" their food.

 

[Mercoop]

I went to Home Depot and bought some Linoleum as well. Go to the flooring section and they have it on 10ft wide rolls that they will cut for you. I got a 2ftx10ft piece for like $20. The nice thing about the rolls is that there is NO GLUE on the back. You get a bunch of extra but you just roll it up and save it for the next cage. It is SUPER easy to clean since its water proof so fecal matter won't soak into it. I spot clean where they poop with chlorhexidine solution. You could also cut two peices for each tank and swap them for cleaning. It looks like stone but its not porous and no impaction risk and low maintainance! No carpet cleaning.