Newbie Questions..

[onemodog]

Hi all. Thanks in advance for your replies. I looked and havent really found an answer or have seen different things.
Sorry if this seems basic but my sons and I are new Leo owners and just want our guy to be happy. Here are our questions:
Which way should the UTH go under the tank? We have a 10 gallon tank and right now the UTH runs front to back (if you are facing the tank with a long side facing you) on the right hand side along the edge. Basically, the heater is under a 3rd of the tank, approx. Is this right or should the heater run right to left lengthwise, centered along the right edge?
Does it matter?
I have taken temp readings with an infrared temp gun and its about 93 in its hottest spot but quickly drops as I read toward the cool side. This brings up our second question... what is the lowest temp that I should be reading on the cool side?
Our Leo does use both hides, cool and warm (though he is in the warm hide a lot more), so I think he is ok but the cools side seems too cool to me. (70s)
I am leaning toward changing the heater to run lengthwise to get a little more of a warm side but is there a "correct" way for the heater to go?
Last question...how much should our Leo be going to the bathroom? He has gone once in the week that we have had him. He is eating and we are giving him about 3 crickets every other day or so and keeping about 6 meal worms in his dish at all times. When he eats the worms, we put in more. He's about 6 months old.

Thanks again.

 

[bman123]

Just put your uth on one side of the tank either the left or right side that's fine. My Leo I got on weds and he has pooped twice since I got him, he's 4 yrs old tho and pretty big. What is the cool side temp? You said 70's is it low 70' or high 70's.

 

[bman123]

I try to keep my temps hot side 90-95 cool side 72-78. I prefer the higher of the hot side and the cooler of the cool side. Right now his temps are hot side 95.5 cool side 77
he does get up and switch hides sometimes, when you want to be warm or cold you will move lol.

 

[bman123]

You can always put something on top of the tank to try to hold in some heat and bring up the cool side temps. What substrate are you using.

 

[onemodog]

Thanks for the replies. The cool side is in the lower 70s...71-73.
We are using Eco-Carpet. It was a bit warmer outside today and the warm side went up to about 98 when I checked. Im worried now it is going to be a little to warm at its peak.
Good news is he did go to the bathroom again and his appetite seems good as we keep needing to add worms.

 

[bman123]

Here's a idea for you to try. Instead of using that carpet switch to tile. I swear tile is the best, it looks great, provides great traction, is a breeze to clean up and doesn't need replaced plus it only costs like $5 depending on your tank size, plus it is really easy to manipulate your temps as you use play sand underneath it and to fill in the cracks.
I have a 20gal tall tank which is 24 wide, and 12 inches front to back. I used 8 6x6 inch porcelain tiles which cost me like $4.60 for all 8 pieces. I got a 25lb bag of play sand for $1.75. Here is a pic of his tank with the tile in it
http://i926.photobucket.com/albums/ad105/Bricemaupin/1271612751.jpg

 

[bman123]

If you need to warm up the cool side of the tank try to cover up some of the lid, don't cover all of it just cover like 3/4 of the lid. I just use a rubbermaid plastic lid that fits one of those plastic storage boxes. It covers 3/4 of the lid but after switching to the tile I haven't needed to cover the lid anymore.

It's gonna depend on what your room temp is also. Our room temp is 76-78 year round, so my tank stay warm on the cool side easily. I'd hate to use a light as that costs $20 for a red heat bulb and a lamp from the pet store then you have a extra 50-75 watt bulb running your electric bill up.

I'm trying to help the best I can feel free to ask more questions, if I don't know it I will try to help you out. I am a noob when it comes to leos too but I have asked liked 100 questions already and I still ask questions everyday lol. There is always something to learn.

 

[onemodog]

bman,
Thanks for all the help. I like the way your tank looks with the tile and may give that a try. As summer is approaching I think the cool side will be fine but I know once winter comes around again I will have to make adjustments as our place is drafty and temp tends to drop in the place fairly quickly if the heat isnt on. We have a lamp as it came with the "start-up" kit we bought. Its set up but havent turned it on as we havent needed to but its ready.
I think our leo is adapting and looks like we may be seeing our first shed soon. He is getting a bit pasty looking. If I have any more questions I will be sure to ask...in fact, here is one. Will the tile work with the carpet we already have? No biggie to buy the sand, just wondering. Thanks again

 

[bman123]

I don't know about using the carpet I mean you can as a cushion for the tile but you will still need sand to fill in the cracks inbetween the tiles and the carpet is just another thing to warm up.
I just put a thin layer of sand down first then the tiles. I put a huge scoop of sand on top of the tiles then just brushed it over the tiles to fill in the cracks. The tile looks really nice and it holds the heat real good too.

I noticed you said he is looking pasty, like washed out. Do you have a humid hide? If not you can make one with a small rubber maid container and a damp paper towel. It really does help them shed alot easier and it will only take a few minutes to make it also.

Hey I'm new to leos but Ive been learning alot everyday so I try to help out when I can, since everybody has helped me out. Kinda returning the favor. If you have any more questions feel free to ask. This is the best gecko site and there tons of people here willing to help out so just ask away.

 

[rubym]

We used silicone to seal our tiles. We used the paintable kind and tinted it the color of the tile. That way I dont have to worry about the mealies or supers being able to get down under the tile. Also in the winter our house gets cool. We use the small light fixtures with the red party bulbs in them. Those keep the cool side of our tank around 78 degrees.

 

[onemodog]

Thanks again for the replies.
We do have a moist hide set up and he's been hanging out there for the last day. Checking on him and he seems to not have shed yet so I may have imagined his color in hopes we would see a shed...we're pretty excited to have our new pet.
I think we will make the switch to tile in a couple of weeks when we have a free weekend...I really like the clean look of it.

 

[bman123]

The tile is so simple and easy plus it's cheap. $5 for some tile and $2 for some sand = no more buying substrate.

 

[onemodog]

So my Leo shed yesterday afterall. Pretty cool to watch. He had been hiding out in the moist hide and after I re-wet the paper towels, he started shedding.
I saw him this morning and he looks like he got it all..nothing around his eyes or toes so he's good. I did notice that the warm side wasnt so warm this morning though. It had been in the mid 90s but today it was in the low 90s, high 80s. Of course, the entire tank is now 3-5 degrees cooler all around. I turned on the lamp while I got ready and it warmed up the tank a bit but I turned off the lamp before I left because it had made the tank too hot in the past when we tried it. I covered part of the lid to keep some of he heat in but its a concern overall. The uth I have came with a startup kit and Im thinking its a little on the cheap side even though its a Flukers uth and I thought they were a fairly good brand. If its the temp is low when I get home, Im going out to buy a new uth. Poor guy is probably thinking "damn newbie".
Anyone have experience with Flukers UTH?