Substrate Question...yes, another one

[valknut79]

So I know the argument against sand and calcium sand. Geckos eat it, get impacted, etc.

And I know the argument against moss and eco earth. It retains moisture and that's no good either. I suppose the same argument could be made for dirt.

Wood chips and snake bedding, as I understand it, are also easily consumed, which is bad for geckos too.

I know the arguments for tile, paper towel, newspaper and reptile carpet. But I think that's ugly and uninspiring.

I'm in the process or redesigning all of my aquariums and making them look freaking splendiferous. I even went and bought some of those outrageously expensive but totally beautiful Universal Rocks on the net. Three of the tanks are coming along really nicely as far as decoration, but I need some kind of substrate. For me, all of the above are out, unless i'm absolutely forced into it.

So I was thinking: What about gravel? I'm not talking the pea gravel that would have all the same problems as wood chips and sand, but how about big chunks of gravel, like the pond rocks that you can get in the fish aisle? What's so bad about that?

I put some in one of my redesigns to test it, and they're holding heat well. What I did is attach a UTH to the bottom of my 20-long, add a thin layer of pea gravel, and then put larger rocks on top, that way they're not shifting around. Then I went around each big rock with a toothpick trying to dislodge the pea gravel underneath, and took out any pieces that were too easily moved. I'm thinking that as it stands, they're not going to shift or move, since I could only do it with more pressure than I think my leos are going to be able to muster, and it doesn't seem too easy for crickets to hide underneath it, although I suppose that might be a concern.

Has anyone ever tried something like this before? What do you think about my excellent plan?

 

[clemsonguy1125]

I guess it might work but theres still the small danger. If the gecko gets it theres a chance of them choking or getting impacted on the pea gravel. Other than that It sounds like it will work. Its really up to you and what degree of safety you want for your gecko. Personally I dont really care about looks, Ill do what ever it takes to make my gecko as safe as possible. But if you have made it as safe as you say there is no reason why it would not work. Its still more dangerous that tile or paper towel. Can we have a picture, It might give us a better idea.

 

[ZooKeeperKarin]

I did use gravel. It was nickle sized for the most part and nothing small enough for them to eat. I hated it and changed back to paper towel. The gravel did not transfer heat and well as I would have liked and it was a PAIN to try and clean their poop. I feed mealworms, and a few had crawled out of the dish. They were beetles before I found them!
For me, it was more a hassle than it was worth.
What about brown mailing paper?

 

[Dog Shrink]

Limestone can be toxic if your leo licks it or if it gets wet and they lay on it, crushed granite is VERY sharp and could slice your leo, pea gravel can beeaten and cause impatcion. The only thing that is really smooth is riverbed gravel and finding that in the right size is gonna be hard. What is it you don't like about the way tile looks? I have it in my natural tank and think it looks great.

 

[valknut79]

@Karin - Hopefully I'll be able to avoid some of those problems. I don't feed worms usually, and the background I just installed in the aquarium in question has a flat surface covering two of the four corners, and one of them is the same corner that the gecko who will be living there is currently pooping in. If it stays the same, then I'll be out of the woods there. Thanks for telling me about your experience.

@Dog Shrink - I'm using the river stones you mentioned, as well as some tumbled rocks for a little shiny stuff. Your tile habitat looks much better than I thought it would. I may actually copy some of your design on a different one =). My main problem with the tiles is that I'm also using some fake plants, which won't stand up well or look good unless I somewhat bury the base in something, which is what made me initially disregard the tile.

@clemsonguy - I'll definitely put up a pic when I get a camera. For now, too much money is being spent on the geckos to spend it on another electronic device!

 

[Dog Shrink]

You could put the plants in a shallow tupperware dish and pile various rocks of all sizes up to hide them and stabilize the base better. OR you could cover the planter in sphagnum moss to hide it as well plus that would help keep your moisture levels up. You'd have a nice solid base to work with any planter you'd use given the fact the tile is very level and sort of smooth. You could use several small-ish pieces of shale and make like a little brick wall type effect to also enclose any planter you use.

Also if you do decide to stick with loose stone substrait you could make like a little "litterbox" That pic didn't show mine but Eros does have a litterbox with a little desert sand in it and he uses that EVERY time he has to potty. Makes clean up real easy just sift it thru a colander and voila...

Here's a pic with his litterbox

All the litterbox is is a tie box cut in half and overlapped onto itself to get the size I wanted and then I wrapped the whole thing in duct tape to make it water repellant, cut out a little part in the front (you can see it if you look closely) so he can climb in easier. I find sometimes he goes in there and plays in the sand. I check on him and he has brown sand strewn all about the top ofthe hide there. Silly lil bugger. I don't let him free feed. I feed him by hand so I don't worry at all about him eating the sand. This is what my tank looks like now with it all complete and all the parts in it.

 

[Spots]

Unless I am understanding this incorrectly, I would just be concerned about the comfort of the geckos. If I were a gecko, I think I would want something flat to lay on opposed to gravel pieces. I had the same problem as you too (disliking the look of all the substrates) but eventually just stuck to tiles.

 

[Dog Shrink]

comfort and simulating natural habitat is key imo. They are rock dwellers living in cravases so they're not exaclt like ont he sandy/rocky desert floor, they stay in the rock formations which is why I did my tank the way I did. Eros seems to enjoy it

 

[valknut79]

Dog Shrink, where did you get those flat stones you have piled up all around?

 

[Dog Shrink]

At the creek. They're shale If you take any rocks out of nature make sure you soak them in blech over night, even those you get at a landscape supplier as well.