The House

[Rebekah]

Before asking shop assistants questions about keeping geckos, I thought I'd just check with you guys if I'm thinking along the right lines.

So, I am planning to get a 10 gallon tank for one male gecko(leopard). I will probably put in newspaper as a substrate first of all, maybe move onto slate or tile at a later date. I will have three housing areas, one in hot side, one in cooler and a humid box in the middle with adsorbed paper towels. I will have a heat mat underneath the newspaper on one side and a few plants and climby things for the gecko.

So, I was wondering, do I need two thermostat things in either side of the tank?
Also, do I need basking light aswell as a normal light along with the heat mat. Or can I just put in a basking light? The tank will be kept near a window so there will be light coming into the tank from there.

 

[BalloonzForU]

You won't need any lights at all. Natural sunlight coming in through a window is all that you'll need. If you want lights for night viewing you can use a low watt red or black light.

The thermostat is used to control the UTH so you'll only need one to keep it at the correct temp.

 

[Rebekah]

Nice.No basking lights then?

 

[monkeygirl]

nope, there not liek other lizards that need light to get D3, they are nocturnal so dont need uv lights or any. they absorb heat best from thier bellys which is why most people use undertank heaters. if you live in a really cold area then you may need a light to help keep the ambient temps up but in most cases you wont need one. as mentioned above you can use a low wattage red or black light to view your animals at night if you wish

 

[curiousKathy]

I would be careful about putting the tank next to a window as it will get extremely hot in the summer and cold in the winter...think about temps in a car. Natural light is great but maybe move the tank across the room from the window or in a manner that won't allow direct sunlight in. I think the thermostat things you are asking about are the temperature probes? You could have 2 temperature probes one for the cool side and one for the warm side. You need only one thermostat and probe for the UTH however. I would highly suggest using a Under Tank Heater for your heat source as leos need belly heat for digestion. The thermostat keeps the UTH from getting too hot. the heat mat (aka UTH) needs to go under the tank and attach to the bottom of the tank, not under the newspaper. It would be too hot if it were under the paper plus the leo could dig to it and get burned.

Otherwise sounds like you are doing a great prep job!

Kathy