Tile for a 10 gallon

[Sbrace52]

Im wanting to do a tile floor in a 10 gallon tank and i was wondering what sizes and quantity of tiles i should use. And will the uth make it to hot with the tile in there? Thanks

 

[bman123]

The tile will get hot but you have to play with it to get the temps right. I have to put 4 single sheets of newspaper under my tile to keep my temps cool enough. That's easy as pie to do tho. What are the dimensions of your tank? Give me the depth and length of the tank and i will tell you what to get.

 

[Sbrace52]

Its a standard 10 gallon aquarium, 20" long X 12" wide

 

[bman123]

You will need 6 whole 6x6 pieces of tile and two whole 6x6 pieces cut to 2x6. If you get the tile at lowes they will cut your two pieces for free.
The porcelain tile will cost at least 58cents a piece. Mine was 58cents but they have tile that is like $4-$5 a piece for a 6x6 piece if you want shnazy tile lol.

Just make sure the tile is rough and has some kind of texture to it. If the tile is glossy looking don't buy it because it will be slick and your Leo will be peeling out instead of walking.

I don't know if lowes sells tile that is 4x6 if they do you can get 10pieces of that and you wouldn't need that cut at all.

When you go just tell them what the dimensions of the tank are and they will do the math. They sell tiles of all sizes.
You could get 2 12x12 tiles and have them cut 4 inches off of one piece. The options are endless really. I like using the 6x6 tho so you can take out and clean the piece of tile that your Leo will designate as it's bathroom, lol..

 

[Sbrace52]

Thanks alot for the help

 

[bman123]

No problem man. I would get the 6x6 pieces tho as it's easier to just take out the one bathroom piece of tile instead of taking out a big piece. It's more work putting it in but it's easier when you need to clean.
Make sure you put some newspaper in the tank first. I would start with 4 single pieces of newspaper then put the tile on top of that. Put your thermometer probe on the tile above your uth. It's gonna take awhile for the tile to warm up so give it a couple hours to warm the newspaper and the tile.

You will thank yourself for using the tile, it just makes it so much easier. Plus you don't have to buy anymore ever lol. You figure a bag of whatever substrate you use costs $5 or more and you have to replace that at least once a month. The tile will cost around $4-$10 depending on what tile you pick out but you'll never have to buy it again. See I'm saving you money, my good deed for the day is now done lol..

 

[Sbrace52]

Oh yea for sure lol, would a repticarpet or pillow case work for under the tile?

 

[bman123]

I wouldn't use a pillowcase lol. Repti carpet will work, I would just throw the repti carpet away tho you won't need to use it again.
Just buy a daily newspaper for 50cents and call it a day, one single newspaper will last a long time..

 

[-Mischief]

I got a sheet of textured 1/4" sheet rock, cut it to size, cleaned it all off well with a damp cloth and then duct taped all of the edges. It holds heat well, looks great, is simple to clean and is very inexpensive.