down here i cant find a place that sells the under tank heat pads for "desert" reptiles (like leo's) how ever i did score two free "rainforest" pads from a lfs i frequent who have no use for them and they got them at a trade show so i was wondering if i could use the rainforest pads for the leo's ...thanks in advance...
heat pad use...
- Thread starter vicedretard
- Start date
I've never heard of separate heat pads specifically made for either desert or rainforest species. I don't see why you couldn't use them for leos.
If you're keeping leopard geckos, most of them come out at night where it is cooler for them. They spend most of their time in the day in their burrows where it is cooler and more humid for them. They don't live on sand either, but rather in rock outcrops. If you look at their geographic ranges, it is a bunch of muntains with very little desert terrian inbetween. Don't worry about the humidity for them, the natural humdity of the room and the water bowl will gather in the cool areas of the vivarium. Just thought you might want to look into that if you are into the naturalistic setup.
However don't worry about simulating their natural environment so much, those guys are well adapted to the urban environment in Pakistan, Afghanistan and India now. All you need to worry about is maintaining the temperature and the humdity regarding their environment.
However don't worry about simulating their natural environment so much, those guys are well adapted to the urban environment in Pakistan, Afghanistan and India now. All you need to worry about is maintaining the temperature and the humdity regarding their environment.
i belive that the rainforest on runs way cooler than the desert under tank heater, so i dont know how you could use it.....
Flexwatt heat tape, controlled by a dimmer, rheostat, or a thermostat is much more effective than any of those "pet store brand" heat mats. You use the heat tape in the same fashion as you would use any other under-tank heater.
www.reptilebasics.com
You basically order the heat tape by the foot, and its available in 3" and 11" widths. Reptilebasics will also wire it for you, so all you have to do is plug it in. You do absolutely need a control device though, as mentioned above, or else the tape can heat up to 120+ degrees.
I use flexwatt heat tape controlled by Helix thermostats. Set the temp you want, and thats the temp you get.
www.reptilebasics.com
You basically order the heat tape by the foot, and its available in 3" and 11" widths. Reptilebasics will also wire it for you, so all you have to do is plug it in. You do absolutely need a control device though, as mentioned above, or else the tape can heat up to 120+ degrees.
I use flexwatt heat tape controlled by Helix thermostats. Set the temp you want, and thats the temp you get.
during the day the room will be perfect somewhere between 80 and 88 degrees depending on time of year...second i only plan to use heat pads when im running the AC during summer cause summer nights are to hot to sleep without...so id probably only use the heat pads then...and yes i want to use some sort of slate tile as the substrate and lil mounds of slate for them to climb and hide in.
If your house is ~85 during the day and mid 70s at night...you may not need any supplemental heat. Must be nice to be in HI...
it doesn't matter if the pad is called rainforest or desert, that's just a stupid marketing label, what does matter is weither or not it will maintain an ideal basking area, that means less than 90* and more than 82* in that one spot.
do they need it to be that high at night...and second yes it is nice to be in this HI state...how ever on the nights that rise to 80's and i use my AC will the heat pads be enough to compencate for the cold air...
yes, even though it will be in a smaller area, the heat pad should be able to still provide good basking temps at night, although they don't "need" those temps at night but it is still nice for them to have that option. that's one of the great things about having a larger cage is the inhabitants can choose whatever temp and humidity they want. the two geckos in my house live in a 20l with 4 different hides, one directly under a 50w heat bulb, another one opposite side, a humid hide next to the hot one and a fourth hide in the middle. if you have a heat pad(get a controller for it no matter what, i didn't and my geckos got burned) or a heat lamp put it on one side only, then if it's 72* in your house then one side of the terrarium might only be 72* and the other might be 86* and the geckos can thermo regulate based on their own needs, another disadvantage to a small cage is that they can't do this.