Leo with excavator clay

[avoidtheboyd]

Ok, so i have an extra tank its a 20 long and was looking to do something new. I was going to buy excavator clay and mold hides and stuff but the problem im having is heating it. I put a piece of repticarpet down on the hot end and then mold the clay around it so the clay isnt over the UTH or i could use lights. Any suggestions on which is better? Itd be for a leopard gecko so...

 

[Airedale]

Personally, I would avoid excavator (I have heard a lot of people have had problems with it collapsing, stuff like that) but that is personal preference. Leos need belly heat, so maybe a regular hide over a UTH, with the caves over towards the cool end? Idk totally what your hope for a final viv is, so it is hard to give advice.

 

[Yoshi'smom]

I used excavator clay for my leo for two years and then i upgraded his tank. He now isn't on any substrate other than paper towel and is ironically having health problems now.
I did just as Jim said. I had a normal humid hide on the hot side with just paper towels and built a cave system out of the excavator clay on the cool side. I also read about problems with cave ins so i built the bottom part with the clay and put slate rocks on top to close the tops off. This seemed to work really well. I saw my leo all over that tank!
The only draw back to this stuff is it's a pain to clean.... I spot cleaned it every two weeks by brushing all of the junk off the top and i took it all out and replaced it about every 4-5 months.
I probably wouldn't use it again for leos. If I ever get a Nephrurus I might try this stuff again mixed with sand since they burrow a ton.

 

[avoidtheboyd]

Its mainly just a project since i have an extra tank now. I was thinking about setting a big piece of mopani wood in it and then use a bowl or something for a structure and then set clay around it. Doing this for both sides but for the humid side ill have it touching the bottom with reptile carpet underneath.

 

[Yoshi'smom]

I wouldn't burry the reptile carpet. It should be easy to remove so that it can be cleaned. They harbor bacteria pretty easily especially if your leo decides to use it as a bathroom spot.

 

[For The Sake Of Revenge]

I went to a Zoo med how to built terrariums at the NARBC and they used the clay there in their desert terrariums. They had some pretty elaborate tanks there where they used the excavator clay to actually build bridges - what he stressed the most was that you needed the right balance between the amount of clay and water. He didnt really give us an exact mix to use but said to play around with it as he was kinda in a rush since he was running late. Some of the cool stuff was getting one of those long balloons and blowing it up and using it to create a tunnel. Where basically you'd leave a little of the two sides exposed and put clay over the other parts then just pop the balloon when you are done. If you are worried about it caving in you could always use Great Stuff as a base to hold the structure then try putting the clay over it; this is what I was thinking of trying.

 

[sajane]

i have used empty water bottles with a hole cut out of the middle to insure the tunnel didnt collapse. i used cocoa fiber over the uth with a hide over that. not for leopard though.

 

[avoidtheboyd]

I mean i don't think they he would poo in his hide which would be the only place the repticarpet would be uncovered. Any suggestions on what else to use in the hide?

 

[avoidtheboyd]

The other thing i could do it put tile underneath the hide spot

 

[Yoshi'smom]

I would do tile! It's so much easier to clean off and wipe down and it holds heat really well. I never thought I would have a gecko that pooped where it slept but sure enough one of my leo's likes to poop in his hide...

 

[avoidtheboyd]

Ive had both of them for about 2 years and never had a problem with it. This is just a project and i have an extra tank so....if it works well i might try it for a while.

 

[sajane]

i did the same thing. I use the cage for emergancies or babies. I had fun with it and when i took it apart ,i left the edges so that from the outside against the glass the terrain is still there and then i put cocoa fiber on top

 

[guinessthegecko]

Guinness originally was on the excavator clay but when he had the abscess in his hemipene, we took him out of it and hes now on paper towel as well until hes completely healthy