You can always stick the heat mat to one of the slate tiles and elevate it off the floor with a gap large enough for your leo to get under it (it creates a warm hide underneath, and you can put hides on top, so he can have more hide and heat choices). My leo spends most of his time in the hide created by being under the glass chopping board I've got a heat mat taped to elevated by some chutney pots and a few acrylic discs - it's his favourite hide. (See posts 24 and 26 of my thread for pics : http://www.geckosunlimited.com/comm...vivarium-removable-floor-easy-cleaning-3.html)
Meet my little one!
- Thread starter MissFrances
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MissFrances
New member
I saw that on yours, it's a really cool idea! Does that create a heat gradient, though?
Yes, there's a heat gradient. There's 2 heat mats (One on the floor at the front and one on the glass at the back) set to slightly different temps and a CHE above, at the left of the viv there's no heat other than the heat in the air, etc.. This means Daff has a choice of several hides at a variety of temperatures. He does use them all (although at the moment with the cold weather he's not doing much of anything 
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JessJohnson87
New member
Sounds like you have your answer
MissFrances
New member
That's a fantastic help, thanks [MENTION=41440]mecoat[/MENTION]! I'm still a bit concerned about the mat under the slate (as you said you had one on the floor at the front, but you have a loose substrate, would it work different?) but I've still got plenty of time to work that out!
Fantastic news, too, the vet said to try her on solid food again today and she's eaten six silkworms tonight! So pleased to see her eating solid food again.
Fantastic news, too, the vet said to try her on solid food again today and she's eaten six silkworms tonight! So pleased to see her eating solid food again.
Glad to help. You don't have to have one under the slate and floor (but yes, with a loose substrate it's fine on the floor). Perhaps you could have slates on the floor unheated and some elevated with heat?
Another thing to think about, is how cold to the touch do the slates feel? Here where I am tiles are really cold to touch unless they have direct heat, for example my feet get cold on my bathroom floor, (one of the reasons I don't put tile in my viv, cos if I don't wanna walk on them and I'm warm-blooded Daff won't either).
Will you seal the slate in some way for easy cleaning?
Another thing to think about, is how cold to the touch do the slates feel? Here where I am tiles are really cold to touch unless they have direct heat, for example my feet get cold on my bathroom floor, (one of the reasons I don't put tile in my viv, cos if I don't wanna walk on them and I'm warm-blooded Daff won't either).
Will you seal the slate in some way for easy cleaning?
MissFrances
New member
Yeah, that's a good point. I'm still considering it all and researching so I'm not sure about sealing yet, seeing as the slates will be free it won't be too inconvenient for me to just explore with them and see whether they'll work - if not, nothing's lost!
MissFrances
New member
We're eating again! 6 silkworms and a locust tonight, she's also had a poop but it's the same as last time- light brown baby food colours and squishy again. She ate two nights ago (6 silkworms) so I don't know if that should have changed by now? At the same time, she'll still have quite a bit of baby food in her system.
Edit: have any of you ever seen anything like this before? (Click) I'm still quite concerned about heating haha! I'm not sure what advantages this would have other than allowing air to flow around the bottom of the mat? Or is this an expensive version of your setup [MENTION=41440]mecoat[/MENTION]? I'm basically excessively worried about overheating, malfunctioning or causing a fine :/
Edit: have any of you ever seen anything like this before? (Click) I'm still quite concerned about heating haha! I'm not sure what advantages this would have other than allowing air to flow around the bottom of the mat? Or is this an expensive version of your setup [MENTION=41440]mecoat[/MENTION]? I'm basically excessively worried about overheating, malfunctioning or causing a fine :/
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Not come across that before. I'd say it's up to you. As you've (presumably) got access to way more slate than you need, I'd be inclined to try one (or more) elevated slate(s) with the heat mat on the underside (so little claws can't do too much). If you're not happy buy one then.
It appears to be a much smaller gap for the heat mat than I leave (The gap under the glass if big enough for Daff to walk under), and only for one size of mat.
MissFrances
New member
Okay, having had a look about, I think I'm going to have to reconsider my substrate choices - it seems like a lot of people using slate are using it in a glass viv where the heatmat can go under, and there's concerns with hotspots and poor heat transfer (especially in the horrendous weather we have in England!)
My mum spoke to a reptile specialist today who said they keep theirs on beech wood chips or Leolife from ProRep. Has anyone had any experience with these?
[MENTION=41440]mecoat[/MENTION], you keep Daff on corn cob, right?
My mum spoke to a reptile specialist today who said they keep theirs on beech wood chips or Leolife from ProRep. Has anyone had any experience with these?
[MENTION=41440]mecoat[/MENTION], you keep Daff on corn cob, right?
Yes I keep him on corn cob. I also use coconut husk (Not the stuff you buy for moist hides) sometimes as Daff seems to like moving it around the viv.
One time when Daff went to a friend's to be pet sat while I was away, she's run out of corn cob, so she put him on a mix of wood chips and coconut husk. (half and half across the viv, rather than a mix). When I got back and went to pick him up, he;d dug out all the wood chips from under one of the hides and lined it with coconut husk (which he must have carried a piece at a time as there was no trail and it was as much a surprise to the sitter as it was to me that he'd done it. Your leo may also not like wood chips.
Not come across Leolife, so can't comment on that.
MissFrances
New member
We're in an awkward situation right now - Izzy's refusing to eat anything but silkworms, and my shipment of worms is late! The vet isn't happy she won't eat anything else, either. I wasn't so concerned because silkworms are real nutritious and I was pleased she was eating at all, but now I'm worried! We'll see what he says tomorrow.
JessJohnson87
New member
I know it sounds cruel but you may have to let her go a couple of days off of silkworms to try another feeder, something softer like crickets or dubia. I do that to mine when I want to try him on something new and since he doesn't eat crickets all the time, he actually hunts them when I do buy them and feed them to him.
MissFrances
New member
I was wondering if it might be a case of that! Vet's said to try calciworms too (phoenixworms) which I was looking to do anyway!
MissFrances
New member
I'll get a better picture in the morning, but I've set up Izzy's new tank! She's been out and exploring it quite keenly. She's loving the space between the Rock and the bark.
(Picture seems to come up really small on mobile, click here if it is!)
I've got a kinda heat resistant Lino on the floor- by heat resistant, it means it's not gunna be warped by heat I've been checking the heat transfer and her hot hide is at a steady 30-32* like her last one was. I also the pulse thermostat [MENTION=55860]Zux[/MENTION] recommended which is doing a fab job! Heat mat is under that middle hide, with a warmer area either side and the cool area being down where the bark is. Thermostat probe stuck under the substrate but the thermometer on top (and a good old laser thermometer for my neurotic checking)
Moist hide in the back right corner in a warmish area (in the last one, it was in a cold area and she liked it fine!
Haven't yet transferred my hygrometer. Can anyone spot anything else I might be missing? It looks strangely sparse yet cluttered with that giant hunk of bark in there! Might see about cutting it down, but actually she's quite taken to wiggling her way in behind it.
Bonus picture:
(Picture seems to come up really small on mobile, click here if it is!)
I've got a kinda heat resistant Lino on the floor- by heat resistant, it means it's not gunna be warped by heat
I've been checking the heat transfer and her hot hide is at a steady 30-32* like her last one was. I also the pulse thermostat [MENTION=55860]Zux[/MENTION] recommended which is doing a fab job! Heat mat is under that middle hide, with a warmer area either side and the cool area being down where the bark is. Thermostat probe stuck under the substrate but the thermometer on top (and a good old laser thermometer for my neurotic checking)Moist hide in the back right corner in a warmish area (in the last one, it was in a cold area and she liked it fine!
Haven't yet transferred my hygrometer. Can anyone spot anything else I might be missing? It looks strangely sparse yet cluttered with that giant hunk of bark in there! Might see about cutting it down, but actually she's quite taken to wiggling her way in behind it.
Bonus picture:
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JessJohnson87
New member
I think it looks good.
MissFrances
New member
She seems to be enjoying it! Still not eating, but I'm still not sure if she's just being fussy. My order of silk and calciworms should come in tomorrow. My dad, with all his good intentions, bought some waxworms on the recommendation of a reptile shop owner and happily told me later that night "She ate three of those!!"
I'm hoping he's not inspired bad habits!
JessJohnson87
New member
That's funny but at least he had good intentions. My husband leaves the gecko feeding to me, I will be going away this coming up weekend for a couple of days and they will be in his care, I assured him that I would feed both before I leave and all he has to do is mist the crested geckos tank....we'll see how that goes :roll:
wicked gecko
New member
Lol at least he's trying! I'm sure it won't hurt on occasion as long as he doesn't make it a regular habit. She looks comfy in her new home.