Going from substrate to substrate - good idea?

[riderchan]

Hi there! New Leo mama here, call me Rider.

I've had my Leo for about a month now, and when I got her, I also purchased an ExoTerra home for her (10 gallon tank that came with light source, substrate, etc). Her current substrate is ExoTerra's Soil Plantation substrate (came with the set), however I've seen her eating it a couple of times and I'm worried about impaction. I've bought some reptile carpet to replace it, but I have a couple of concerns:

1. 1. You could say that she's 'used' to her regular substrate, is there any way I can comfortably replace it without stressing her out too much?
2. 2. How do you dispose of substrate? I would assume it would just be throwing it out through the compost, but I just want to make sure before I go ahead and do it.
3. 3. How often do you clean reptile carpet?

Now I do have some anxiety about this, so I may be exaggerating my worry. I just want to be a good reptile owner, and any help or advice you can give me is welcome!

Thank you for reading, and have a nice day!:blushing:

 

[acpart]

Welcome to GU! Yes, you can compost or throw out your old substrate. I don't worry about too much about stressing the gecko. I do my best, but I also do what's necessary for the gecko's ultimate comfort. Here's what I do with the reptile carpet: get 2 pieces of carpet. When one looks dirty, switch them. Hand wash the dirty one with soap and water and, if you can, put it in the spin cycle of the washer to get most of the water out. Let it dry and you can use it for the switch next time. To minimize how much you have to clean, figure out where the gecko is pooping and put a 4 1/4" bathroom tile there so it doesn't poop on the carpet. A less labor intensive substrate is ceramic tile which is easier to clean.

Aliza

 

[Geecko123]

I definetly recomend slate tile I use 12" by 12" tiles I ordered off of home depot
don't grout it in because that makes the infrequent deep clean impossible.

slate tile has a lot of pros and no cons I can think of, they are easy to clean, have zero risk of impaction retain heat, looks good, and it is more natural for the gecko.