I’m guessing you mean by spraying the substrate? It will dry up rather quickly in an open top enclosure. Give me a few minutes to catch up.
Last edited:
bioactive terrarium
- Thread starter Geecko123
- Start date
Loose substrate for a Leo is pretty much only good for aesthetics in an open top enclosure. Why?
The air remains dry because the moisture escapes through the top.
Their skin is made out of keratin(waterproof) and so how will moist substrate benefit?
They are not burrowing reptiles such as monitor lizards which actually dig tunnels. These tunnels hold in pockets of humidity. All this requires substrate depth of about a foot deep.
The most digging you see is from a female Leo before releasing eggs. They barely move any dirt. It’s like a waste of energy
The moisture needs to be in the air in order to benefit.
The air remains dry because the moisture escapes through the top.
Their skin is made out of keratin(waterproof) and so how will moist substrate benefit?
They are not burrowing reptiles such as monitor lizards which actually dig tunnels. These tunnels hold in pockets of humidity. All this requires substrate depth of about a foot deep.
The most digging you see is from a female Leo before releasing eggs. They barely move any dirt. It’s like a waste of energy
The moisture needs to be in the air in order to benefit.
I believe the timer is for her UVB bulb which is fine because it does not produce heat. She does use a thermostat for her heating sources.
:lol:
I would think as long as you keep the humidity at acceptable levels it would be ok. Also it doesnt seem to be very expensive to build pvc foam board enclosures if your just building for one gecko so maybe thats an option?
How would you keep the humidity in consistently without jeopardizing the only ventilation(above)?
I’m a visual type of gal. Would love to see an example of a pvc foam board enclosures. You probably have the skills to build it. I have to admit I’m clueless when it comes to building
Last edited:
Geopard Lecko
New member
I use a thin bath towel to cover most of my screen (on one of my current setups) I leave just a little bit uncovered for easier air exchange. with it covered completely the humidity gets to about 45~50 depending if I just misted their humid hides, with it partially uncovered its about 25~35.
So maybe thats an option?
So maybe thats an option?
Geecko123
New member
I do have an open top. I also have a humid hide, I put in loose substrate today and he explored all over, he dug under some rocks I put in there and he really seems to enjoy it, so we will see how it goes.
You are opening another can of worms. :evil: I strongly believe in warm air temps which cannot be achieved by a UTH alone and I’m assuming is what you provide(because you are covering the dome area)? I’m totally against increasing humidity without warm air. Does that answer your question?:lol:
It will start a war and we will end up off topic if I continue.
Last edited:
Geopard Lecko
New member
You are opening another can of worms. :evil: I strongly believe in warm air temps which cannot be achieved by a UTH alone and I’m assuming is what you provide(because you are covering the dome area)? I’m totally against increasing humidity without warm air. Does that answer your question?:lol:
It will start a war and we will end up off topic if I continue
Good idear, we can duke it out in PM's if ya want?
It’s something new and so he will definitely explore. You can also try adding new things every once in a while to stimulate him mentally. As long as you do slight changes and do not remove favorite hides. If what you were trying to achieve was more activity. If it was for humidity, that’s where it becomes more challenging as explained in the previous posts.
Last edited:
Digs
Member
I know this thread is old but I would like to explain a test that I did with a sand/soil mixture. I first tried this in a bucket and tried it in Asia's enclosure for a day but the soil kept on getting loose every time water evaporated. So I quite the idea of a naturalistic enclosure for a couple of months with two buckets of experimental soil mixtures out in the garage. I came back to find that the mixture that wasn't used in Asia's enclosure was very compact and firm while the mixture that I tried in Asia's enclosure was still loose as before. I remembered that before I left the buckets I had soaked the mixture that was now very compact in water. I've mixed the sandy soil that was used for Asia with water and added a little bit more sand have it under a basking bulb currently it seems to have become nearly compact as the other soil mixture but I'm still waiting to see what happens once it has completely dried out. This is in a plastic shoe box and I have it about 1 inch deep. The firmly compacted sand/soil mix that I'm trying to repeat is about 5 inches deep.
Digs
Member
Came back to report my results the substrate is completely compact . Oh and just to give you an idea of how compact this soil is, my finger hurts just for trying to imitate my leopard gecko digging into it I’m better off creating the burrows for her with a good metal hand shovel. I believe it’s not a good substrate choice if you want something that’s “easy” for your leopard gecko to dig into.
. Oh and just to give you an idea of how compact this soil is, my finger hurts just for trying to imitate my leopard gecko digging into it I’m better off creating the burrows for her with a good metal hand shovel. I believe it’s not a good substrate choice if you want something that’s “easy” for your leopard gecko to dig into.
Last edited: