Reptile Forum, Reptile Classifieds - CaptiveBred

[DarrenGecko]

Hey people.

In the next few weeks I'm going to be collecting my first crested gecko.

Having done my homework on them I have purchased all the necessary equipment and will be setting it up over the next week.

My question is about heating the terrarium (Exo Terra Glass Terrarium 45x45x60cm).

I have Habistat dimmer thermostat that was intended to control a 75W glow bulb.

I also have a 13W Compact Fluor bulb for lighting the terrarium.

I am starting to think this is major overkill and that I'm going to fry my gecko if I use both of these.

The room the gecko will be in is normally around 63F which I know is not hot enough.

The plan now is to use only one of the bulbs on the dimmer thermostat just to make sure that the temperature never drops too much.

Which of the two bulbs would people use to do this?

Also do people normally give these geckos their own light, or just rely on day light to light up the terrarium?

Any advice would be great.

Other suggestions would also be welcome...

Thank you.

Darren

[christophermchale]

invest in a thermometer. so this way, BEFORE you get your gecko you know what temperature the enclosure will be at at all times. as far as actual lighting the enclosure you could use a uvb bulb by itself or you can use the good old fashioned sun instead. then you wont have to worry about a dimmer switch as such. you can just let it live in whatever season it is now.
_________________
cardboard city.

[DarrenGecko]

I was going to set up the terrarium a week before I get the gecko so that I can get it just right.

I have two thermometers already, one digital and one analogue.

Are you suggesting that the best thing to do is just set up the terrarium and experiment to see what I need to do to get the correct climate?

Darren

[Paulk]

its always best to put it together before you get any animal you plan on having. It will just allow you to iron out any problems that might pop up and to get the temps sorted. But also to see if your equipment works properly!

Good luck with your new arrival.
_________________
Beardies are the way!

Wish I were an invert!

[Exalted Gecko]

Dont rely on the sun to heat a viv, it could seriously overheat and cook your gecko.

Basically the one bulb on a dimmer will work fine, but 75w is to much. I use 15w and even that gets dimmed sometimes depending on how warm the day is.
_________________
Kind Regards,

Chris

[DarrenGecko]

Maybe Ill try the 13W Compact Fluor bulb on the dimmer then to start with.

Im not sure how much heat they give off as Ive never used one of these bulbs before.

Cheers for the help guys.

Darren