#DIY Leopard Gecko Bookshelf Tank

1 messages · Page 1 of 1 (latest)

hallow roost
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NQA can i see your current setup ? your idea seems very creative and has a good thought behind it but there are a few things i would like to point out :

you will most likely mount the heat internal so you will loose height if you keep the shelf in the middle the bulb will be way too close

you will also have to mount linear uvb internal which will also take you alot of space

your substrate will also take a bit of the height since you have to put at least 4 inches of substrate for digging and so on on

i personally would not rip out the glass from the current tank and would look forward for a bigger second hand tank

the space issue i totally understand i had the same issue but somehow i managed to fit the tank in my own room ofc

so you will basically have more disadvantage with that build i would look forward to upgrade

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NQA also if you need to upgrade anything besides your tank i would also help ofc as you mentioned before you are looking for heat sources we have some in our shopping list

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!shoppinglist

grizzled wrenBOT
hallow roost
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NQA i would just recommend to work with what you have rn and upgrade if you can in the future as i said before boba

the first thing you can do is put out the repti carpet and change it to paper towels till you get your safe substrate that‘s a step forward paper towels are safe reptile carpet is not happybombi

more hides + a humid hide if you don‘t have one yet

fake plants branches etc. would also be good and a calcium bowl without d3 :)

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do you have any heating sources rn ?

long jungle
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Taking apart glass is harder than you think, you might need to use acrylic for the doors instead. I'd also consider ventilation holes in the sides, and the integrity of the bookshelf itself-- can it hold the weight of rocks, substrate, decor? Tanks can get heavy, and having that top shelf (1) as a warm area means your basking rocks are likely going to be concentrated in that area

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I don't think it's impossible if that's what you really want to do, but it might be more efficient and time/money saving to just get a tank of proper dimensions

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The suggestions above about needing to mount heat and UVB internally (which will lose precious height in a 20 gallon footprint) is also really good to consider, unless you are replacing the entire top with mesh.

hallow roost
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NQA yeah you should have a calcium without d3 in your enclosure all the time.

ideally 3 supplements for dusting feeder insects and a supplement schedule depending on your geckos age and if you are providing your gecko uvb or not.

the 3 supplements you will need are:
•calcium without d3
•calcium with d3
•multivitamin

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NQA if you are going to use a mesh top : before getting a uvb i would recommend that you measure the distance from the basking spot to the bulb and how much mesh block you have we have a chart for that as well to figure out what kind of bulb you need if you need help deciding which bulb you need i can help

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!uvichart

grizzled wrenBOT
hallow roost
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NQA now the question is what kind/brand of mesh you will use so we can determin what percentage your mesh block will be boba

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NQA they just take the calcium on their own if they need it

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!suppschedule

grizzled wrenBOT
hallow roost
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i hope i‘m not overwhelming you if yes please tell me angy

hallow roost
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NQA okay so as you can see on the top it says the ideal uvi range is 0.5-1.5 for leopard geckos so you can pick a bulb in that uvi range which is displayed on the chart depending on your following distance and mesh block

hallow roost
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NQA i‘m glad that you added the calcium bowl :) and thank you for your speech we appreciate it you r upgrading your husbandary very well hamsmile

hallow roost
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NQA if you need reference on what to buy you can use !shoppinglist and also stick to the specific bulbs from the brand we have listed on the chart arcadia and zoomed

grizzled wrenBOT
hallow roost
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NQA the coiled bulbs do not work and they are not safe cuz they have a very inconsistent output they are wonky

the linear uvb from arcadia and zoomed are safe tested and consistent

just make sure to get the right bulb for your tank

hallow roost
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i have the 7% arcadia

hallow roost
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NQA i didn‘t try out zoo-med yet but i‘m happy with my arcadia :3

hallow roost
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NQA rn i have the exo terra intense basking bulb (100w) in my 4x2x2

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NQA i don‘t use any heating source at night since my whole tank doesn‘t drop under 18c constantly or often

temperature drops at night are natural and recommended btw :)

if your enclosure get‘s below 18c constantly or often you can use as supplemental heating a CHE or DHP during the night

you can pair lightless heat sources like those i mentioned above with a on/off thermostat since they don‘t produce any light

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NQA yeah just keep an eye on the temperature for a while

if it drops constantly you can add a supplemental heating source :3

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also if you are done with the enclosure i would really like to see it :0

hallow roost