This set-up list is designed for arboreal geckos that require very little additional heating. Species like the gargoyle gecko, crested gecko or white-lined gecko do best with a basking area of 75 Fahrenheit. The opposite side of the enclosure should remain cool but as we aren't using basking lamps and the heat can easily escape through a glass wall or mesh lid you should be able to achieve the correct temperature gradient in a tank as small as 45cm wide.To provide the basking area simply chose one side of the enclosure (left or right). This will be the warm end and all heating should be kept on this side. Stick your heatmat (flat side down) to outside of the of the glass side panel, the more contact it can make the better it will work. We find this process easiest when using adhesive tape over the corners or along the clear plastic part of the heatmat as these parts shouldn't get very warm. Controlling Temperatures in the Gecko Setup To control temperatures we use a simple on off thermostat. The thermostat will have 3 wires extending from a central control panel. The first wire leads to a plug, this is plugged into your power source. The second wire leads to a socket, plug your heatmat into this. The third wire ends in a sensor, this can be placed inbeetween the heatmat and glass panel on the outside or can be adhered to the glass panel that's being warmed on the inside. On the control panel we set the temperature to 75f. Lighting the Gecko Setup To light the enclosure we would usually use Exoterra's matching canopy. This guarantees a seemless fit and high quality finish. The gecko requires at least 1 5% UVB lamp over the basking area however the larger the area you can service the better. We also use natural lamps to provide additional lighting and make sure the entire tank is well lit all day.in the very tall enclosures you could use a T5 UVB tube in a hood instead to increase the area being covered. If the enclosure will be featuring live plants you could also use a LED lamp like Arcadia Jungle Dawn to promote plant growth.The lights should be on all day and off at night. We usually aim to provide 10-12 hours of light per day then complete darkness all night.If you need any further help setting up the enclosure or caring for the gecko please let us know.
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