# Does Crested gecko temperature need to rise and drop and coincide with day/night?



## jackinjill (Feb 18, 2013)

Hey guys, I'm new to the forum and have just bought my first crested gecko after wanting one for some time. I have done plenty of research beforehand and I have decided I am going to keep the little feller at around 21-24 degrees and around 70-80% humidity.

The question i pose is... 
Does the temperture have to rise and fall and coincide with a day night cycle, or can it be kept constant?

I am aware that my viv does have a warm and a cooler spot, but didnt know if the overall temperature should drop at night?

Which also leads me onto another issue...
My house is quite a cool house, so during the day when room temperature should be at its highest if i was to recreate the gecko's natural habitat, it is actually quite cool. Whereas the heating comes on on an evening so the hottest part of the day is actually after sunset. Will this matter?

Thanks in advance for any help as i have searched all over and cannot find any specific answers.

Matt


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## awh (Aug 20, 2008)

hi i do not heat either of mine so temps go up and down all day depending on outdoor temps as i do not have the heating on in the house that much 
i do however have heat mats on the side witch i might switch on if its bitterly cold out but have not used them this winter yet


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## jackinjill (Feb 18, 2013)

When the heating is off the viv may drop to around 19/20 deg. That's too cold isn't it? I do have a heat mat on the side but he doesn't seem to go up there much actually. He stays low. That's also worrying me. I've just came in on my lunch and he's buried himself in the substrate. Has anyone else experienced this?


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## Baby_DJ (Sep 24, 2008)

i would say to get a ceramic bulb hun and try that rather than they heatmat.
Proably just being a fussy begger.


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## StefBrx (Sep 11, 2012)

I have wondered the same thing for my cresties. I use night glo bulbs to provide enough light to view the critters at night and also provide a little heat to keep the chill off. I find that the blue bulbs produce more heat than the fluorescent UVB bulb that's in use during the day, so my max temps are often in the evening when both the light and the central heating is on. I've got to say that the geckos don't seem to mind.


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## debiorme (Aug 28, 2011)

I have 7watt heat mats on the sides of my Vivs. Only for the winter months though.


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## jackinjill (Feb 18, 2013)

Thanks guys. I'm in the process of getting a ceramic heater for the colder days.

Can anyone reccommend a good way of mounting a ceramic above an exo terra? Are there any good mounts?

I've also been reading up on UVB lighting and i think i'm going to get a 5% UVB bulb to sit in my exo terra canopy. It's only a mini terrarium 30x30x45 for now until he grows, so what wattage bulb should i get 13w or 26w?


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## awh (Aug 20, 2008)

i thought about a ceramic but decided against it as my vivs have wire mesh tops and would get hot from the ceramic and could burn my crested geckos as they climb on the mesh


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## RLS (Feb 21, 2013)

Anything as low as 15 degrees C is fine during the night, no more then 26-27 during the day (24 is ideal), they will always feel cold to your touch nothing to worry about. Do you have any hide boxes high up? like some cork tubes. They love being really enclosed, if your vegetation isnt substantial enough, this might be the reason for him burrowing  (also is your mat stated? it might actually be getting to warm, there nocturnal they actually hide from the heat during the day, and come out when it cools off at night, but the drop is not completely necessary, lighting is improtant just so they know day from night, room lighting is enough or even natural light from a window)


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## jackinjill (Feb 18, 2013)

Thanks RLS. I woke up the other morning and he was very cold to the touch as the viv had dropped to about 16deg. 

No i dont have any hideouts high up but i do have a few further down which he does like to hide in. Also about 4/5 plants to hide in. I will look into cork tubes tho.

At the moment i am heating the viv with a red incandescent bulb in a bulb holder just above. Do cresteds definitely not see the red light? Because i have it on 24/7 at the moment. The reason i ask is bacause their pupils do adjust when they look into it.


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## Gratenkutzombie (Dec 28, 2012)

If its exo-terra buy the appropriate size canopy and pop in a 25w repti glo bulb. Ceramic heater setup is just plain over kill.


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## jackinjill (Feb 18, 2013)

Well I'm aware it's overkill but my house does get quite chilly when the heating is off during the day. Do the repti glo uv bulbs give off heat?


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## RLS (Feb 21, 2013)

Repti glow can get fairly hot, more wattage more heat. As for red incandescent bulbs, some nocturnal geckos are very sensitive to color even at low light levels, something in the range of 350x our sensitivity. However i can not say that this is the case for crested geckos, because the study did not involve them. But i assume its fair to say that they do probably see colors including red, which may make sense being that they are fruit eaters. however, this red light i double will disturb his day and night cycle. If it does concern you, a low wattage Ceramic (on a thermostat) would be the solution.


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