Methods to heat Gongy

acerbity · Jul 14, 2008

I'm thinking of getting these sometime in the future. Seeing that they need to be kept above 85f, I was wondering if using my natural hot / humid climate here in Florida would work out during the summer. On a rainy summer night like tonight it dips down to about 78f, but then goes right back up to the 90's the majority of the day. Would I be able to keep a well ventilated net / mesh enclosure outside for this species when it's these temps?

hibiscusmile · Jul 14, 2008

Hummmm good question. I am keeping them right now and in a tank with the heat near 90, they are doing good, tomorrow or the next day I need to move them, :huh: I figure if I give up sleep I can get that done! I have a cage that has the heat tape in it and am trying to heat it with that, it is taking a while, sometimes I get the temp up, but it is not where I want it to be, I may have to lay another roll. Right now I have two rolls down and it is not going over 87F. but then that is what it is set on too, maybe be better to use a light over it, must experiment.

mrblue · Jul 15, 2008

i heat mine using lamps. i use run-of-the-mill cheapo desk lamps and high wattage bulbs. both are very cheap. i dont think leaving them outside and using the ambient climate would be so good as you say it is hot and humid and this species prefers it fairly dry. however i think the temperatures (90s in the day, dropping to 78 or so) would be ok. i keep mine around 40c (104/105F?) during the day, dropping to around 26c (78F?) at night. i spray infrequently, once or maybe twice a week.

bugzilla · Jul 15, 2008

I keep them in a home made tank which is inside a modified aquarium with a heat mat beneath. Daytime temp reaches 84F in the outer tank and a bit higher in the inner one. Both tanks are well ventilated.

I lost one L2 the day after they arrived and one L1 moulted badly to L2 but has since recovered. Out of my original 12 I have 9 at L3 and 2 at L4. Most of the L3s look ready to shed soon.

Mine are not at the massively high temps that other people keep them at but are still really healthy. They don't like high humidity (I think this is why I lost the first one)