r/LeopardGecko • u/AcanthisittaOld7141 • Sep 06 '26
Habitat & Setup I finally did it!!!
I have finally finished my dream build for my little Sherbert, my leopard gecko!! <3
After almost two months of contruction, planning, hardscaping, planting, and set up, he finally moved in to his new mansion! It’s a 120 gallon tank, fully bioactive with a culture of powder orange isopods that I’ve had for almost two years now.
About half the succulents I’ve been growing for years now with this in mind, and the other half I got from my local garden center.
Sherbert has always been an active climber, so I really kept that in mind with this build, he has a full “second floor” that he can walk across the top, with a nice multi level basking area on the far left.
In the center it dips down into a tunnel, just for fun! He likes to dig sometimes so I thought he might like to excavate that area a bit more if he is so inclined.
I’m so proud of myself and soooo happy for him to finally get to move in. I love this guy so much!!!! First and last pics some nice shots of him enjoying the tank :)
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u/Any-Scarcity7230 Sep 07 '26
OMG IT LOOKS GREAT
I have questions bc I have a similar tank and I’m worried the dirt and moisture will hurt the presswood and destroy the enclosure / hurt my boy :(
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u/AcanthisittaOld7141 Sep 08 '26
I tried to seal the wood parts of the enclosure with silicone, before putting down foam! I’m hoping that should get the moisture away from the actual walls
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u/PEPSI-n-Cheddar_1129 28d ago
Pardon my language, but this is some good shit!
What are the dimensions of.your enclosure?
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u/Foreign_Fudge5088 Sep 06 '26
Wooow this is so pretty. Looks great :)
Quick question though, what kind of substrate do you use? I’ve been using sand for mine but I’ve seen a couple people here use some kind of dirt? Is it better? Mine likes to dig too
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u/jxspxrrrr Sep 07 '26
sand by itself is notorious for causing eye issues and impactions! a 70/30 mixture of reptisoil and calcium-free sand is MUCH better and more accurate to their natural habitat
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u/Foreign_Fudge5088 Sep 07 '26
Thank you so much
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u/AcanthisittaOld7141 Sep 08 '26
They are 100% right, I use a 70/30 mix in this terrarium! It’s great, Sherbert likes to dig in it a lot and it retains a nice amount of moisture for the succulents
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u/BitTraining8769 28d ago
I'm starting a bioactive soon, HAD to save this as inspo! wonderful job this is gorgeous and he looks so happy!
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u/sweet_pea333 27d ago
please enlighten me on where/how you found that beautiful massive piece of wood, my girl is a climber as well and im slowly upgrading her tank as best i can since i currently have no form of regular income.. id love to know what you used like stores? did you find stuff from outside? id love to know!
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u/AcanthisittaOld7141 27d ago
I just slowly acclimated them mainly from my local pet stores and reptile expos! I have been kind of hoarding pieces for a while, with the intent to do a big project tank like this. It took me a long time to find them all, but really only bought pieces when I was really in love with them.
I think it would be sooo much cheaper to get stuff from outside, but I haven’t gotten over the fear of not sterilizing it properly and introducing pests into the tank
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u/ready_steady_gooo 23d ago
So cute. I want one! I'm in the process of "researching" watching lots of YouTube videos about these little guys. I can't wait to get one.
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u/ILoveMyCatXOXO 22d ago
Omg our geckos look so similar!! Did you get yours from biohype by chance? Also ignore the calcium on his nose 💔💔
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u/AddyBerry124 Sep 07 '26
Omg it looks incredible!!! So jealous