Note that it is very important to provide this range of temperatures! Consistent temperatures above 85°F (29°C) can cause stress and heat stroke, and consistent temperatures at or below 72°F (22°C) can cause lethargy, poor appetite, and illness.
People may tell you that it’s perfectly fine to keep mourning geckos at room temperature without a heat source, but it’s important to remember that like all other reptiles, mourning geckos are ectotherms, which means that they can’t produce their own body heat and rely on natural heat sources (ie: sunlight) in their environment to help them regulate their metabolism and digest food.
For these reasons, ReptiFiles recommends using a low wattage incandescent bulb (about 15-25w) to create a basking spot. The Exo Terra Daytime Heat Lamp in a Zoo Med Naturalistic Terrarium Hood will work for this purpose.
If you have a room temperature over 70°F / 21°C, however, using an Arcadia Jungle Dawn LED Bar (which you will need if you want to grow live plants) might provide all the heat that your geckos need without installing an additional lamp, and will not burn your geckos at close proximity!
You can make sure you’re providing an appropriate temperature gradient with a temperature gun like the Etekcity Lasergrip 774. This will give you instant readings on temps anywhere in the terrarium, which is great for peace of mind.
Keep tabs on your geckos’ air temperatures with a quality digital probe thermometer, like the Zoo Med Digital Thermometer + Hygrometer, with the temperature probe placed in the basking area. Don’t use anything cheaper, like the ribbon thermometers commonly found in pet stores. You’ll save a bit of money, but it won’t be accurate and you risk accidentally cooking your gecko.
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