Hot glue? Safe for Leos?

[geckomom]

Another big enclosure cleaning coming up, and i had an idea to glue (for stability) some of my (fake) rock hides and wood pieces together, to create a more varied look, and in some places, vertical spaces, with some hides stacked on top of others.

Would hot glue be safe for my leos? obviously, i'd let it cool off before re-installing the pieces, but just want to make sure i wouldn't be poisoning my gex before doing it.

i've heard the silicone adhesive used in aquariums may be safe; problem is, i don't have an alternate enclosure to put the geckos in while the silicone adhesive cures.

any advice?

bobbie

[The Snake Guru]

Hot glue is fine, as well 2 part expoy (which may actually work better) or the 2 part expoxy puddy.

The thing that most people don't realize is most types of glues, finishes, ect. ect. are just fine for snakes, once fully cured and air out the toxic fumes or chemicals becaome inert and there for can not harm your reptiles anymore.

~B~

[reptilenut4sure]

I will probably glue stuff inside the cages now. Plants and stuff. Thanks for the info Brad.

[The Snake Guru]

Anytime! Always happy to help.

~B~

[Raven22]

petstore also sell cilicone, some of them anyway. just to let you know.

[oxquo]

I use silicone on both aquariums and reptariums. You don't need to spend the big petshop dollars though on GE Aquarium silicone. Hardware stores and building centers all sell 100% silicone seal and foodsafe silicone. The label should not say mildew resistant as those chemicals can be lethal over time. The cure time on silicone for underwater is best at 72 hours for out of water 48 will do fine. As for Your scaley friend? Find him a temporary location for the renovations.

One of My favorite decorations to make include waterfall spray foam for ponds , it makes great rocks and caves lightweight but durable, they can be allowed to dry, carved and then painted with a craft paint and covered in a water based clear coat such as minwax. You can also drill pilot holes into them for plant insertion. Bamboo I get from walmart, I soak in salt water brine for a couple of days and then rinse in hot water, it can be weaved, bent and siliconed.

As for hot glue? I have yet to have a problem with hobby hot glue, providing it cools before your critter checks it out. I did find though that with hotter temp desert like set-ups the glue often loses it's grip shortly after installation where as silicone hangs on.

The positive side is that both are relatively easy to remove.