What does everyone use for substrate?

Right now I am using straight aspen. Last year was newspaper but after switching to front display cases, I didn't find it very aesthetic.

Now, I'm thinking about switching to cypress mulch. Has anyone found a place that has clean, healthy looking cypress? I thought about just buying a bag from home depot but wasn't sure how safe it is. I've heard it's great at holding humidity.

We only use aspen... and here lately for the 2 big girls that keep spilling their water, we started throwing in news paper because the aspen is costly...

I can look at Tinley and see if any vendors there have any kind of cypress mulch? If so I can snag a bag for you to try since it may be cheaper there since most bedding and accessories are.

Thanks but I think I'm going to grab a bag from HD during lunch and check it out. I have to analyze it real well to make sure it's safe for my babies. Check it for bugs, maybe hit it with the magnifying glass and microscope, maybe even eat some to see if it's toxic

lol, well let me know if it doesnt kill you.

well you enjoy having mulch for lunch lol. I ate a sandwich and had some chili cheese fritos now I am back to work...

Let me know how it works out for you though... maybe if its cheaper we may switch or check it out... aspen is too expensive.. and we only have 13 tubs... so I can imagine what you guys go through.

mmmm cypress and ranch salad

I missed lunch, but I will report back.

I use newspaper, but I have ARS Caging racks and PVC racks. Since they are not displays, there is no need to get fancy.

What Don said Newspaper!!

cypress mulch is good the breeder in md uses it cause it keeps humidity better dont get it from home depot it may have harsh chemicals in it he said if you look it up online their is a special kind of cypress mulch just for snakes cause the one at the garden centers arent garenteed any toxins arent in them just wanted to let ya know i almost made the same mistake:)

dj6884 wrote:

cypress mulch is good the breeder in md uses it cause it keeps humidity better dont get it from home depot it may have harsh chemicals in it he said if you look it up online their is a special kind of cypress mulch just for snakes cause the one at the garden centers arent garenteed any toxins arent in them just wanted to let ya know i almost made the same mistake:)

Thanks, that's good to know. Glad I didn't eat it

I'm thinking about trying one of those places that have it freshly cut, where you bring your truck and they load it up?

Oh yea that is probably a good idea Nick.

I use aspen, have use mulch from lowes, I just pamed it before use.

I use aspen but I buy it from Amazon.com and it is WAY cheaper

Newspaper. It's free, clean, and my snakes can can stay up on current events.

Precision Pythons wrote:

Newspaper. It's free, clean, and my snakes can can stay up on current events.

I would be careful about any bags of mulch you get from from Home Depot regarding bugs. Last year, several people mulched flowerbeds around their houses with bags from Home Depot that were filled with Termites. The termites were obviously an anomaly but who knows what smaller bugs are in the mulch that could irritate your animals if the relatively large termites got through their screening and quality control process.

I use eco earth. Sometimes i will use aspen depends on what i have on hand but i prefer the coconut fiber.

My friend uses mulch for his tegu and he got mites.

We picked up a huge bag of "aspen chips" in Tinley and I like it... Miles was ok with it until he got worried about the snakes getting it in their mouths since it is so small, so for the little babies we have he took the aspen out and put newspaper down. but otherwise the aspen chips are pretty nice... and they go a long way... but we probably wont buy it again.

I dont' know it just seem's with bedding that it takes longer to clean than using just newspaper...

newspaper

What about sani-chips? I just heard about this stuff and it sounds good.

Nick I just googled that... it pretty much looks like what we picked up... I am finding it a pain in the butt though with it getting into water bowls somehow... its pretty light compared to the aspen bedding we were using... I think once this bag of chips is gone we will go back to the bedding we used before...

http://www.labbedding.com/aspenchip.html

that is the exact kind we got.. purchased from the Chicago Reptile House table. They use it for all of their balls and they highly recommended it to us... they were selling out of it pretty quickly too. We purchased a bag and they held it for us until we were ready to leave. Again, it is getting into the water dishes somehow.. and Miles is concerned about how small it is and the snakes getting some of it in their mouths... so for our smaller snakes we put paper towels down instead. I really like it otherwise but we probably won't use it again.

This stuff looks good, hmmm

http://www.labbedding.com/softzorb.html

Wonder how that is???

The big bag of Aspen Chips we got was only $18... we haven't even used 1/4 of the bag yet...

You can order a bag twice as big on Amazon for the same price, just sayin that's where I get my aspen

Has anyone ever tried tile?

Tile just holds in heat better, you have to make sure you keep animal in humid enough conditions.

I see. Any downsides other than having to mist more often?

The only problem I can imagine with tile is the snake soaking in it's urine and dragging poo all over. It would be easier to clean for sure though.

I think its better of used for lizards and animals that don't reguire humidity

I wouldn't recommend it for lizards. Tile won't absorb/contain the feces and urine at all so they'll run right through it and spread it all over themselves and the enclosure.

Well maybe its not good for anything???

coconut husk is great

I use alternating layers of sunshine and rainbows its chemical free and holds great humidity! plus the snakes love it! cheapest i found is amazon and simply pets if you buy a 10 lb bag

What do y'all think about the carpets for glass tanks?

I don't like reptile carpet. Lizard claws get stuck in it and it is hard to clean. : P I have used tiles in the past--easy to clean and can be aesthetically pleasing.

For leopard geckos I always used paper towels... For ball pythons I have used everything from paper towels and newspaper to coconut husk or aspen. Aspen is probably the best, though it does require more cleaning than the coconut husk.