Questions about setting up new viv...again....

[ArvadaLanee]

As we prepare for the new baby I want to be extra sure I get everything right this time, before the new baby even gets here. So I have a few questions.
1. Is my thermostat good enough? It is a hydrofarm digital thermostat. My UTH is Zoo Med 10-20 gallon. The tank is glass, 10 gallon.
2. I bought a piece of driftwood from BigAls online pet store. Do I still need to bake it, or disinfect it somehow even though it is brand new and specifically for use with reptiles?
3. Should I wash or otherwise disinfect all the new tank decor before adding it, like the plants, hide, and hammock?
4. Is my new water dish safe? It is a heavy ceramic dish, round, much larger than my last one (which was tiny) so just larger than the palm of my hand, and about 1" deep.
5. For my 2 digital thermometers, am I placing them correctly? One on the bottom in the middle of the UTH, over the paper towel, under the Aspen shavings, and the other on the middle of the cool side, also over the paper towel but under the aspen shavings.
6. Is it safe to use decorative rocks as a part of the decor? If so, how do you know which rocks are safe for snakes? I know you can test them for safety in an aquarium, but I'm not sure if the same method would be used for snakes. These would be store bought rocks, not rocks found outside.
7. How deep should my aspen be? I had it at about 2" before.
8. When the new baby arrives should I have the viv already set up with the warm side at 88° or should I be slowly warming it up as the snake acclimates. If I should be warming it up slowly, what temp should I start with, and how often should I turn it up, and by how much at a time?

That's all the questions I have for now. Thank you for your patience with me as I double check, and second guess my every move. As always, I appreciate the help.

 

[smigon]

As we prepare for the new baby I want to be extra sure I get everything right this time, before the new baby even gets here. So I have a few questions.
1. Is my thermostat good enough? It is a hydrofarm digital thermostat. My UTH is Zoo Med 10-20 gallon. The tank is glass, 10 gallon.

It should be. Make sure you have a digital probe thermometer placed next to the probe from the thermostat to ensure your temps are right.

2. I bought a piece of driftwood from BigAls online pet store. Do I still need to bake it, or disinfect it somehow even though it is brand new and specifically for use with reptiles?

I would bake it at 225° for about 1/2 hour, or boil it if it fits in a pot with water and a splash of bleach, then you can still bake it to dry it. I would do this because you don't know where it has been and what it might be housing.

3. Should I wash or otherwise disinfect all the new tank decor before adding it, like the plants, hide, and hammock?

Yes, you want to get rid of any bacteria or critters that can harm the new kiddo. Again, go with the bleach boil like the wood.

4. Is my new water dish safe? It is a heavy ceramic dish, round, much larger than my last one (which was tiny) so just larger than the palm of my hand, and about 1" deep.

Yup, sounds good! The heavier the better, corns are known for knocking them over.

5. For my 2 digital thermometers, am I placing them correctly? One on the bottom in the middle of the UTH, over the paper towel, under the Aspen shavings, and the other on the middle of the cool side, also over the paper towel but under the aspen shavings.

No. You only need one thermometer, a probe that will sit right next to your thermostat probe directly on the glass above the middle of the UTH below the paper towel/aspen. There is a suction cup to keep it attached to the glass. If your warm end is right, the cool end will be fine, no need to monitor unless you want to.

6. Is it safe to use decorative rocks as a part of the decor? If so, how do you know which rocks are safe for snakes? I know you can test them for safety in an aquarium, but I'm not sure if the same method would be used for snakes. These would be store bought rocks, not rocks found outside.

Either kind of rock will be fine (I actually like the larger and medium rounded landscape stones and rocks of different colors that I get from my yard), but I do boil and bake them too. Again, too many critters and other stuff on them. Save your money, take a nice walk where there are cool rocks and shells, use them!

7. How deep should my aspen be? I had it at about 2" before.

1-2 inches is fine, the babies love to burrow, the big guys need less because they don't burrow, they pack it down.

8. When the new baby arrives should I have the viv already set up with the warm side at 88° or should I be slowly warming it up as the snake acclimates. If I should be warming it up slowly, what temp should I start with, and how often should I turn it up, and by how much at a time?

Definitely have the viv set up with the temps ready. I would set the UTH at 87° which will give the top of the aspen a temp of about 85°, warmer if they want to burrow toward the UTH, cooler if they want to get away from it by going to the cool end. Once your temps are right, don't mess with them. They should be the same 24/7. Make sure you have several hides, babies like tiny hides like toilet paper tubes smooshed at one end and then pushed at an angle into the substrate with a little substrate in the tube, it looks like a cave to them, toothpaste boxes, bandaid boxes, etc. Not pretty but disposable and they can grow into a bigger size without the cost.

That's all the questions I have for now. Thank you for your patience with me as I double check, and second guess my every move. As always, I appreciate the help.

Good luck, and we want pictures!!!

 

[ArvadaLanee]

For number 3, I should have mentioned that these are all new decor. We threw out any old stuff that might have been porous. Too risky to keep it. Sounds like it would still be a good idea to always wash new stuff though, since I really don't know what it was exposed to before I bought it. I don't want to take any chances.
The rocks I have are some pretty round smooth stones I bought at Steins to put on top of my potted plants because one of our cats likes to get into the dirt. The kids also have some pretty colorful stones they collected like amethyst, they might like to use. I will be sure to boil/bake them first.
Thanks for the advise. Once everything arrives, and we have it all ready, I will take some pics.

 

[smigon]

For number 3, I should have mentioned that these are all new decor. We threw out any old stuff that might have been porous. Too risky to keep it. Sounds like it would still be a good idea to always wash new stuff though, since I really don't know what it was exposed to before I bought it. I don't want to take any chances.
The rocks I have are some pretty round smooth stones I bought at Steins to put on top of my potted plants because one of our cats likes to get into the dirt. The kids also have some pretty colorful stones they collected like amethyst, they might like to use. I will be sure to boil/bake them first.
Thanks for the advise. Once everything arrives, and we have it all ready, I will take some pics.

Yay! And that is the beautiful bonus of owning a snake, you will always be in search of an interesting rock or seashell to put in the snake's viv. It is a great way to spend some quality time with the kids, take a walk through the park and look for rocks. Whatever you do, make sure there are no really sharp edges so they don't scratch the snake.

I know that I am on the more extreme edge of cleaning and disinfecting, some would just do a soapy wash and rinse and it would probably be fine, but why chance it when you know this will certainly do the trick.

 

[smigon]

Oh, another good decoration that babies like are silk or plastic vines from a craft/hobby store. Easy to clean and great to hide under. With babies, the more clutter the better. I bought hundreds of aquarium plants on eBay for cheaps, usually $6 or so for a bundle of 10, some short and flowery, some long an wavy that bend over. It gives color and texture to the tank as well as cover for the beebee!

 

[ArvadaLanee]

So far we have 3 plants chosen. Two are plastic vines, and one is a tall grass like plant. I thought we could use one of the vines on the driftwood to make it like a tree, and I wasn't sure if we should use the other vine as ground cover, or use the little piece of reptile vine we have left with it and suction cup it to the back wall like we had it before. We may end up adding more stuff. I am just watching my money right now. I spent a ton on Christmas, and I have also been buying some expensive stuff for our new 55 gallon aquarium. I just bought my boyfriend a cool LED light for it that was kind of pricey. We have time. Our new baby won't be shipping for a while due to weather conditions. Once the first stuff we ordered arrives, we will set it up and see what we think is missing. Maybe a plant with flowers, or a pop of color? I was considering using a few of the rocks to make a part with deeper aspen, so there is a small ledge, like another level. I want it to be cozy, but awesome.

 

[ArvadaLanee]

I thought of another question. Is there a type of light that is safe to use for daytime viewing that won't be too harsh for the snake? It wouldn't be on except for when we are checking him out, so not too often, and not left on all day or anything.

 

[smigon]

I would skip the plant with flowers (if you mean "real" plant) because they don't do well in the dim lights your corn needs, and the probability of the plant getting knocked over is almost certain.

There are a few people here who have done "planted" vivs, use the search button to find them.

If you need light, the regular overhead light should suffice, but if not a low watt desk lamp used a few minutes a day would work too.

 

[ArvadaLanee]

No real plants in the little viv. I considered it for the 55 gallon we are gonna set up when he gets bigger, but that won't be for quite a while yet. I just want to be able to watch the little guy now and then once he gets comfortable enough to roam the viv.
If you use shells in there, you don't use the curly ones, right? I can imagine a snake trying to crawl into one of those and getting stuck. My kids saw one at the store and I told them only flat shells, but even those freaked me out because of the edges. I told them we will have to wait on any shells until we find ones that I feel safe with. I imagine in the months we actually venture outside, they will find all sorts of interesting things they will want to use. It will be lots of fun. We have found some pretty cool driftwood at the beach, and the kids have found some very colorful rocks and shells. We actually have a few aquarium plants that we aren't using. I could dig those out and disinfect them really well. I have a habit of saving any tiny little boxes I get, so I bet those could be used to make some cute little hides. I wish the new stuff we ordered would get here already so we can do this! I'm the same way with our aquariums. I get so excited, but I then I order stuff online and have to wait for it. Lol

 

[HerpsOfNM]

I would not advise adding bleach to boiling water. For starters, boiling water is roughly 212°F depending on your elevation. That alone should be more that sufficient for disinfecting, particularly if the wood can be full submersed. Adding bleach will do 2 things: 1) once water reaches a boiling state, water then begins to vaporize and by adding bleach you've just now altered the boiling point of water and now have also vaporized bleach once the solution is boiling...not fun to inhale and even more dangerous if you clean with ammonia or ammonia-based products in the kitchen (bleach + ammonia = chlorine gas = WWI chemical warfare...NOT SAFE, you're dead!!!) and 2) you now also run the risk of a splash hazard with boiling bleach water, something far less safe than just simple boiling water.

Far more safer would be to scrub the wood with a simple dish soap (plain original ivory or dawn are excellent options) and hot water, then boil for 10-15 minutes (if you feel needed) and then bake the wood "low and slow" say 250° for 30 minutes. The scrubbing and boiling will take care of surface nasties and baking will be a penetrative heat to kill interiorly.

The same can be done with rocks, but be careful with some rock types. Some rocks are porous enough to absorb water into its structure. If baked while wet these rocks can potentially explode.

Also be careful with beach items. If by beach you mean ocean versus Lake Superior or Michigan, saltwater items can be a tad more difficult is disinfect and also a bit challenging to get the salts removed from.

 

[ArvadaLanee]

For my pets, I usually go with animal safe dawn, white vinegar, and boiling/baking. The white vinegar seems to work very well, and it is safer than bleach. That's what I use for aquarium stuff, and that's what I cleaned the viv out with.

 

[HerpsOfNM]

excellent!

Bleach is a good disinfectant, but is typically overkill. It is also only best when used in stronger than 10 or even 20% solutions.

The only time I use bleach is when I need to acidify it with vinegar. "Acidified bleach" is super potent and even more overkill. The only time I make it is for heavy disinfection. Last time I used it was a couple years ago when my cricket supplier had the cricket virus hit their facility. They didn't admit to it until they started sending me Jamaican field crickets mixed in with domestic crickets. Again, it's potent and overkill for household use - overkill in the sense that it is what's used to disinfect lab utensils, equipment, and surfaces when dealing with anthrax spores.

The biologist (me) and the microbiologist (my wife) pretty much only use dish soap and vinegar for cleaning.

 

[Afrederi]

I thought of another question. Is there a type of light that is safe to use for daytime viewing that won't be too harsh for the snake? It wouldn't be on except for when we are checking him out, so not too often, and not left on all day or anything.

Yes, there's several options. There are daylight heat bulbs or other incandescent bulbs that work, but they produce heat (obviously), will reduce tank humidity, and should be replaced periodically. You can buy fluorescent lighting (from pet stores similar to fish tank or from Home Depot or similar); their bulbs last longer than heat lamps and produce less heat though do produce some. Another option is LED lighting (from Home Depot or similar) which produces very little heat and have very long lifetimes.

What would harm the snake would be a heat increase from the lighting or UV light if the snake lacks protective pigments.