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Substrate Preferences?

amanda007

amanda007

Read, read, read!
So, like I've said a few dozen times already, I'm finally getting a corn on Tuesday! (From SMR!) And I'm curious about everyone's opinion on the different substrates available.

My hubby wants to use the repti-carpet (or whatever that's called), but I used a similar product with a tortoise I had in high school and hated it. I know that ceder and pine are BAD, but that aspen is good. I'm leaning toward aspen b/c it seems simple and pretty inexpensive. But I've also heard about corn cob bedding? And a lot of people seem to use newspaper/paper towel, which seem convenient, but since my viv is going to be on display in the living room, I'd kind of like a substrate that is a little more visually appealing.

My only worry about aspen is dust and mites. Since I'd have to get it at the local pet store, or walmart, I'm worried about the quality...
 
Care Fresh is good, but it's not very eye appealing. I know that when I used it, my snakes loved to burrow down into it. It can get a bit pricey though. I have also used Aspen without any problems. It looks a little better then the care fresh.

I have since switched to newspaper. It's inexpensive and easy to clean. My snakes loose the ability to burrow, but I mix that up by adding lots of hides and paper tubes.

I don't know about kay kob or corn cob. I haven't used that and can't comment on it. I do agree with the repti mat (green astro turf crap). It does look nice, but it's a real pain to clean.

I think if you are looking for something that is nice looking, you should use the aspen. It is easy to spot clean, looks good and if your worried about mites, you can low temp bake it or even freeze it, if you have a freezer big enough. That should kill off any parasites. I haven't seen a big issue with dust from it.

Good Luck,

Wayne
 
I've never had a problem with mites and the aspen I've purchased... probably because Aspen is SOOOOO dry. It is what I use for all my snakes except for my VBB... She's on a cocofiber/peat mixture.
 
For the following, I use...

Adult cornsnakes, kingsnake, and ball pythons: newspaper
Baby cornsnakes: paper towels
Brazilian Rainbow Boa: Cypress bedding

I am a huge advocate for newspaper. It's cheap and easy to clean, and my snakes love to hide in the layers of it. One of my "display" tanks is even setup on newspaper, and it still looks good. If I want it to look particularly snazzy I just pick out some colorful ads.

If you are dead-set on not using newspaper, I'm partial to aspen. I used crushed walnut shell once, and though it was visually appealing and easy to clean waste spots it was a PAIN when it got in the water, and if it got wet at all it grew mold very easily. Aspen is relatively inexpensive, good for the snakes, and not hard to clean (though you'll want to stay on top of spot cleaning it since it's harder to do once it's all mixed up).

Edit: Also, you stole my name. -Amanda
 
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This has been my experience with adult snakes: (I have only ever kept babies on aspen)

Reptile carpet. Snakes will burrow under it and create semi-permanent burrows. They seem to like it. To clean it, you have to have two sets and be prepared to remove and replace everything in the viv for cleaning as well as when you want to get your snake out of its "burrow." Also, it is of extreme importance that you have a dimmer or thermostat on the UTH, because the snake WILL come in direct contact with it, with the "heavy" carpet pressing down on the snake. If the temp is unregulated, the snake will burn. I was greatly relieved when I finally made the switch to

Aspen. Snakes love burrowing in it. It smells nice. It is SUPER easy to spot clean. Poo left on aspen does not mold and attract fruit flies. Water spills on aspen will be absorbed if small and will mold if large. One time I thought I saw a couple mites on a snake and the only thing that had changed was a new batch of aspen so for treatment of everyone I switched to

Paper towels. The snakes seemed to be lost and really miss their aspen. They would use their hides, but only if they could burrow under the paper towel first. It's quite easy to tell if a snake has not pooped since the last feeding, so it is easier to catch one in the blue stage. I have an excellent view of the million tiny things one can find in a snake cage- spiders, beetles, specks of poo, particles of wooden hides. I am sure if there were mites present, they would be quite easy to spot. Poo left for more than a couple days can mold and attract fruit flies. Once the snake poops, the entire viv needs to be cleaned- paper towels removed and replaced, often the tub itself needs to be wiped with a disinfectant wipe for what the paper towel didn't catch. The plus side is I now have a good supply of paper towel tubes for the snakes which universally love them. The down side is although it is simple to remove the tub, pop the snake into its feeding bin, and clean the tub, this has more than doubled the time it takes to feed a group of 10-12 snakes from less than an hour to about two hours. It seems a little wasteful, too. For this reason, as well as the comfort of the snakes, although I myself enjoy the sparkling clean tubs and the ease of viewing the snakes' pooping status, I will be switching back to

Aspen.
 
I've used it all: newspaper, repit-carpet, aspen, sanichips, shredded paper/newspaper, newspaper.

My favorite ever are the sani-chips. They're great. Unfortunately the guy I used to get them from no longer sells them. 2nd favorite is aspen, but lately I've only been able to find big chunky stuff, not the shredded stuff. So I've switched over the shredded paper/newspaper.

I was shredding it myself, but my g/f has been getting trash bags of it from her office. I like it because its free and easy to use. Plus the snakes can really burrow in it, which most of mine do. And I figure its a good way to get a little more use out of all that paper before its thrown away. So far I'm liking it.

I'd stay away from repti carpet, it sucks IMO.
 
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