bio active substrate

[Ryan Schweiger]

What is this bioactive substrate that was mentioned in the previous post? How does that work? What is in it. I like the sound of the concept, but what would a guy have to do to make it?

[Spreeguy]

this post should probably be in the other thread.... but i believe a bio-active substrate is a set up that the substate is self sustaining... ie. the poop from the gecko is decomposed in the dirt and is used by the plants, etc.

unless i'm mistaken. :)

[Tigergenesis]

Yep, my book is at home so I don't recall the exact substrate ingredients. But that's basically it. You just mist it daily, water weekly, stir the top layer to the bottom regularly and it pretty much takes care of everything. The exact mixture and steps are outlined in the Rhac book mentioned in the other thread - see, this book is a great investment! If nothing else then for the great pics :)

[DragnDrop]

Good ol' plain soil. I have a 65 gallon gecko tank with 'bio active substrate' if that's what you want to call it. I set it up in '96 and it's never been cleaned out once (not counting poop wash off the glass). I put in a couple inches pea gravel, a layer of fibreglass screen on top of that. Then about 4 inches of good plant soil (no perlite, vermicutlie or those moisture bead thingees) from the garden centre. Innoculated it with a handful or two of soil from a forested area. Voila. Finished. The innoculation supplied all the microbes, microscopic soil flora and fauna that decompose organic matter. The geckos supply the poop and left over fruit or crickets parts, the microbes do their thing and the plants have their fertilizer.
That's all it is - all bio-active.

I didn't add charcoal since in time it can release the gasses it absorbed.

[Tigergenesis]

Okay, grabbed my book.....

The substrate is a potting soil mix where the main ingredient is either peat moss or ground fir bark with no perlite. They add 5% sand and 15% fine orchid bark, moisten and add 2-3 layers to the vivarium. They then pat it down ligtly to make the surface firm and add any plants and landscaping. Then to make it a functional bioactive substrate they say to regularly stir the drier surface layer (which includes fecal matter) toward the lower moist layer. This is what allows the development of bacterial and fungal bioactivity that degrades waste matter and keeps the substrate healthy and functional. To keep it active you keep it moistened except for the very surface layer which dries as it's exposed to the air. This is done by light daily spraying and light watering once a week. They say it's basically odorless except for a sweet rich earth smell.

I'm thinking of using Jungle Mix instead.

[adamofsound]

wow! great idea to add the forest soil. I have the Rhacodactylus book by de Vosjoli Repashy and Fast. I read the section on bio-active soil and thought, yeah thats a good idea.
I am a Geography major at Brock University in St. Catharines, and took a soil science course last term. I have to say, you are really onto something DragonDrop. Much more complete bio-activity with what you did IMO!
you probably got many very useful fungi, rhibozomes, microbes, humus.......I could go on and on..
Great Idea!
i have been afraid to use anything but paper towel after I saw a hatchling ingest a large chunk of wood when I first started keeping cresties.
of course we are probably now going to hear about the potential for infection by "foreign" bacteria and whatnot

[Tigergenesis]

Do you have to use live plants to make it bioactive?

[DragnDrop]

The live plants use up the nutrients in the substrate. They're part of the cycle (Great Circle of Life :) ) If you don't use live plants, you end up with very rich soil, but part of the chain is broken, eventually you'd have to replace the soil. The whole idea is to have a self-sustaining thing going, fake plants wouldn't figure in with it.

[Tigergenesis]

Thank you!

[AnthonyC]

Hilde,

Have you had any trouble with your females laying their eggs outside of their nest box? I'd love to have a substrate that's more natural and easier to keep up, but I don't want to have a dozen Easter egg hunts every day, when I'm checking for eggs.