water habitat build idea for snakes

[ilovemypets1988]

i know that with anacondas, an average sized fish tank/aquarium would be too small but for those who see this thread and think "how can i create a small water habitat for my snake (again using the F.W.C as an example), how do i go about it without the possibility of leakage", i was just suggesting that by taking out the floor of a wooden viv and replacing it for an aquarium that you can section off a water pool area would be the better way of doing it, as long as the section glass is between 1.5 and 2 inches above the water line, then you can create a water tight, water habitat thats both safe and sensible.

alternatively, if you dont want to remove the viv floor entirely, then you can just cut about a quarter of it away that will lead down to the aquarium and as such the pool area.

my advice for the pool area would be to use between 1/3 - 1/2 of the length of the aquarium, use 10mm thick glass thats the width of the tank and about 6-10 inches tall,
use rocks for the habitat as the snake can hide in amoungst them, you could use a small air fed filter to keep the water fresh and circulated, then for the dry side, you will want a substrate that can deal with water and yet take the loose water off the snake, my suggestion for this would be a bark type substrate, this dry area could also (in theory) be a small basking area aswell using a guarded lamp secured to the bottom of the viv.
then for the viv itself, you could have a secondary hide with a climbing frame for the snake, also i would suggest using a piece of wood to keep the substrate in the actual viv and stop it falling down into the water.

the way you decorate the viv and the tank is upto the owner.

[stephanbakir]

A normal filter wont keep it clean for long, snakes tend to defecate in water and a filter probably wont handle that for long.

I've got a link at home for just what your talking about. ill post it tonight when i get home

[ilovemypets1988]

A normal filter wont keep it clean for long, snakes tend to defecate in water and a filter probably wont handle that for long.

I've got a link at home for just what your talking about. ill post it tonight when i get home

yh ok, thanks stephen, but be honest with how the idea sounds though, as a general thing.

[stephanbakir]

It sounds fine, as i said ill get you the link to the website tonight, but the way they do it is, they build the enclosure and then put the basin at the bottom and they spray this pond amour on it so it can be pressure washed for easy quick cleaning, it has a drain at the bottom so they don't need to scoop out the feces once its been washed.

[sickvenom]

i think your best bet would be to use a molded plastic pond form. you would definitely need a big filter, but even with that, you will still have to clean it on a constant basis. if this is for an anaconda or other tropical species, you may also want to heat the water.

[stephanbakir]

i think your best bet would be to use a molded plastic pond form. you would definitely need a big filter, but even with that, you will still have to clean it on a constant basis. if this is for an anaconda or other tropical species, you may also want to heat the water.

For sure!
Also keep in mind that annies are notorious shitters. By this i mean that it smells foul and they do it almost daily

[mistersprinkles]

If you want a water feature you can't filter it unless you have a constant nitrogen source in there. Otherwise the filtration is pointless. You'd essentially need to have a micro aquarium with a few fish to maintain it. Otherwise you'd have to totally change the water out every day or two to prevent ammonia from getting out of control and making your snake sick.

Overall it's not a very tenable idea without significant aquarium knowledge.

[Stormy Night]

I've split a 50 gal tank in half by getting a 12" long by 12" tall piece of glass from a home improvement store (home depot or Lowes) and using marine sealant to glue it in place. I filled half the tank with water, rocks, plants and small fish for esthetic reasons and the other half was a foresty theme with logs, vines, moss, and the level was filled up with pea gravel/sand/pea gravel/& Cyprus mulch on top. I had a simple bubbler in the water knowing I was going to have to change the water ridiculously often. To clean it I netted the fish and put them in a jar with the bare minimum of water, bailed with a bucket, then used a fish tank suction hose to drain the rest, whiped it down with paper towels and refilled it with distilled water (other water leaves a residue ring). I had 2 baby water snakes in it. So I could get away with once every 5 days absolute Max. Depending really on its fecal output it would let you know how often you would have To change it. Maybe weekly. Maybe daily. But don't forget your snake would be drinking that water to. Filters are recommended. There's also the possibility of useing a big clear tub that you could put a fountain or something in. Tubs you can bail a bit and lift out for easier cleaning.

[paulholcomb]

I just built a very large Vivarium and used a 12qt Wash Tub purchased at WalMart for less than $2 US. I used some cleaned lava rocks and some slate from around the house that had been cleaned with a bleach solution and then rinsed well. I put the lava rocks into the bottom with a Zoo Med Waterfall Kit pump and routed the waterfall tube to run down the slate rocks back into the wash tub. This set up is easily taken out to clean, provides a lot of water, has a cool water effect, adds humidity, and just plane is awesome........

http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/ll238/paulholcomb/Snake015.jpg

[ilovemypets1988]

If you want a water feature you can't filter it unless you have a constant nitrogen source in there. Otherwise the filtration is pointless. You'd essentially need to have a micro aquarium with a few fish to maintain it. Otherwise you'd have to totally change the water out every day or two to prevent ammonia from getting out of control and making your snake sick.

Overall it's not a very tenable idea without significant aquarium knowledge.

16 years of tropical fish keeping experience would attain for aquarium knowledge (not being bitchy, just stating a fact)

[marvelfreak]

For sure!
Also keep in mind that annies are notorious shitters. By this i mean that it smells foul and they do it almost daily
Mine only craps once a week, but man does it stink. The only thing worse is when my Borneo takes a dump. But if you only crap 3 to 4 a year it's bound to be super stinky. I myself think it actually the urine that stink so bad.

[marvelfreak]

i think your best bet would be to use a molded plastic pond form.
This is what i think would work best to or a plastic utility sink if you wanted something really deep.

[mistersprinkles]

I've split a 50 gal tank in half by getting a 12" long by 12" tall piece of glass from a home improvement store (home depot or Lowes) and using marine sealant to glue it in place. I filled half the tank with water, rocks, plants and small fish for esthetic reasons and the other half was a foresty theme with logs, vines, moss, and the level was filled up with pea gravel/sand/pea gravel/& Cyprus mulch on top. I had a simple bubbler in the water knowing I was going to have to change the water ridiculously often. To clean it I netted the fish and put them in a jar with the bare minimum of water, bailed with a bucket, then used a fish tank suction hose to drain the rest, whiped it down with paper towels and refilled it with distilled water (other water leaves a residue ring). I had 2 baby water snakes in it. So I could get away with once every 5 days absolute Max. Depending really on its fecal output it would let you know how often you would have To change it. Maybe weekly. Maybe daily. But don't forget your snake would be drinking that water to. Filters are recommended. There's also the possibility of useing a big clear tub that you could put a fountain or something in. Tubs you can bail a bit and lift out for easier cleaning.

Wow that's so wrong...
If you want to know how to do that properly let me know... You did everything wrong.

--I do aquarium servicing for a living ;)

[stephanbakir]

Wow that's so wrong...
If you want to know how to do that properly let me know... You did everything wrong.

--I do aquarium servicing for a living ;)

If you notice a flaw, it might be a good idea to point it out to everyone, so that we too can learn from the error

[mistersprinkles]

I already tried that in another thread.

A Beginner' s Guide to Sucessful Fish Keeping (http://www.marineland.com/sites/Marineland/Resources/GettingStarted.aspx?id=1908)

Filtration: The Total Picture (http://www.marineland.com/sites/Marineland/Resources/default.aspx?id=1904)

The Nitrogen Cycle (http://freshaquarium.about.com/cs/biologicalcycle/a/nitrogencycle.htm)

^

All must be understood inside out to prevent causing organ damage to fish AND your snake. Ammonia and nitrite kill things. So do wild pH swings.

A normal filter wont keep it clean for long, snakes tend to defecate in water and a filter probably wont handle that for long.

I've got a link at home for just what your talking about. ill post it tonight when i get home

It's possible to have a giant log of poo in water and have absolute zero detectable ammonia or nitrite, and the water be safe to drink. You have to understand biological filtration.
There's a zoo that has a giant aquarium with 3 hippos. They poo the size of a medium dog. The fish in the aquarium are in excellent health because the poo is harmless if the water has the proper bacterial balance and filtration.
:)

[ilovemypets1988]

there are thre types of filtration that most filters will undertake these days, these are:

1.) mechanical; this is where the water is pumped through a series of foam and other types of pads - this will sometimes include some carbon.

2.) biological; this is where bacteria colonies inside the filter eats the ammonia or nitrites and turns them into harmless nitrates which again is normally used by plants as a fertilizer and also by the fish aswell.

3.) chemical; ok this part is mostly done by the keepers but some filters will also do this; a chemical is added to the water to aid in the brake down of the ammonia and nitrites.

these 3 types of filtration will make sure that your water will stay fresh and clear and able to drink if needed.

[mistersprinkles]

Ya but there's more to it than that.

1) you're wrong. As soon as it is carbon it is chemical filtration

2) the bacteria is everywhere not just the filter. The fish DO NOT use nitrates.

3)Chemical filtration is NOT the addition of chemicals.

Knowledge about aquariums is so ****ed up man... You have no idea what you're smoking... Please keep your aquarium 'advice' to yourself. Your other posts have been similarly moronic. I think you're the guy who snapped a photo of your gecko almost being eaten by a BCI.

[ilovemypets1988]

Ya but there's more to it than that.

1) you're wrong. As soon as it is carbon it is chemical filtration

2) the bacteria is everywhere not just the filter. The fish DO NOT use nitrates.

3)Chemical filtration is NOT the addition of chemicals.

Knowledge about aquariums is so ****ed up man... You have no idea what you're smoking... Please keep your aquarium 'advice' to yourself. Your other posts have been similarly moronic. I think you're the guy who snapped a photo of your gecko almost being eaten by a BCI.

look m8 i have kept discus`s all my life and those are the rules ive lived by and the fish have survived so dont go critisizing me as i sed 16 yrs experience so dont go saying bull as if u read it, i dont say all filters have carbon as they dont so not all filters do chemical filtration!

[mistersprinkles]

[ chemical; ok this part is mostly done by the keepers but some filters will also do this; a chemical is added to the water to aid in the brake down of the ammonia and nitrites.

NO CHEMICAL DOES THIS. The only things you can use for this are kytacin which just absorbs and grounds ammonia and is not a chemical water additive, and bacterial culture startups like stress zyme or bio zyme or cycle, which again, are not chemicals.

There's sodium thiasulfate (water conditioner), which again, does not do this nor is it necessary to the process. It seperates ammonia from chlorine (chloramine) and locks ammonia (adds a hydrogen ion NH3>NH4).

It is necessary for water changes if you are on chlorinated water. But not part of the nitrogen cycle or filtration.

If you've had discus for that long, you should know what you're talking about. Either your knowledge is wrong or your explanation ability is but regardless you shouldn't be giving advice that you barely understand yourself.

[stephanbakir]

It could be that he's not getting the information from his head into text clearly.

On a side note, I bred discus as a kid and they are allot of work but fun to watch!

[mistersprinkles]

It could be that he's not getting the information from his head into text clearly.



This is when one does not give advice :).
I'm very polite on my computer forum but if you blow your computer up, who's really going to care? It has no feelings. If you have an animal you need to make sure it is given the exact environment it needs to be totally comfortable all the time or you shouldn't have it IMO. Even if you do know, if you can't explain it right you shouldn't explain it, as this will cause others to misstep and injure their animal(s).

[marvelfreak]

If you have an animal you need to make sure it is given the exact environment it needs to be totally comfortable all the time or you shouldn't have it IMO. Even if you do know, if you can't explain it right you shouldn't explain it, as this will cause others to misstep and injure their animal(s).
So very true i agree 100%.:)