Switching to peat/coco substrate tips?

JamesGSixx · 05-22-19, 02:27 PM

Salutations, friends! So I got a ball python and a red tail boa 4 weeks ago. My bp is housed in a wood glass enclosure, while my rtb is in a tub glass enclosure with paper towels as substrate. Their temperatures are spot on 90-95f on the hot side, 70-75f cold side. The humidity in both terrariums are pretty bad though ranging from 45% to 50%, this is when I don't mist. Both of them have humid hides filled with damp sphagnum moss to compensate but the problem is they're spending too much time on those hides instead of going to a regular hot/cold hide.

So I'm planning to change substrates to peat moss or coco fiber instead of paper towels. For the reason being so, I don't have to regularly mist, and I could take out the big humidity box that's taking up so much space and so it looks better and naturalistic.

However, My main concerns are

Mold - I keep a bunch of tarantulas and sometimes their substrate which is coco fiber/peat moss, seems to get mold. These don't really affect tarantulas though, so it's no problem for them, not unless it's been sitting there for a very long time. Note that these tarantula enclosures have more ventilation than the snake's tub/terrarium and it's already getting mold so what more with the vents that the snakes have?
Mites - Again, a common problem I face with my tarantula's enclosures. When the substrate is damp, they usually start showing up, Not an alarming number but just a few that you can notice them. I'm not sure if it's the kind of mites that can be harmful to snakes but they're not harmful to the tarantulas I own. They look like tiny white round slow moving mites I think they might be called "hitchhiker mites".
Heating - Where do I put the heat mat? should it be at the bottom of the substrate or should it be in the middle?

I also want to know about the maintenance of having those two choices of substrate. What are the do's and don'ts? And what problems can I be faced with and how to avoid them? Thank you for taking up time to read this long post. Any advice or comments will be gladly appreciated!

Andy27012 · 05-23-19, 01:18 AM

I would hold off on changing anything, if they’ve been in your care for four weeks and are healthy your doing something right. I don’t worry about a magical number for humidity as most hygrometers aren’t accurate anyway. I suggest seeing if they shed in one piece and if they do them do nothing other then misting them when they go into blue and stopping after they shed. If you get stuck shed then look into raising the humidity.

JamesGSixx · 05-23-19, 04:00 AM

That's true. However, my red tail boa hasn't eaten in almost 4 weeks now, he's been in his humid box since I placed it there, occasionally goes out to spend time on his wood branches. His previous owner didn't use any heat mats or humid hides but he was placed outside of the house. 85-90f and 70 humidity. He was also fed live since birth and the first time i got him i fed live as well but only once, since I didn't know where to get frozen rodents in my area (Philippines). Since i've switched to frozen rats he hasn't been eating.

craigafrechette · 05-23-19, 09:39 AM

Your temps definitely aren't spot on.

I can't speak specifically on the boa, because I don't keep boas.

But for your BP 95 is way too hot. You want to aim for 88-89 for a hot spot.
Also 70 is too low. 75 should be the absolute minimum. You should be shooting for about 78-82.

JamesGSixx · 05-23-19, 10:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by craigafrechette

Your temps definitely aren't spot on.

I can't speak specifically on the boa, because I don't keep boas.

But for your BP 95 is way too hot. You want to aim for 88-89 for a hot spot.
Also 70 is too low. 75 should be the absolute minimum. You should be shooting for about 78-82.

yup apparently i was misguided by the online guides on google. I changed the thermostat to max out on 90f. Thanks!

**EL Ziggy** · 05-23-19, 01:13 PM

Congrats on the (2) new critters. I use a coco fiber type bedding (Reptile Prime) for all my snakes. I've never had any mold issues and it works great for the keeping humidity up. I'd agree with the others and say make sure your temps are dialed in. As long as your snakes have a proper thermal gradient they'll thermoregulate themselves as they see fit. I wouldn't worry about them spending too much time in one place. How are you measuring your temps and are those surface temps you're measuring or just thermometer/thermostat readings? I have to set my thermostats to about 90-94 to get a surface temp of 86-90. I like to give my boas a hot spot of about 86-88. My ambient temps range from 76-82 during the summer months. I don't believe that ambient temps below 75 are all that bad. In winter my ambient temps will drop as low as 72 during the day and 68-70 at night. As long as they have access to a hot spot they'll be fine. I also don't place a big emphasis on humidity. Hydration is what really matters. Just make sure the snakes have access to fresh water at all times. My humidity rarely goes above 60% during the summer and can drop as low as 30% during winter. I don't provide humid hides and the only times I might mist an enclosure is if I see a snake preparing to shed or if I just randomly decide to switch things up and make it rain. I've never had a bad shed or RI with any of my snakes. I'm not sure why your boa isn't eating. Hopefully he'll get on track soon. How are you thawing and offering the prey and how often are you attempting to feed? One of my boas was fed live only when I got her but she transitioned to f/t and then to rats right away. Keep us posted on your progress.