Substrate Question

Now, I don't actually have a BP yet, but I have a bearded dragon and as a fellow reptile keeper I know that its very important to know just what it is you're getting into so research and asking the pros (that's you guys) is huge.

I was just planning on building a custom multi-unit display case for my beardie and to house a ball in the future and was wondering if just vinyl tiles, or maybe ceramic tiles would be alright to keep them on? I was planning on doing vinyl/ceramic anyway to separate the ball from the UTH which would have to be inside the enclosure (since its going to be wood), but would the "substrate" be necessary as long as the humidity is right? Being in the midwest, I typically have the humidity requirements pretty much spot on for a ball python anyway.

Only reason I ask is that I see plenty of people with just newspaper, and can't imagine that its really any different than that except that it gets cleaned rather than thrown away and replaced.

Samee here, I dnt own one yet I will soon although I work w. B.P's Alll the time, but honestly I never heard of anyone usingg tiles, and newspaper isn't bad becuase Bp's do not borough(I might of spelled that wrong) what works for me is Aspen even though theirs plenty of other stuff you can use and as far as humidity goes you have to keep that at 50-55% if its to high your BP can get what's called respritory infection I HIGHLY recomend you research that. Goodluck for the near future

Yeah, I just really don't like the look of newspaper. Especially since its going to be a display case and not a rack.

Yeaa I hear yuu, explore around keep researching, ask around see what yu likee :gj:

I don't see any problem with tiles as long as you can get the temps correct. Cleaning would need to be done with diligence as any waste just sits there, if you have bearded Dragons you understand that. There are many ideas about substrates (similar debates to dragons) A handful of wood products (cyprus and aspen being the big two, Melaleuca being a third one but harder to find) There are coconut product (my personal fav) and paper types (brown, newspaper) I find them to be more work. Then there are paper product ones (care fresh) as well, each has advantages and disadvantages, every keeper has their issues they need to solve in my case tile would not work as the humidity is low but in your case it very might work really well as you don't share my humidity issues.

Thanks for your input.

I don't mind diligent cleaning, as you mentioned I have a bearded dragon so I'll be monitoring "waste" daily anyway, especially in a display type enclosure I'll notice right away. I was more or less concerned if there was any reason NOT to do tile or vinyl, as long as I can keep temps and humidity correct.

doing tile if thats what youre set on just make sure temps are good as for vinyl, i know the heat tends to let out a smell of the vinyl and who knows what else it releases so id stay away from vinyl. I use aspen without a problem but i know alot of ppl that use newspaper or butcher paper or cardboard liners, problem with that is once it gets soiled then you have to replace it all where with the aspen you can spot clean and move on. I know with the beardies on tile, if you dont stay on top of it then that poop gets all over the place and i see the same with snakes. Good luck

I have no experience using vinyl, ceramic, or anything like that, so I do not know whether or not it is safe, the only thing I would suggest is to at least put down paper towels to absorb any elimination. We have to admit, sometimes we do not catch the urine or feces until hours after it has been passed.. at least with my experience, with paper towels the absorption is kept to one side of the tub, leaving the other side rather dry for the snake to retreat to. This way they are not left sitting in their own waste until we change their substrate. If you were to have them only on ceramic or vinyl, I'd imagine their urine could spread around the tub as they moved around. So, no matter what you use, at least put something semi-absorbent to change out when soiled. :)

Just my own two cents.

I think the tile would be fine it will be a pain in the butt to clean your cages but if your ok with that it should not be a problem. I use indoor/outdoor carpet in my display cages the kind they sell at lowes and home depot with the rubber backing. if you cut two pieces for each cage you will always have a clean one to swap out. you can't put them in the washing machine though they fall apart I hang mine on a fence with clothes pins outside and wash them with the water hose and let them dry in the sun then bring them inside and stack them up make sure they lay flat all the time or it will make a crease that will allow the snake to get under it. Some people say you should not use the carpet because you cant get it clean I have been using the same carpets for 8 cages for over 3 years without a problem.

Ok so this may sound like a dumb question but if you use newspaper is there any concern over the ink from the newspaper being harmful?

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Originally Posted by RetiredJedi

Ok so this may sound like a dumb question but if you use newspaper is there any concern over the ink from the newspaper being harmful?

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that's actually a good question..i've wondered about it myself..i dont' use newspaper because i dont really like the look fo it but still i thought about it

Just for a side comment, I am not 100% sure but I think cured ink is inert. Just pigments nothing horribly toxic it is the fresh ink that still has the thinners in it that would be bad. I'd not recommend using a 'hot off the press' paper in contact with a snake, the thinners are quite bad. Typically people whom use newspaper are using old ones not new smelly ones.

I used to keep bearded dragons. When they outgrew their 80 gallon I couldn't afford anything bigger, so I decided to just keep them in my bathroom. They loved it. The only problem was cleaning the poop out of the tile grout. That is much more difficult than you can imagine. If you're ok with spending hours scrubbing your enclosures every week, than go for it. Otherwise, I'd also suggest using paper towel over the tile. It will still have the same clean and sleek look, but it will make cleaning up much more manageable.

If the grout is sealed well, then there's no way for anything to get into it. My BD setup is actually a no-stick shelf liner on the bottom with 12"x12" slate tiling just placed on it with no grout. I just pop out a dirty one and replace it.

BD's don't urinate, so the absorbency of substrate wasn't really big in my mind, but now it may be something I have to consider. I'll definitely look into that indoor-outdoor carpeting. Think like, 2 or 3 sections on the floor would work rather than 1 big one? I just feel like emptying the cage to replace the entire flooring every time may get to be a pain.

I wonder if you used tile and did not seal it down at all but used closed cell foam on the edges of each tile and just fit them in tight if when you needed to clean you could lift out a tile and wash it in a sink. Just A though I don't know if it would work but you never know.

If I went in the direction of real tile, that's what I was planning to do. Maybe not a foam insert for sake of closeness, but just pack them in tight with a liner underneath, or maybe the vinyl underneath for sake of waterproofing the bottom in case anything gets between the cracks.