Favourite ball python substrates and why?

Just curious on others opinions :) myself I usually use a mixture of 50/50 aspen and Eco earth! Sometimes just Eco earth, depending on how I'm feeling lol.


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well since I use t8's with rhp I like to use straight aspen since I don't need to extra humidity plus my bp will not borrow in anything but aspen (go figure lmao). now if iv got a temporary setup in a glass tank(quarantine) I like to use reptibark it generally give me the humidity I need until they blue then I just lay a damp rag over the top of the screen and that gets me to 70-75% humidity so I don't have to mist multiple times a day and get those rapid humidity fluxes . I only have one bp at the moment but I just bought two bci boa's so right now I have two glass cages for quarantine set up like this and im in the trial and error phase getting everything setup and ready to go before they get to me (next week due to cyber week) so take my info with a grain of salt lol

I just use teklad aspen or paper towel. The only other substrate I've tried is eco earth and can't stand how messy it is, sticking to the snakes and water bowls when I take them out.

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Originally Posted by erebus45

well since I use t8's with rhp I like to use straight aspen since I don't need to extra humidity plus my bp will not borrow in anything but aspen (go figure lmao). now if iv got a temporary setup in a glass tank(quarantine) I like to use reptibark it generally give me the humidity I need until they blue then I just lay a damp rag over the top of the screen and that gets me to 70-75% humidity so I don't have to mist multiple times a day and get those rapid humidity fluxes . I only have one bp at the moment but I just bought two bci boa's so right now I have two glass cages for quarantine set up like this and im in the trial and error phase getting everything setup and ready to go before they get to me (next week due to cyber week) so take my info with a grain of salt lol

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I know the feeling about glass tanks! Hell for humidity but I love keeping mine in tanks so I can make pretty setups and see what they're up too all the time. I used to keep them in bins until about 2 years ago.


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Originally Posted by redshepherd

I just use teklad aspen or paper towel. The only other substrate I've tried is eco earth and can't stand how messy it is, sticking to the snakes and water bowls when I take them out.

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Yep! Agreed! That's why I mix mine with aspen, it seems to be less messy then.


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I use homemade liners out of Zorb antimicrobial super absorbent fabric.

They are the weight / feel of reptile carpet, but won't harbor bacteria, and are way more absorbent. Reusable and zero mess from particle bedding.

As I prefer a naturalistic cages over the years I have tried many different things. In the end I found I like to use a mixture of Forest Floor cypress mulch, Eco Earth, and Repti Bark. This gives me all of the perks of each without giving me the negatives like the dustiness of Eco Earth when dry. This mixture also gives my cages a much more nature look instead of a monotone substrate layer.

In my large cages those snakes have proven to be to messy to use a loose substrate so they are on newspaper. I don't really like it but it works best for my bigger snakes.

I like plain paper towel. It's easy to clean up. I've also used aspen and coconut but I prefer the paper towel.

Forest Floor cypress for me. Thin layer.
Is great for humidity for glass tanks, if you have those, but can push the humidity way up in my PVC Cages (especially when my house's ambient humidity is usually 55-60%). So I just leave the bag open when stored or spread it out in a bin prior to cleaning the cage so it can dry out. Works perfectly in my house if it's just a bit drier than it comes in the bag.
For me, it has also never stuck to stuff the way more "mulchy" substrate seems to, so I never am picking it off hides or water bowls like people complain happens with Eco Earth. As long as my rats are dry, never really had a worrisome case of it sticking to those either.

i would be hesitant about using anything that is "washable". It's just another opportunity to harbor pathogens who withstand the washing process (which will happen unless autoclaved or soaked in bleach).

That zorb stuff isn't truly an antimicrobial, in fact their claims are downright misleading. I wouldn't go near it.

I currently use forest floor cyprus mulch in a 20gal tank. However, I have a T10 on order and an almost unlimited supply of newspaper end rolls available so I may try that when they get here.

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Originally Posted by Medduussa

Just curious on others opinions :) myself I usually use a mixture of 50/50 aspen and Eco earth! Sometimes just Eco earth, depending on how I'm feeling lol.


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Aspen mixed with Eco Earth? :O Aspen molds very easily and Eco Earth is dusty when dry. That's like the worst of both worlds haha. I personally used to use aspen for all my snakes but have since switched to ReptiChips.

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Originally Posted by BR8080

I currently use forest floor cyprus mulch in a 20gal tank. However, I have a T10 on order and an almost unlimited supply of newspaper end rolls available so I may try that when they get here.

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No....just no....getting a nice sexy T10 and you are going to line it with cheap ugly newspaper!!?? Use something good and do your poor snake a favor :)

All you cheap newspaper people!!! Not sure if its true but I have heard from a few people that large snakes kept on newspaper have developed what they call "pancaking' where the snake cant really get a grip on the stuff so it will flatten itself out to try and grip more and after years, they lose their shape. I heard mostly from boa guys. Not sure if it's BS or not but it does make sense as the newspaper slides all over.

Have heard of guys taping the newspaper to each other so it cant slide under itself leaving exposed cage flooring. I still say just use a real substrate. If you only have a couple snakes, its going to be fairly cheap. Heck even with my snakes, I only go through about 1 brick of ReptiChips a month and that's with 7' and 5' boas who piss all the time and a retic who is like a mini fire hose permanently attached to a hydrant lol.

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Originally Posted by Sauzo

No....just no....getting a nice sexy T10 and you are going to line it with cheap ugly newspaper!!?? Use something good and do your poor snake a favor :)

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LMAO - OK OK OK - Cyprus mulch it will be and I already have a few plastic plants (including a long vine for the shelf)

I have been happy with the cyprus thus far as it is very absorbent and easy to spot clean.

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Originally Posted by BR8080

LMAO - OK OK OK - Cyprus mulch it will be and I already have a few plastic plants (including a long vine for the shelf)

I have been happy with the cyprus thus far as it is very absorbent and easy to spot clean.

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The vines are awesome. I just put a silk vine from Michaels Craft store in Caesar's cage and today after shedding, he climbed up there and checked it out lol. I think it got the Caesar seal of approval haha.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...6ac8a61a_b.jpg

Oh and if you didn't think of it yet, I used plastic zip ties to secure the vine just off the shelf floor through the vent slots. Works awesome to keep the vine secure and give a nice little space under it for Caesar to sit although he spent the time climbing on top of it lol.

I used paper towels when I got a mite infection, but other than that it doesn't eliminate odors at all and I can tell right away when my big snakes pee, it makes the whole room stink. With 20 snakes on paper towels I was checking all the tubs daily and cleaning at least 1-3 tubs each day. I switched to Aspen, my snakes liked to burrow in it but it doesn't hold moisture, and it molds easy. doesn't really eliminate smells much, just a little better than nothing LOL. The biggest problem is that I had a few snakes get a mouthful when feeding and they went off of feed. I tried newspaper for a bit but it makes my white snakes turn black. I also tried cypress, it ended up drying out and it was hard to get wet again, plus the stuff I had went bad within a couple weeks and started smelling like sulfur. I watched videos about Eco earth, what a mess...

My latest substrate is Reptichip coconut husk. I think it's wonderful! It absorbs tons of water and totally eliminates all smells. My newest setup is that I put about an inch of damp Reptichip in the tub. Then put the snake directly on the bottom of the plastic tub with nothing between the snake and the tub, right over the hot spot. Then I'll put Reptichip all around him. If they make a mess I'll move the snake over and spot clean the bottom of the tub and the a small amount of soiled Reptichip around the hot spot. I also feed twice a week so spot clean and spray the substrate with water twice a week. My substrate lasts 2 months between replacement. And when it starts getting a bit stinky when I spray it down I let it dry out and use it for my mice, that really cuts the mouse smell down to almost zero. For my mice I mix in a couple handfuls of used dry Reptichip with shredded paper for substrate, changing it out twice a week instead of every other day with just shredded paper, I use probably 10% Reptichip and 90% shredded paper to stretch it out a bit longer. My rats don't stink that much so I can do all shredded paper changing out substrate only twice a week.

I'm very happy with Reptichip, the only down side is the cost. But considering how long it lasts I think it's worth every penny. Once I expand my operation I may look into ordering it by the pallet. I also had a hard time getting it apart, but found that I can put a block in a tub with several gallons of water and let it sit for about an hour, it puffs up and totally falls apart with minimal effort. I also have some light surface mold on some new blocks, not sure what that is from, but if I keep it just damp instead of wet the mold doesn't stick around. I'm thinking it may actually be my well water instead of the Reptichip.

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Originally Posted by Medduussa

Just curious on others opinions :) myself I usually use a mixture of 50/50 aspen and Eco earth! Sometimes just Eco earth, depending on how I'm feeling lol.


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Thanks for the info. I'm preparing to get my first :snake: and already have Eco Earth for my :spid0r:s. I never knew you could use an Eco Earth mixture for their substrate, so this is handy for me!