Best substrate for BPs

[Slim]

I love this stuff, but it works best if you don't need your substrate to be a humidity holder:

http://www.uline.com/BL_1952/Kraft-Paper-Sheets

[Tarzan152]

I'm very happy with using terrarium carpet or reptile carpet. Its very easy to clean and reusable. I have two carpets for each tank so I can replace it quickly when it gets soiled. I run it under luke warm water to remove the poop/pee and spray it with a disinfectant to kill any bacteria. It has worked for me for years. For humidity, I have a small bowl of wet terrarium moss in the corner of the hot side. As it warms up, the humidity is fine.

But as many of these good folks have said, it depends on your location, your general humidity, your tank's set up and such.. Good luck..

[Coopers Constrictors]

I use paper towels.

[ROACH]

I use News Paper, but getting ready to switch to Aspen.

[bcr229]

I use cypress in the winter as the air in my house gets very dry - under 10% humidity - between the heat pump and wood stove. So even with tubs I need something to help keep the humidity up. The rest of the year I use newspaper.

[LadyByrd]

What is terrarium moss? I have never heard of it before. I assume I can probably get it at petsmart or another pet store?

[Noek]

I use microfiber towels, I have been using them for over 10 years and they work the best for me. My two bp's generally will favor going underneath them as opposed to their hides when they regulate. Easy cleanup and you can mist them for moisture.

[FireStorm]

We use paper towels/newspaper most of the year and then switch females to either Cypress or Coconut Husk shortly before they lay (only because they will be maternally incubating and we want to raise the humidity). There isn't really one "best substrate," you just have to find what works for you.

A word of caution about particulate substrates (cypress, aspen, sani chips, coconut husk, Eco earth, etc - anything with little pieces): if you pair your snakes for breeding on these, I would highly recommend popping your males when you separate them. Some males like to expose their hemipenes and drag them around the tub, and then get the little pieces stuck in their cloaca. We had a male end up with an infection because of it, and since then I have talked to a few others that have had the same issue. It doesn't seem to be terribly common, but it sucks when it happens and can be easily prevented by popping. Our male ended up needing two surgeries and is no longer able to breed.

[jxl]

What is terrarium moss? I have never heard of it before. I assume I can probably get it at petsmart or another pet store?

Sphagnum moss. Well here you can get it in pet shops or in florist shop. They use it for orchids and such.

[Thalasuchus]

I use cypress mulch and occasionally put damp sphagnum moss in the hides for extra humidity. I have a glass terrarium setup, so humidity is really important.

I think it all comes down to whether you're using a tank, tub or PVC setup and whether you need a humidity boost... and also whether aesthetics are important to you. So paper towels, newspaper and aspen are great in tubs and PVC where humidity isn't a huge concern, but cypress mulch and eco earth/coco husk are really useful in tanks where you need all the help you can get with humidity. It's also a matter of personal choice whether you'd rather throw everything out and clean quickly (newspaper/paper towels) or spot clean and change out substrate weekly/monthly.

tl;dr it's your personal choice, like everyone else said