sand substrate?

[springpedersens]

Fantus is now five years old (wow, it's been awhile since I've been on this board!) and Ryath is about 3 1/2. They were originally on carpet, but after a year of washing poopy carpet, I got sick of it and went with children's play sand. Just today, I switched back.

Why? For my two, their tanks always had at least some trace of "that smell". Generally, it wasn't too bad, and of course I kept the tanks clean of poop. But still, it seemed to linger. Then came Hurricane Ike, and our power was out for 7 days... let's just say that, when the air conditioning isn't keeping things cool enough, the stink from those tanks made our house almost unbearable. I ended up putting both of them out in the garage for the duration. (Keep in mind, this is Texas, and even in the evenings, we won't have cold weather for awhile, and yes, they have ample heat lamp protection at night ) Upon reflection, I realized that I couldn't have been getting things as clean as I'd thought. And they *can* be sneaky and bury it (at least Fantus does).

So, in the interests of knowing EXACTLY when it's been done, and keeping them from getting smelly again, they're back on carpet. They don't seem to care much, and in truth, I won't miss having sand get everywhere (and it did....everytime I'd add some, or everytime I'd scoop poop, it seemed to manage to get everywhere.)

Carpet's ultimately easier, but that's my $.02 and worth exactly what you paid to read it. :lol:

Jan

 

[RedInkAus]

I Use both sand for brumation so they can burrow in or at least make a nice cove for themselves and tiles when their more active. Just to point out i use Auatralian sand.

 

[RedInkAus]

I Use both sand for brumation so they can burrow in or at least make a nice cove for themselves and tiles when their more active. Just to point out i use Auatralian sand.

 

[RedInkAus]

sorry for the double post don't know how that happened, I'm on the work computer and it freaked out LOL

 

[Geoff22]

What? LOL I'm not dogging the sand either, but....What? just saying that has to be the most illogical "what if?" I've ever heard.

That was the idea, lol ive seen alot of what if's with sand and to tell ya the truth I think about of people are just typing what they are reading instead of doing the research themselves.

*again this is my opinion and not directed at anyone one!

 

[Sp1ke]

What? LOL I'm not dogging the sand either, but....What? just saying that has to be the most illogical "what if?" I've ever heard.

That was the idea, lol ive seen alot of what if's with sand and to tell ya the truth I think about of people are just typing what they are reading instead of doing the research themselves.

*again this is my opinion and not directed at anyone one!

LOL yeah, I got ya, I just really thought it was funny. As someone else posted earlier, the sand does seem to get everywhere, but Spike is sleeping in it now while he's brumating. So I'm just going to leave it on the cool side so he can burrow, but I really like the tile, mostly for clean up ease and it helps keep the claws filed down a bit.

 

[bmmst1]

well i decided to go with crushed walnut shells. FC loves it haha

 

[leothebeardie]

PLAY SAND, USED IT FOR 4 BEARDIES PREVIOUSLY ASLONG AS U DONT FEED THEM ON IT, IT IS THE BEST SUBSTRATE TO USE BECAUSE THEY CAN DIG BURROW AND IT SOAKS UP THE HEAT FROM THE BASKING AREA !

 

[Sp1ke]

Please do not go with crushed walnut shells!!! Do a search on this forum for that and you'll see all the reasons why. In general very, very bad! Causes impaction and can tear the intestinal lining.

 

[diamc]

well i decided to go with crushed walnut shells. FC loves it haha

I guess you changed your mind again then as this was recently posted. :?

i used to use walnut shells until i heard what it does, i was to lead wrong by the pet store(petco, of course! i should have known) i now use sifted and washed children's play sand from lowes 3 dollars for a 50 pound bag, not bad. im going to change it every month so its sanitary. 3 dollars a month isnt bad. i used to use repti carpet but firecracker loves to dig a hole and sleep in it haha. which now since i upgrades to a 75 gallon he has plenty of room to dig i might just do half tile and half play sand and feed him on the tile side.

 

[bmmst1]

yes i did research on it AFTER i bought it, hopefully no damage was done. i use playsand but not sure if i like it yet i might just go with tiles. sand it just so easy to clean, but i dont know...

 

[Ambz748]

When I first got my beardie (over two years ago) I was using calci-sand. I quickly switched to a shelf liner... Smokey HATED it! she hated being in her cage and would try to escape and run along the glass, hitting her head trying to get out. I switched to a basic playground sand and she loves it! I know everyone says don't use sand, they'll ingest it and get compacted. But my lizards are used to it. They don't eat the sand and if it gets in their food dish or on their food, they will not eat the food. They just like to play in it. I think its fine, especially if they dont eat it.

 

[Ian2277]

Hi, is there an age when beardie can go on sand?? :?

 

[bmmst1]

yea firecracker likes the playsand. he LOVES to dig and keep me up at night hahaha. after he reaches the bottom he keeps digging so i have to listen to his nails scratching the glass all night until he gets into his comfy hole he dug. but atleast now he is happy he didnt like the repticarpet very much. plus he dosen't lick it

 

[Rottipet]

Hi. I go against the rules & have always used sand as my substrate. Didn't know u shouldn't until I got on here, have had no problems in 2yrs with 7 Beardies. I use a really thick layer of sand (so they can dig - the more u use the heavier the enclosure to move) & I only change the lot once every 6 mths or so.When they poop, it's easy to see what sand is soiled & needs removing. If you're cleaning up on a daily basis then smell wise is only when the poops still in the enclosure. I'd be real interested to know if u guys have a 'Sandy Loam' at Landscape or Sand & Gravel yards. We get ours from an area nearby where Beardies naturally live & it compacts better than sand (still slightly gravelly though) and not as hot on their feet - I've tried both. The playsand that they sell I'm guessing would possibly be a medium grain sand, where if you're using sand would be better to use a fine grain sand so lessens the risk of impaction. If u have a landscape yard nearby, give a ring & sus out your options, & whether they sell it by the bag - usually a LOT cheaper than pet or hardware stores.
If in doubt, just go with something else. If u do ring around, could u let me know what the deal is in your area, would be interesting to know - thanks , Kathy

I use playsand myself, I got 50lb bags for less than $2 each at Walmart. I put some in roasting pans and baked in my oven to dry it out before putting in tank. I read a lot about what substrate to use that would be safe and this seemed to be the cheapest easiest way. I got a sifter to clean the sand and I haven't noticed any strong smell after cleaning, I intend to completly change the sand twice a year. Pedro is atleast -2-3 years old and he doesn't lick everything so I don't think I have to worry about impaction.