substrate

Hello Dendroboardians, I saw this technique in one of Troy Goldberg's videos: he used a filter mat instead of substrate in one of his paludarium builds. He described it as a common European technique. I found it looked great, but it's more on the uncommon side for building a paludarium, I...

I happen to have orchid moss, lump wood charcoal, fir bark, and organic potting soil. Should I just use this to make a vivarium substrate? Should I use coconut coir instead of potting soil? I plan on buying a bag of ABG mis to mix in as well. I plan on using the mix I will make for a spray foam...

Recently acquired a large exo terra terrarium. I dream of setting up a tropical microclimate. Want to do this right and trying to learn as much as I can. My tank already has a cork backing and substrate installed. I may need to replace the substrate? I have no idea. Hoping I can find the answers...

For some of the terrariums I've made, and especially one I've been working on now, I've needed a lot of ABG mix, and it's hit my wallet pretty hard. The least expensive I've seen (per gallon) is NEHERP's mix, but that's excluding the cost of shipping. On Amazon prime, with free shipping, some...

I'm going to make a huge batch of ABG mix as I need substrate for 4 vivs. I need some clarification with the ingredients. The following are the ingredients I was able to find over here in the UK but I'm not sure if they are the same as the ones needed. Moss peat - I can't find milled peat...

Well, I finally have some time off to start putting together my vivarium. I have gone back and forth regarding live vivarium vs ...fake/sterile - so I have supplies for both. My BIG concern regarding living vivaria is mold/bacteria, etc at the very bottom of the vivarium - if the springtails...

I have been looking into making my own ABG mix but I can't find tree fern anywhere online. Should I just suck it up and order the pre-made mix or does anyone know of an online distributor of tree fern?

I've been using worm castings as part of my bioactive substrate mix that i use for my geckos. I was wondering whether this was bad for dart frogs. This is the substrate mix I use. 2 parts coco coir 1 part sphagnum moss 1 part sand 1 part orchid bark 1 part worm castings I topped the...

I'm refurbishing my old frog tank. It's approx. 60 gallon (living space 47 inches across, 20 inches tall, 14 inches deep. It's set up so that I can pump water up from a 10 gallon tank below, and there's a drain in the floor that'll carry water back to the 10 gallon reservoir. In the past, I've...

I know there's a better area to post this, but I'm stuck here for now and might as well practice with real questions. Has anyone tried the ABG mix from BluePumilio.com? It seems like a relatively low price for ABG, and their seven-part recipe looks right to me: "28.5% Fine Tree Fern Fiber...

I recently saw a comment that said a moss layer between ABG and leaf litter is no longer the preferred method. I tried a search and couldn't find more about this. Is this the general consensus now?

I've been working on a couple of vivariums (a vertical 20L and 29 horizontal) and through building these , I've been learning a lot from mistakes and exploring a lot of different things. As a note, I'm going to post a small build log of the 29G soon as I've done some interesting things to the...

I'm setting up my first custom Dart Frog Vivarium and planned on making the substrate as black as possible, using black sand and what not but i also want it to be good for the frogs any help on what to use? :D

Hello everyone! I am creating a vivarium out of my 12x12x18 Exo-Terra. I ordered "hydrogro" from Genesis Exotics and their site closed so I'm in the dark. I was expecting to get large balls of white colored clay/ However i got about 1/4-1/2 inch diameter odd-shaped clumps with some looking as if...

Hello all, First time keeper here. I came across this board and felt really good vibes from the community, so I'm giving my question a go! :) I currently have a Zoo Med Reptibreeze cage (24x24x48 size), and I'm looking to get a deep substrate tray for it. Would like for it to be around 4-6"...

Hello everyone, new guy here with a few silly questions. Firstly, I'd like to just say that reading through this forum has really taught me a lot and I've learned a great deal of new things. I'm hoping to construct a false bottom (egg crate / light diffuser method) in my 150 gallon tank. One...

Hey everyone! I'm in the "planning" and "purchasing" phase of my first build. I'll be converting a 28 gallon (estimated) hexagon aquarium into a dart frog vivarium. As for my background, I'm familiar with the care and lifestyle of fish and reptiles - and now I'm taking the dive into...

Hello, I am about to start on the conversion of a large enclosure into a planted vivarium and I am having trouble deciding what substrate to use. I should preface this with saying that this is not an enclosure for a dart frog, but instead for a Boiga cynodon, an arboreal colubrid. I apologize...

Anyone have any experience with aquarium substrate? Recommendations and how to use? What about the stuff they sell at petsmart for planted tanks? Thanks!

Hello, Has any one ever mixed hydroton or a similar material into their substrate before placing on their false bottom? Good, bad, or negligible? Thanks, JA