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Naturalistic Vivarium (now includes pictures)

I got The Art of Keeping Snakes book today. Wow! It is sooo awesome! Highly recommended for anyone who is interested in a naturalistic vivarium setup. It is quite thorough and very well written.

So I had a couple things wrong with my substrate. The book suggests adding some substances to increase the surface area around the soil - anything small and pebbly - the book suggests natural unscented clay kitty litter and sand. I also found some crushed walnut shell substrate at the pet store that I plan on adding to the mix.

So basically the main components of the substrate are sphagnum peat moss and coconut husk, but small proportions of these other things should help out the humidity levels a bit and allow proper bioactive activation to occur.

I also picked up a couple live small plants and vines to add to the mix of silk plants. Again, with the goal of the live plants aiding in the bioactive process.
 
That looks great... Did you figure out your humidity problem? I was thinking that you could add a few small vent holes ( with screen material on them )on one side of the tank and a slightly larger hole on the opposite side with a small computer fan mounted to exterior side of it drawing air outward to create a small cross draft through viv. I know you have a divider, so you can do this to each side or just make a few small holes in the divider so all you need is one fan. They sell a universal ac/dc power cord at radio shack which has a adjustable amperage control so the fan speed / cross draft could be controlled to your liking.
 
@Hexadeci: Yes, those are accent marbles picked up from a local craft store - the only reason I am using them is because I am scared the bowls are too deep for baby corns. Once the baby corns get bigger I will either remove the marbles or move to a larger water dish and keep the marbles...


@GUS1: It is still a work in progress... I have not moved the snakes in yet (though I have let them have "play-time" in their new homes).

I added two 4" vent holes on each side - and covered them with these awesome vent screens.

Even with this, I still think I am I gonna have to add a fan to one of the vent holes to keep the humidity down. With the vent holes and without the fan, the humidity seems to settle around 80% - which is better than the 99% without the vent holes, but obviously, this is still too much.

When I open the glass doors, the humidity pretty much immediately comes under control - so I think a simple fan on one of the vent holes will do the trick. I have ordered at noiseless PC fan to use - hopefully this will do the trick.

One of the problems with the bioactive substrate, is that the bottom layer of the substrate has to remain constantly moist - while the top layer is allowed to dry out. The problem is that without much ventilation, this much moisture just builds up over time. If you are using a simple glass aquarium with a screen top, then this is not much of a problem. Unfortunately, these super enclosed PVC enclosures don't have as much ventilation as a screen top.

The good news is that once I get everything under control, it seems that these bioactive substrate vivariums have a self cleaning property - and seem to be sustainable for years at a time without the crazy chemical cleaning we normally use.
 
I like those vents. I'm sure you will get all bugs worked out soon. Looking great, keep us posted.
 
joann42 said:
I was going to say I just noticed you live in North Carolina and Im thinking you have a bit of humidity there anyways.
Is the cage for a Ball python your corns?
I have the opposite problem here.I have my Brazilian in a bin because I couldnt keep the humidity up enough in his tank(tanks arent the best for humid loving snakes).So I gave the tank to my son for his turtle.
I have a wood enclosure I built that is 4x2x2 that stands empty because I cant figure out how to get it to at least hold some humidity.
Click to expand...

If you seal the wood with latex based paint (or any kind of non-toxic releasing sealant) it will hold humidity. Unsealed wood just pulls moisture out. I made the cage for my frilled lizard and the only issue I have are with the lights, they tend to dry out the air. But if the lights are not on, humidity is around 60%.
 
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