Natural ATB Set-up?

[Adam98150]

In a good few weeks I'm looking to buy a 18 x 18 x 24 Exo Terra for my Tree Boa, and I'm looking to make it as natural as possible.

I couldn't find any coco panel large enough to fit an entire side of the tank (24 x 18 ), any ideas on where I could find huge pieces? Also, I'm looking at using live moss on some parts of the enclosure. On the sides possibly, the floor, and around the coconut hides. Which mosses are safe to use?

As for the substrate, what do you recommend? I was thinking eco earth but I'm not completely sure if that's okay with snakes.

For the lighting I'm going to use a 2% fluorescent, and a spot lamp which will provide the heat. How would I go about fitting the tube to the Exo Terra?

There's many more questions, but these will do for now. Pictures of amphibian set-ups would be appreciated, I've seen some awesome frog terrariums.

[Adam98150]

Ahh, I've found a shop which sells coco backgrounds in 50cm squares. They should be big enough to cover the entire three sides when the substrate is added.

A water fall is also going to be added. Here's an idea of how it's going to work.

My substrate will be pretty deep, so I'll go out and buy a large cork bark tube. This will the be sliced in half to create two pieces which are rounded - like a c. I'll press these into the sloped substrate so the water runs from top to bottom - because of the slope. I'll use a powerhead which has a tube attached to the outlet to power the stream. I'm still working on this . .

Edit: I knew I got the above idea from somewhere else, just found this. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MVd_8...eature=related
I recognise the name too.

[sharpstrain]

As for the substrate, what do you recommend? I was thinking eco earth but I'm not completely sure if that's okay with snakes.

For the lighting I'm going to use a 2% fluorescent, and a spot lamp which will provide the heat. How would I go about fitting the tube to the Exo Terra?

eco earth is ok - but be careful when feeding it has a tendancey to stick to food and can then be ingested.

Exoterra make hoods which can accept the compact uv tubes - this means that the light sits above the mesh and you also dont need a starter unit - you can also put a heat bulb in them - but not sure how high a wattage they take

[Adam98150]

Exoterra make hoods which can accept the compact uv tubes - this means that the light sits above the mesh and you also dont need a starter unit - you can also put a heat bulb in them - but not sure how high a wattage they take

I've just had a look at them, I would have thought that the compacts would be too bright for the snake? I've seen them in action and I can't look directly at them.
Not sure how much heat they produce as well, and they would have to be put on a stat since the hood covers half of the mesh.


I was thinking of buying a small starter unit and a 15" tube which would just sit on the mesh with a reflector, what do you reckon? I could then also put a heat lamp on the mesh since the tube wouldn't take up too much space.

eco earth is ok - but be careful when feeding it has a tendancey to stick to food and can then be ingested.

I'll make sure not to feed on the substrate, I usually put a few paper towels down or use tongs when feeding. Another question, would eco earth be ok for the plants? Or should I just use clean soil?

Also, are all Bromeliads and Orchids okay to use with a snake?