# Cheap alternative to Reptile soil? Top soil?



## Naultinus Elegans (Apr 9, 2021)

Just wondering if anyone knows if commercial stores like (homebase, b and w etc) sell small (25l) bags of soil (that are bioactively safe for reptiles?
It's beginning to get expensive using reptile soils.


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## RelicExotics (Jan 31, 2021)

I use sterile topsoil. Just make sure it hasn't got any fertilisers/manure etc in it. The Verve stuff from B&Q is good, but I think they started putting stuff in it. Wilco top soil was another option!


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## LiasisUK (Sep 30, 2019)

Potting compost is better than top soil, a fertiliser and pesticide free one. Top soil is incredibly rough and dusty and does not hold water very well, it's essentially made from ground up rocks rather than organic matter. 

You can also buy coir blocks very very cheap online, these are huge Coco Peat 5kg Blocks | Coco Peat Bricks In UK | Shop Online if you buy 4 or more they're super cheap. Mix it with potting soil if using live plants.


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## Naultinus Elegans (Apr 9, 2021)

LiasisUK said:


> Potting compost is better than top soil, a fertiliser and pesticide free one. Top soil is incredibly rough and dusty and does not hold water very well, it's essentially made from ground up rocks rather than organic matter.
> 
> You can also buy coir blocks very very cheap online, these are huge Coco Peat 5kg Blocks | Coco Peat Bricks In UK | Shop Online if you buy 4 or more they're super cheap. Mix it with potting soil if using live plants.


In the end I opted for this, what are your thoughts? It's organic which should mean no pesticides and it doesn't say anything about added fertiliser


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## Naultinus Elegans (Apr 9, 2021)

LiasisUK said:


> Potting compost is better than top soil, a fertiliser and pesticide free one. Top soil is incredibly rough and dusty and does not hold water very well, it's essentially made from ground up rocks rather than organic matter.
> 
> You can also buy coir blocks very very cheap online, these are huge Coco Peat 5kg Blocks | Coco Peat Bricks In UK | Shop Online if you buy 4 or more they're super cheap. Mix it with potting soil if using live plants.


The only thing is Coco coir is very nutrient poor and all my tanks are planted..


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## That Asian Water Monitor (Nov 9, 2021)

For my enclosure I went for 7 tonnes clean organic top-soil, 1 tonne clean play sand, 2 tonnes Orchid Bark and 1.5 tonnes coco-coir. Mixed them in covered with 120 litres of clean oak leaves and added a clean-up crew of isopods + springtails. The whole thing settled and was thriving within 3 weeks. It was drifting between sodden and dry for the first week before stablizing. 

Potting mix is to be avoided at all costs, they claim on the bags it is organic, but do some digging(so to speak), and you will find it is laden with goodies like "Round-Up" stuff. 

I will see if I can find some of the links to where I got my stuff.


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## That Asian Water Monitor (Nov 9, 2021)

Heres some of the stuff I got. The coir, E-bay should be okay, just be wary of the supercheap. I was burned by a scammer who sold me 1.5 tonnes...it all arrived, looked great, but then started to unpack it, found it to be very well contaminated with plastic and glass.

Some of the plants are potted while I find the best positions, others have already been planted. As you notice there is still some work to do on UV, climbing and basking artifacts, waterfall etc. All up, humidity is good, typically 65% - 90% with temps ranging 22-34C depending on elevation and location. It has a perfect thermal gradient. I generally hose it all down every couple of days with a mister nozzle. Works well. It is currently un-inhabited, I had it built for my late Salvator.

Hope this helps.

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## frogeyed (Nov 8, 2012)

Naultinus Elegans said:


> In the end I opted for this, what are your thoughts? It's organic which should mean no pesticides and it doesn't say anything about added fertiliser


You need to read the reviews on that product, I think it's one of the ones that Liasisuk was referring to.
There is some pretty awful stuff out there branded as topsoil, mainly from the larger DIY stores.
Try Levingtons Organic topsoil, it's peat free pure organic natural topsoil.
Completely fertilizer free, infact they recommend using a fertilizer if you are going to use it for plants.


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## ian14 (Jan 2, 2008)

Naultinus Elegans said:


> The only thing is Coco coir is very nutrient poor and all my tanks are planted..


Hence the advice to mix with potting compost.
That said, my crested gecko viv is live planted, with just coir as substrate, and the plants are thriving.


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## That Asian Water Monitor (Nov 9, 2021)

I put a post in earlier, but it is stuck in the mod que for some reason. Anyway, you need to look for this standard. "British Standard BS3882.2015 " and "fully conform to the Guidance in NHBC Standards Plus 2021 ".

That will guarantee it as clean.


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