# branches in humid habitat grows stuff?



## Estherta (Apr 23, 2014)

Hello!
I bought two branches from a shop (treated) and I noticed one day one of them had a weird thing on the middle. I washed it and "re-treated" and used it again and checked every day or couple of days and give it a rinse

The other day, I hadn't looked at it for 3 days and this was what it looked like when I picked it up to inspect!!!

I must add, the tub I have it in, is very humid (for a BRB) and this section of the branch in particular was touching the wet earth I have there. The earth had been changed only a week ago!! (I have been changing everything and cleaning the tub properly every 10/14 days, with daily clean ups too, washing the water bowl, scooping, and so on)

Being this my first snake and therefore first experience with equipment/decoration, is that normal, stuff growing on branches on humid habitats? I heard bacteria can grow, but that quickly? should I be changing the substrate more often?... I have tried to find plastic branches online to use that instead, but not much luck...


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## bigd_1 (May 31, 2011)

may be best to look in to doing a bio active substrate as there will eat the mold


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## Estherta (Apr 23, 2014)

Bio active substrate? Thanks, I will look into it, I don't think I have come across it yet ( I am very new at snake keeping)


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## bigd_1 (May 31, 2011)

Estherta said:


> Bio active substrate? Thanks, I will look into it, I don't think I have come across it yet ( I am very new at snake keeping)


 a bio active substrate has tropical springtails and tropical woodlice that will eat the mold and clen the substrate so will will not need to clen out just do spot cleans of the poop


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## CloudForest (Nov 27, 2013)

put some tropical springtails and ghost woodlice in there, they will eat lots of mould, 4-6weeks time with the right (high) humidity level and the mould should be well under control

for now you can just wipe off any excess mold and put the wood back - if the wood dries out, the cycle will start again (more mould will grow)

you can also mix equal parts spagnum moss, and top soil, with your current substrate (i use Coir/fine coconut husk), alongside the springtails and woodlice, this will create a bioactive substrate


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## Estherta (Apr 23, 2014)

Brilliant! Thank you for the advice and the detail cloudforest  springtails and ghost woodlice!, got it. ..:2thumb:. I thought I may have to forever be changing the substrate regularly, which I was ready to do, but this option is great!! I use at the moment earth ( bought from pet shop in a brick, not sure name, but i suspect is the main culprit for the bacteria) its always damp and BRB loves to burrow in it, i mix it with choir and some moss on top and in some hides. Just bought some coco husk because I read so many people use it with BRBs and seems a bit cheaper... Don't like it much though, but I bought loads now so ill use it.

Ill get shopping tomorrow to work on this bio substrate thing. Cheers! 

Love forums! I am learning so much here


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## bigd_1 (May 31, 2011)

Estherta said:


> Brilliant! Thank you for the advice and the detail cloudforest  springtails and ghost woodlice!, got it. ..:2thumb:. I thought I may have to forever be changing the substrate regularly, which I was ready to do, but this option is great!! I use at the moment earth ( bought from pet shop in a brick, not sure name, but i suspect is the main culprit for the bacteria) its always damp and BRB loves to burrow in it, i mix it with choir and some moss on top and in some hides. Just bought some coco husk because I read so many people use it with BRBs and seems a bit cheaper... Don't like it much though, but I bought loads now so ill use it.
> 
> Ill get shopping tomorrow to work on this bio substrate thing. Cheers!
> 
> Love forums! I am learning so much here


 you can get the bugs you need from www.*dartfrog*.co.uk and there in the live food bit :2thumb:


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## Estherta (Apr 23, 2014)

oh, oh, :gasp: so I checked yesterday night these woodlice and springtails and they are much bigger than I thought.. eww. 6mm? I was hoping they would be like 1mm at their biggest size! (I have a bit of a phobia with bugs)

I can really see the benefits though. I was reading this morning about it as well. I found an interesting website detailing an example of a bio substrate where they added other bugs to the mix too, and apparently they didn't even have to spot clean! the good bacteria would break it down in a day!... it also mentioned that animals on a bio substrate behave more naturally

So I am wondering, can it actually get out of hand? worried the bugs multiply and multiply and take over, but I think that is my phobia talking. Definitely something i am going to rehearse more the next few days...
E


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## CloudForest (Nov 27, 2013)

whether you have to spot clean or not, depends on the species, for a snake eating furry rodents, you will have to spot clean for fur as it cannot be digested by the snake or the cleaner crews

dont worry about the size of the cleaners, they like it dark and will mostly be hidden if its light enough for you to see them


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## Kazzle (Jul 6, 2010)

Forget all the expensive substrates, and the weird bugs. Just line the viv with newspaper, Costs nothing. Change it every few days depending on the humidity levels. Bought in substrates are generally expensive (pet shops are there to rip you off), and I have had a small snake die in the past due to swallowing beech chip when it was feeding, despite being told it was safe to use by the reptile shop. Bad mistake learnt the hard way!! 

Is the temperature high enough? If you are spraying the viv and the temperature is not high enough, this may be be why your branches are going mouldy, they are not being dried out quickly enough after you spray them. What temp's are the hot and cold end of the viv and how often are you spraying the viv? Can also make a difference if you spray the viv morning or evening. if you spray in the morning, the heat during the day will evaporate the water, increasing humidiy,if you spray at night when the heat levels drop you are more likely to have mould issues.


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## Estherta (Apr 23, 2014)

Thanks Kazzle.
Because it is BRB and young, I am aiming to keep humidity very high constantly (as per care sheet advice and other owners) so I don't let the substrate to dry completely and I spray twice day and night.. didn't think of not doing it at night. The temperature at the hottest 29.4 or below, only let it go to 30 or 30.5 when she is digesting...

I think another reason why I had mould so quickly is because when I used the brick of soil I added water to the whole brick and kept it on a bucket downstairs and I was changing it regularly but the soil was already collecting mould in the bicket before I added to the tub, probably...

Newspapers I could use use with another snake (I am after a second different one now  ) although I do like to use soil, coco husk, ark and the lot, they look beautiful and although the snake can't tell us, I am sure they must be more comfortable/happy with soil? ... I don't know, I imagine, maybe it is a misconception of mine.


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## CloudForest (Nov 27, 2013)

Kazzle said:


> Forget all the expensive substrates, and the weird bugs. Just line the viv with newspaper, Costs nothing. Change it every few days depending on the humidity levels. Bought in substrates are generally expensive (pet shops are there to rip you off), and I have had a small snake die in the past due to swallowing beech chip when it was feeding, despite being told it was safe to use by the reptile shop. Bad mistake learnt the hard way!!
> 
> Is the temperature high enough? If you are spraying the viv and the temperature is not high enough, this may be be why your branches are going mouldy, they are not being dried out quickly enough after you spray them. What temp's are the hot and cold end of the viv and how often are you spraying the viv? Can also make a difference if you spray the viv morning or evening. if you spray in the morning, the heat during the day will evaporate the water, increasing humidiy,if you spray at night when the heat levels drop you are more likely to have mould issues.


why would you want a Rainbow Boa's enclosure to dry out? dangerous advice. and wood which is allowed to dry out, infact will grow _more_ mold than saturated wood

with a properly setup bioactive enclosure you shouldnt have to spray more than once a month...none of this once a day business


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## Kazzle (Jul 6, 2010)

Estherta said:


> Thanks Kazzle.
> Because it is BRB and young, I am aiming to keep humidity very high constantly (as per care sheet advice and other owners) so I don't let the substrate to dry completely and I spray twice day and night.. didn't think of not doing it at night. The temperature at the hottest 29.4 or below, only let it go to 30 or 30.5 when she is digesting...
> 
> I think another reason why I had mould so quickly is because when I used the brick of soil I added water to the whole brick and kept it on a bucket downstairs and I was changing it regularly but the soil was already collecting mould in the bicket before I added to the tub, probably...
> ...


How old is yr BRB? Mines 9 months old so still small enough to be housed in a plastic box which helps keep humidity levels up. When he's bigger and moves into a wooden viv i will just provide him with a humidity box in the cooler end of the tank. A small box with a hole cut into the top for him to squeeze into and then filled with damp spagnun moss. If you want the viv to look pretty then you could always cover the box with some cork bark. I provide a humidity box for all of my snakes, even my kingsnakes who do not need high humidity, and all of my snakes love them. They regularly spend days curled up inside. I then just give the boas a spray in the morning and that's it. Just make sure that the moss is wrung out well when you put it in the box, don't leave it soaking wet. Unless they poo in the box, the moss can be re soaked again and again, I probably only change mine around once a month. 

With my Chinese Beauty which likes high humidity, as well as the humidity box, I have a large bowl of water right under the heat light, this can evaporate during the day then. Finally, the technique which seems to work the best is to have a bowl of water in the viv with a tiny hole in the bottom. During day the water drips out of the hole (the hole really has to be as small as possible), and soaks the newspaper. I do this with a snake housed in a glass viv so that it doesn't matter that the base of the viv is damp during day. Obviously this may be a problem in a wooden viv. Because the water seeps out slowly throughout the day it keep the humidity higher for longer, rather than just spraying and it drying fairly quickly after. This seems to work really well for me and the newspaper never gets soaked, just damp enough to keep the humidity levels up. Believe me, I've tried many ways to keep the humidity levels up in vivs over the years and it can be difficult! 

Sorry about the long rant but if my humidity levels drop with my female Chinese Beauty, (she's a fickle little thing),she does start to get breathing issues so it is important to find a technique that suits your snake and suits you. Good Luck.


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## Estherta (Apr 23, 2014)

No, that is fine! thank you for sharing how you set up the tubs for humidity Kazzle 

I already have a humidity box with sphagnum moss, but the whole tub has high humidity, well, the hygrometer tells me about 80% but I really think there is more. I can see the condensation from outside. I moved with my hands the substrate every day after I scoop for waste, just to mix it an air the sustrate and to avoid it getting soggy at the bottom (which it doesn't) I keep it nice and damp and try to avoid getting too wet. She is only 6 months old and I first had her on a very low tub but since they like to climb i transfer her to taller tub and put branches in it and that is when I started seeing mould!!. I have plenty of hides as I hear sometimes they get stress if habitat too large...

Regarding bugs, if any of you who use them are still around in this forum, I have one more question it has been on my mind. If there any risk if the snake swallows bugs accidentally? ... I just can imagine her with her tongue exploring on the branches and some of the bugs being near her and she eating them. I assume they are harmless for snakes to swallow them?... that is just now I think the only thing stopping me from giving a bio-active substrate a go


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## Estherta (Apr 23, 2014)

Hmmm, so in the end I bought springtales and added them to the substrate of my BRB enclosure (nothing else at the moment, just springtales)

For those of you who have springtales added to the substrate I have a question:
Do yours constantly appear on the water bowl? i have an average of 2 per day appearing in the "swimming pool" and the drinking bowl. I am wondering if it is normal?...


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## CloudForest (Nov 27, 2013)

Estherta said:


> Hmmm, so in the end I bought springtales and added them to the substrate of my BRB enclosure (nothing else at the moment, just springtales)
> 
> For those of you who have springtales added to the substrate I have a question:
> Do yours constantly appear on the water bowl? i have an average of 2 per day appearing in the "swimming pool" and the drinking bowl. I am wondering if it is normal?...


yeah dont worry about it, its inevitable


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