# Need Some Ideas - Corn Viv Decor



## Chance (Jun 14, 2008)

Hey All,

I have decided that because Dixie is my special little lady I have bought her a 30x15x15 viv that should last her a couple of years. (my mum is picking it up tonight lol).

She's in her RUB at the moment and seems happy enough in there. I am therefore thinking about doing a really good natural corn habitat in her viv. I just want some ideas.

So if y'all wouldn't mind throwing your ideas/builds/criticisms whatever into the pot I'd be very grateful! I'm ideally wanting to go for as close to the natural corn habitat as possible.

Cheers


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## Chance (Jun 14, 2008)

I know they have a relatively varied range of habitats so I just wondered which would be easiest to maintain and which will look the most appealing whilst being natural.

Fanks!


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## skilzo (Mar 16, 2013)

I was going to make a thread about this as well because mines is going into the viv once the beardie is sorted so saves me doing it thanks


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## Chance (Jun 14, 2008)

skilzo said:


> I was going to make a thread about this as well because mines is going into the viv once the beardie is sorted so saves me doing it thanks


Lol no problem. Lets hope people have got some cool ideas?


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## tomcannon (Jan 2, 2008)

Are we talking a natural rock background or shelves and stuff?

With celotex or kingspan you could create a great background. Take a look at Dave's (my_shed) gorilla glue experiment thread. Similar would be great for a corn. You could create removable hides and all for it too.


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## Chance (Jun 14, 2008)

I was thinking trying to do a natural maybe forest floor type habitat with an 'open grassland' end?

What do you reckon?


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## tomcannon (Jan 2, 2008)

Chance said:


> I was thinking trying to do a natural maybe forest floor type habitat with an 'open grassland' end?
> 
> What do you reckon?


That would be fairly simple depending how complex you wanted it. You can have a forest area on one side with leaf litter and soil substrate. Decor could be as simple as branches and stuff or you could even make a fake tree. I'm currently doing this. I've used various wiring hot glued together to make the right shape and currently covering it in pva and newspaper. Then it'll be painted. You could make one like this if it needed to be removable but if it was built in to the viv then kingspan would be fine. Or a curved cork bark. There's quite a few options for this side. 

Then the grassland area should again be fairly simple. Use either real rocks or kingspan rocks, you could make these as hides. Decorate with fake plants and grasses. 

I'll get some pics up of the tree when it start to take shape more.


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## Chance (Jun 14, 2008)

tomcannon said:


> That would be fairly simple depending how complex you wanted it. You can have a forest area on one side with leaf litter and soil substrate. Decor could be as simple as branches and stuff or you could even make a fake tree. I'm currently doing this. I've used various wiring hot glued together to make the right shape and currently covering it in pva and newspaper. Then it'll be painted. You could make one like this if it needed to be removable but if it was built in to the viv then kingspan would be fine. Or a curved cork bark. There's quite a few options for this side.
> 
> Then the grassland area should again be fairly simple. Use either real rocks or kingspan rocks, you could make these as hides. Decorate with fake plants and grasses.
> 
> I'll get some pics up of the tree when it start to take shape more.


Sounds like a good idea! I will look forward to pics of the tree. I would ideally like components to be removable just in case. When I built my fake rock for the baby beardies it was all in one piece and when one got behind it I had to cut it up to get the begger out!

:lol2:


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## tomcannon (Jan 2, 2008)

Haha. Removability would be ideal but in most cases I find it just isn't possible. Not to get the full affect in my opinion anyway. None of my builds are removable for this reason although I am trying my best to make as many things removable as possible. In my latest build the basking rock is removable as the hide is below it and I am hoping this tree will too be removable... Not sure how yet. 

I'll grab a pic of the tree now for inspiration but it really isn't anything special yet, only started it yesterday.


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## tomcannon (Jan 2, 2008)

Ok so the tree...

Here's the general framework. Unfortunately I got carried away and have no pics of it as just wiring or being built but you get the idea. 










Another angle...










And after a bit more PVA'ing...










I don't know how it'll turn out in the end but its looking ok I think so far. The painting will make/break it.


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## Chance (Jun 14, 2008)

Its going to look pretty good I reckon!

I read a really interesting how-to thing and I think I'm going to try and follow it. It will be a large chunk of what looks like the trunk of a tree with three main roots to incorporate a cool hide at that end. So it'll be like a cross section as if the tree has grown through the viv walls if you know what I mean?

It might have a couple of low-hanging branches for her to climb. Then the water bowl will be in the middle to sort of section it off as it goes into grassland where she will have a basking rock (not that she'll use it but hey).

There will be a big rock in the corner at the warm end which will incorporate a warm hide for her.

Leaves on the flooring at the woodland end and fake grasses for the other.

Sound any good?


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## tomcannon (Jan 2, 2008)

Chance said:


> Its going to look pretty good I reckon!
> 
> I read a really interesting how-to thing and I think I'm going to try and follow it. It will be a large chunk of what looks like the trunk of a tree with three main roots to incorporate a cool hide at that end. So it'll be like a cross section as if the tree has grown through the viv walls if you know what I mean?
> 
> ...


That's exactly what I had pictured when I was describing it at the start. You could try a cork bark bent in a half circle as the tree. I think it was Dave again that did this is one if his recent planted vivs. Looks ace.


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## Chance (Jun 14, 2008)

tomcannon said:


> That's exactly what I had pictured when I was describing it at the start. You could try a cork bark bent in a half circle as the tree. I think it was Dave again that did this is one if his recent planted vivs. Looks ace.


Yeah I've been googling all different types of materials. Obviously if I built one out of poly or kingspan I could make it much more to my own spec including the incorporated hide so I might try that. Will have to see. 

As I said she can stay in her RUB til I have decided what to do with the viv :2thumb:


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## lupi lou (Mar 24, 2013)

Sounds like your viv will look great, I've been searching for ages trying to find a Forrest design that I like for my corns. Here's what I've done so far they are still very much a work in progress:



















I have got some more branches to go in to add some height for them 
and once I find some thing I like I will have a more natural looking background for them.


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## ChelsNLuke (Jun 23, 2012)

Those traily plants are amazing we get ours from dunelm mill so cheap and they work well, we have some of the exspensive exo terra ones too because they were on sale for a pound at our local reptile shop but you can't tell the difference
-Chels


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## my_shed (Jan 5, 2011)

I use a few artificial ferns and a dark coloured substrate in my corn snake vivs, with rock backgrounds and a few branches to accent it. The green ferns stand out well against the background and the substrate, and the snakes stand out against the whole lot. They look like a woodland area around a rock outcrop, where the trees thin just enough to allow a few ferns to grow. No pics i'm afraid (at work until Saturday now  ) but I hope this gives you some ideas.

Dave


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## Marwolaeth (Oct 29, 2012)

Thrasops.

"Now, I'm not so arrogant as to say there's a right way and a wrong way to keep Corn Snakes, as hundreds of people can attest they do very well with less pomp, but I thought it would be nice to talk about the alternative to a RUB or 36" long, 15" tall viv...

The setup I used to keep my 1.2 trio of adult Carolinas was in an AX48 (48" long, 24" wide, 48" high). Having two females to one male goes a long way toward spreading any amorous intentions he may have between them! Also, giving them such a large enclosure means they can easily get out of his way if they are not interested in his advances without becoming stressed by continual harassment.

I kept them like this for a few years now and they reliably produced just one clutch each a year, it seems the females are well able to regulate how often they want to breed!

The enclosure itself was based on a North American woodland theme, with three large tree trunks (and I mean tree trunks, not branches - each is thicker than my thigh) running vertically from top to bottom. They have plenty of bark left on them and it was awesome to see the snakes scaling them effortlessly! It also incorporates a deep loam/sand/orchid bark mix with a scattering of pine needles, and some large, flat rocks arranged upon one another as hides and partially buried to create a series of rock crevices.

With this kind of enclosure it's the little details that stand out - don't forget to add bits of root and branches protruding from beneath the rocks to look like roots (it gives a "reason" for there to be cracks and holes in the rock!)

As with all my vivariums, I provided full lighting for the snakes, a bank of 2x Hagen Life-Glo 2 Fluorescents, a Repti-Glo 10.0 and a Repti-Glo 2.0 (because the setup was so tall, the extra two lights and reflectors were needed so that enough light reached the bottom). This made the enclosure very bright and airy up top, but the presence of the trunks also left some quite shadowy, darkened areas as well. The snakes enjoyed basking for a few hours a day, and then tended to return to the floor of the terrarium until late afternoon. They became active again while before lights out for another roam and a bask, before spending most of the night roaming around in the dark.

Heating was provided via a localised spotlamp, and therefore the temps in the viv ranged from just under 23C on the bottom, to 28C at the top by the lights, and just over 30C at the basking spot. This big temperature gradient over a large area gave the snakes ample choice to pick out their preferred temperature and indeed it was great to see them moving up and down throughout the day. At night the temps are allowed to fall to room temperature (which remains a constant 22-23C in Spring and Summer anyway).

I really, really recommend trying this method of keeping Corns, it has reinvigorated the species completely for me and I spent more time sitting and watching their enclosure than pretty much any other (except the Thrasops jacksoni and some lacertids of course!)."


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## skilzo (Mar 16, 2013)

Marwolaeth said:


> Thrasops.
> 
> "Now, I'm not so arrogant as to say there's a right way and a wrong way to keep Corn Snakes, as hundreds of people can attest they do very well with less pomp, but I thought it would be nice to talk about the alternative to a RUB or 36" long, 15" tall viv...
> 
> ...


Have you got any pictures of your set up?


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## Marwolaeth (Oct 29, 2012)

I was just quoting that bloke (Reptile Forums - View Profile: Thrasops) that wrote it. It'd be worth your while PMing him about it . He really knows his Onions .


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## lupi lou (Mar 24, 2013)

If I remember right that viv has been dismantled at the minuet as he is redoing all of his viv's. There's a nice big thread in the snake section where he's detailing each build he does. Think the corn's viv's will be one of the last he's doing but if the other pictures are anything to go by it will look fab. 

Can't seem to find the actual thread with the search function but its called:
Naturalistic vivaria for snakes (with fake rock walls) a "how?" and "why?" Guide


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## Marwolaeth (Oct 29, 2012)

http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/forums/snakes/878380-naturalistic-snake-enclosures-fake-walls.html


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## creg (Jun 10, 2012)

i hope he doesn't mind me posting these. im currently having a corn snake biotope made by ddreptiles and he sent me these pics of previous ones hes made..


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