# Planted carpet python vivarium help please



## southpython (Feb 18, 2010)

Right, ive decided to sort my carpets viv out, im using a ceramic so no heatmat.

Heres my plan soo far:

use a paint brush and cover the back and sides of the vivs with superglue, then get a bag of bark and add until the back and sides are completely covered.

Add bark to the bottom of the viv.

add about 4 live plants into the viv, nice plants and a climbing one would be nice. what species should i use ?

I was also going to add about 20 live woodlice into the viv to help clean stuff.

hows this sound ?

oh and ill have 3 peices of bamboo going accross the viv for the carpet to hang on.


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## bw89 (Jan 11, 2010)

sounds good, with live plants i just go to the garden centre and ask if they have any plants that havent been treated with a pesticide or anything, also ask if any are poisonous, the ones that arent are okay to use. I would suggest though that you get strong ones as your carpet will indefinetely crush them as he climbs. Some small flower shops are good for exotic indoor plants.

Another thing, make sure your Carpet cant physically touch the ceramic, or it will burn him.


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## pirez (May 3, 2009)

Have a look on the dartfrog website, they have really good plants.


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## southpython (Feb 18, 2010)

Thanks guys, im also worried about the plants not living due to lack of UV, because im sure the lighting in the room will not give of enough/eny uv. and yeah ill get some robust plants that are not likely to be crushed or broken cause im sure the plants will be about 4-6 pound each. 

Yeah and the carpets got a bulb guard, i keep alot of snakes and i know what im doing but its good of you to check as if i wasnt exsperienced then the snake could get burnt.
:2thumb:


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## cbarnes1987 (Feb 2, 2010)

Not dissing you but... I give any plants in there a week, still hope it works for you... Would love to see the end result :2thumb:


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## bw89 (Jan 11, 2010)

southpython said:


> Thanks guys, im also worried about the plants not living due to lack of UV, because im sure the lighting in the room will not give of enough/eny uv. and yeah ill get some robust plants that are not likely to be crushed or broken cause im sure the plants will be about 4-6 pound each.
> 
> Yeah and the carpets got a bulb guard, i keep alot of snakes and i know what im doing but its good of you to check as if i wasnt exsperienced then the snake could get burnt.
> :2thumb:


I just thought id check with the bulb guard :lol2:. Indoor plants wouldnt get any uv in your frontroom so i assume they would be fine in a viv. I have kept plants in vivs without uv and some do well, others dont. Maybe a sales person at the shop you buy from could help with a plant that would not require uv. a lot of plants are cheap so theres no real harm in trying, if they die get rid of them and replace them if you (or your python) enjoyed the plants. 
Good luck


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## southpython (Feb 18, 2010)

cbarnes1987 said:


> Not dissing you but... I give any plants in there a week, still hope it works for you... Would love to see the end result :2thumb:


Yeah i thought that, but as said above. plants wouldnt get uv from a front room. Ill give it a shot enyways : victory: 

cheers


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## southpython (Feb 18, 2010)

bw89 said:


> I just thought id check with the bulb guard :lol2:. Indoor plants wouldnt get any uv in your frontroom so i assume they would be fine in a viv. I have kept plants in vivs without uv and some do well, others dont. Maybe a sales person at the shop you buy from could help with a plant that would not require uv. a lot of plants are cheap so theres no real harm in trying, if they die get rid of them and replace them if you (or your python) enjoyed the plants.
> Good luck


Thanks soo much, youve been a great help. yeah ill test the plants in there. thanks mate. ill talk to the sales guy :no1:


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## bw89 (Jan 11, 2010)

No probs. Like i say there so harm in giving it a try, i hope it goes well for you.


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## cbarnes1987 (Feb 2, 2010)

southpython said:


> Yeah i thought that, but as said above. plants wouldnt get uv from a front room. Ill give it a shot enyways : victory:
> 
> cheers


No sorry, I meant the snake crushing them. I doubt the uv should beca huge issue... Like I say though good luck... Oh and don't forget PICS!:2thumb:


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## southpython (Feb 18, 2010)

Cheers chaps. ill be working on it this weekend.

if i add the woodlice will they eat the poo and keep stuff clean?

or should i add night crawler ( worm things? ) to mix up the orchid bark at the bottom?

Night crawlers are used a fishing bait arnt they? so i could get them at my local fishing shop?

Thanks guys :no1:


after this viv ill be doing my false water cobras viv with a mini pond/waterdish with a filter so its like a moving stream round the viv.

woop, something for me to do :lol2:


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## xautomaticflowersx (Sep 7, 2009)

southpython said:


> Yeah i thought that, but as said above. plants wouldnt get uv from a front room. Ill give it a shot enyways : victory:
> 
> cheers


Indoor plants don't get UV*B *as it doesn't pass through glass, but they still need UV*A* (visible light) in order to photosynthesise. Most indoor plants are placed near windows or under strip lighting and since a vivarium is a dark box you'll need a light in there of some kind. Such as a fluorescent tube (with a guard as they get very hot on the surface). This means you'll need to provide basking areas away from the light so that the snake feels covered and secure and does not stress out.

I wouldn't bother with inverts in the substrate for snakes... when they do a large poo/pee you pretty much would need to do a full clean out anyway. Besides I don't think that inverts would be able to break down a large snake poo very quickly, so it would get pretty gross in there for the snake in question. It's not like a tank with a gecko or something in it which does tiny poos... snake poo is comparitively enormous. I would also be concerned about them bothering the snake as carpets do sometimes go to the ground.

Which brings me to how you're planning on planting it out. If you're planning on planting them in the substrate at the bottom of the viv then I honestly wouldn't bother... you're going to need to be able to clean it out properly when the snake defecates, which is going to mean removing large amounts of the substrate and replacing it. This will ruin the root mass of any plants in the viv and probably subsequently kill them. Or at least make them pretty sickly looking.

You could maybe use hanging plants in raised containers... possibly attaching the containers to the sides of the viv, with the plants spilling out over branches etc. This will leave the substrate on the floor purely as a decorative feature and will therefore be far more hygeinic. Plus the trailing plants will look attractive and provide areas of cover for the snake. You could use species of spider plant as they thrive when left to dry out almost completely before watering. You don't want anything that will raise the humidity too much with frequent watering as carpets don't require anything above about 60% (room humidity).

One last thing is the use of superglue... it' produces some extremely nasty fumes and you can only usually buy it in tiny tubes so you'd spend a fortune on it and it may well be toxic. You could use black aquarium sealant instead as it's safe for fish, amphibians and reptiles once cured.

Other than that, best of luck. :lol2:


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## bw89 (Jan 11, 2010)

xautomaticflowersx said:


> Indoor plants don't get UV*B *as it doesn't pass through glass, but they still need UV*A* (visible light) in order to photosynthesise. Most indoor plants are placed near windows or under strip lighting and since a vivarium is a dark box you'll need a light in there of some kind. Such as a fluorescent tube (with a guard as they get very hot on the surface). This means you'll need to provide basking areas away from the light so that the snake feels covered and secure and does not stress out.
> 
> I wouldn't bother with inverts in the substrate for snakes... when they do a large poo/pee you pretty much would need to do a full clean out anyway. Besides I don't think that inverts would be able to break down a large snake poo very quickly, so it would get pretty gross in there for the snake in question. It's not like a tank with a gecko or something in it which does tiny poos... snake poo is comparitively enormous. I would also be concerned about them bothering the snake as carpets do sometimes go to the ground.
> 
> ...


That doesnt explain how i have been able to keep plants in vivs with no lights, my vivs arent dark boxes and even with no lights in the vivs they arent that dark. I mean light still gets through the glass.
When i planted plants in my vivs i planted them in pots and the substrate went around the pot. When i wanted to clean the vivarium i would take the potted plant out, clean, and then put it back in again.
I would recommend aquarium sealent too, just because we know it is safe and relatively cheap compared to super glue.


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