# substrate for beardie viv



## metho (Feb 27, 2011)

hi looked on forums about using sand for viv a few suggest play sand from b&q been today to ours they dont do it but the nearest they had to fineish grained sand was kiln dried which is a light colour, do any of you think this might do,was going to put it in oven and heat it up same as ive done with all my rocks. plus not going to use full bottom of viv got flat stones to put down first. thanks


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## lewisking (Jan 30, 2010)

hiya , dont use the kiln dried , silver sand or sharp sand as these contain silica which when dry will harm your beardies lungs


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## metho (Feb 27, 2011)

hi thanks for the info can you suggest an alternative our reptile place got reptisand. Everything in place rocks etc just got to put substrate down will also av to ring other diy places


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## GeckoKingdom (Aug 26, 2010)

*Titles*

TILES 100% I would use for bearded dragons really easy to clean aswell and they cant get impacted


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## carpmandan (Feb 20, 2011)

metho said:


> hi thanks for the info can you suggest an alternative our reptile place got reptisand. Everything in place rocks etc just got to put substrate down will also av to ring other diy places


if you want to put sand in, and dont fancy being robbed by [email protected] etc, then Play Sand Buy Children's Play Sand - 15kg Bag at Argos.co.uk - Your Online Shop for Sand pits and sand. would be idle.

be sure however that your dragon doesnt eat too much if any, especially if your dragon is young.
personally i use lino flooring, got a massive slate effect off cut for £15, did both my tanks, and its wipe clean.


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## plmodel (Dec 11, 2010)

i'd reccommend *beech chips* 100%
not messy, all mess is on top, only needs to be cleaned out once a month, very cheap, and retaines enough heat to be useful, but not enough that your beardie will ever get too warm, and very low risk of impaction.


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## jools (Apr 4, 2009)

plmodel said:


> i'd reccommend *beech chips* 100%
> not messy, all mess is on top, only needs to be cleaned out once a month, very cheap, and retaines enough heat to be useful, but not enough that your beardie will ever get too warm, and very low risk of impaction.


I'm sorry but IMO beech chips are probaby the very worst substrate you could use for a beardie. The risk of impaction is there even with larger chips and if these are ingested they are VERY difficult and painful to pass. Beardies can sometimes get a mouthful of substrate when eating and they also lick items in their enclosure. They will also try to eat substrate if their supplementation is not adequate.
Beech chips are unhygienic as they absorb waste fluid and then harbour bacteria, viruses, parasites and fungi. They smell unless they are changed regularly. They are completely unnatural for a desert dwelling species. The feeder insects will hide in it. In the case of crickets that means that they are hidden through the day when your beardie wants to eat but they will emerge at night to bother the dragon.

If you really want to use a loose substrate (not recommended for beardies under 12 months old) then use a fine sand - play sand or dessert sand. Personally I think lino, tiles or slates make the best substrates.


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## plmodel (Dec 11, 2010)

jools said:


> They are completely unnatural for a desert dwelling species.


but they don't live on sand? bearded dragons are mostly on rocky, hard clay in the wild, not playsand. 
Beech chips don't collect bacteria if it's cleaned on a basic level every day. 

but, as i've said before, everyone has their own opinions on what is best, and what works for them.


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## jools (Apr 4, 2009)

plmodel said:


> *but they don't live on sand? bearded dragons are mostly on rocky, hard clay in the wild, not playsand. *
> Beech chips don't collect bacteria if it's cleaned on a basic level every day.
> 
> but, as i've said before, everyone has their own opinions on what is best, and what works for them.


I agree. This is why I recommended tiles, slate or lino. These would give a far more natural feel to them. They certainly don't live on beech chips and these have a far higher chance of causing an impaction than sand. I also hate sand but a lot of ppl like to use it as they like the "natural" appearance. But each to their own


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## mooshu (Mar 24, 2010)

jools said:


> They will also try to eat substrate if their supplementation is not adequate.


I have heard this before, I used to have my beardie on sand because I thought it was more natural. He used to lick it all the time but I dusted his livefood every day 5 time pure calcium and nutrobal on the other two days. I think the lick things to find out what they are!

Im planning on coverting my beardies viv soon and Im going to put excavator clay as substrate. This should dry and crack nicely and I'm going to sprinkle a bit of sand on top so it will be very natural for him. I'll let you know how it goes


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