150 Gallon tank with bio active substrate~*

[MasterOogway]

Master Oogways bio active tank is all done and he is having fun being a tortoise exploring & grazing.

 

[Rover15]

Looks great but what does it mean to have a bio active substrate? (Sorry for the dumb question but very curious)

 

[MasterOogway]

Thanks . Yes, I added bugs and worms for the clean up crew,

 

[Rover15]

Thanks . Yes, I added bugs and worms for the clean up crew,

What kind of bugs? I offer my yellow foot red wiggler once a week I used to take it out after half an hour of not eating it (I think my yellow foot is afraid of live worms :s) I believe there is 1-3 worms in the substrate currently however she might have ate them I won't know till I go to replacce it all.

Also are your plants in planters in the substrate or are they planted right in?

 

[Thalatte]

Bio active substrate means have ing correct bacteria and bugs available to breakdown waste, and fertilize/aerate the soil.
Earthworms, red wigglers, mealworms, spring tails, and beetles are all good choices for bugs.

 

[Rover15]

Bio active substrate means have ing correct bacteria and bugs available to breakdown waste, and fertilize/aerate the soil.
Earthworms, red wigglers, mealworms, spring tails, and beetles are all good choices for bugs.

Thank you. I know that meal worms become black beatle looking things and that they can harm torts. My yellow foot is only about 4 inches long so I never feed meal worms because I don't want them escaping and turning in to the black beatle and harming her. I assume when she is older and larger it would be fine.

 

[MasterOogway]

What kind of bugs? I offer my yellow foot red wiggler once a week I used to take it out after half an hour of not eating it (I think my yellow foot is afraid of live worms :s) I believe there is 1-3 worms in the substrate currently however she might have ate them I won't know till I go to replacce it all.

Also are your plants in planters in the substrate or are they planted right in?

Pill bugs, night crawlers & a few red worms. I did plant them right in the substrate. I also planted seeds that are growing fast.

 

[Rover15]

I've tried to find pill bugs to buy in canada and no luck so far, also I've left my plants in the planters for now till I finsh building a tort table that will last a few years right now she is just in a glass tank 36Lx18Wx15H

 

[Cowboy_Ken]

I have my plants planted both in the substrate as well as in planters. The plants they like to munch on I keep I planters. This way the plants last longer. Mainly trailing plants like ice plants or succulents.
For collecting sow/pill bugs yourself, try placing old, damp, pieces of wood in shaded places in bushes in the leaf litter. Keep it damp and check once a week. You may not find any until the weather warms, but if its warm enough to find worms, it should be warm enough for sow/pill bugs. I agree on not using meal worms loose in the enclosure. I use small mealworms to deflesh bones. They will eat protein. My two cents.

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Mealworms in a dish for the protein eating tortoises should be fine as long as you watch and don't let any get loose.

 

[Rover15]

I buy my wigglers 5.99 for 45+ but in the spring I'll look for the bugs.

 

[MasterOogway]

I buy my wigglers 5.99 for 45+ but in the spring I'll look for the bugs.

I had to buy my worms from Walmart. The winter is not the best time for a project like this Yesterday & today was warm in the burgh so I was able to round up some pill bugs. The temps are dropping again back to old man winter I am hoping the worms do there job and make the soil silky and clean. I don't know if I added enough worms. Its a learning process. Worms sound like a good idea for you dual purpose snack & clean up crew!

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Looks great but what does it mean to have a bio active substrate? (Sorry for the dumb question but very curious)

Not a dumb question I have learned not to long ago what a substrate was...newbie showing my colors. Bio means life so its a substate that is alive with living animals & organisims that all work together to clean everything from rotting material,feces, to bacteria.I got the idea from this forum so if you search bioactive you should come up with some past posts on the subject.When I searched it there were some great links to how & why of the benefits. I fell in love with the idea. Anyway I hope I explained it well. Like I said before I am a newbie and this is a learning for me. In the winter we are trying to make the tortoise in its natural state when we create the encloser so having the substate like what its like in the wild sounded like a good idea to me and it seems to be working for others who have paved the road.

 

[tyler0912]

B...B...B...But I Want It !!

 

[Rover15]

Your right it is a good idea I am a newbie to hands on experience have read about every book on yellow foots but it is nothing compared to this forum and the 1st hand knowledge.

I had wondered if it was safe to have worm/bugs in the seetups in doors worried that my yf would eat to much protien. I'm at a stand still with my tortoise table lots of idea's but I think I went to small but once it is bulit then I'll do some reseearch on Bio active substrate and spring isn't too far off to find bugs

Sorry if "highjacked" your thread

 

[tyler0912]

^^ If Your YF Wants Protein It Will Dig And Look For It. That's Just The Way It Is.

 

[MasterOogway]

Your right it is a good idea I am a newbie to hands on experience have read about every book on yellow foots but it is nothing compared to this forum and the 1st hand knowledge.

I had wondered if it was safe to have worm/bugs in the seetups in doors worried that my yf would eat to much protien. I'm at a stand still with my tortoise table lots of idea's but I think I went to small but once it is bulit then I'll do some reseearch on Bio active substrate and spring isn't too far off to find bugs

Sorry if "highjacked" your thread

You don't have to worry about highjacking my threaad. I enjoy tortoise talk! I know what you mean an outdoor enclosure is next on my list. Always something lol Looking foward to a system. One thing I have learned is learning never ends.

 

[Levi the Leopard]

does look nice. good job!

 

[MasterOogway]

Thank you!

 

[kathyth]

Your tank looks just wonderful!
This is a great thread!

 

[mattgrizzlybear]

Awesome! And plenty if room! Cool!

 

[MasterOogway]

Thanks everyone. I was up late last night so checked on the torts and found the night crawlers coming up. They were all back underground in the am ..That was cool to see so i thought i would share . I dont know if that is a nightly thing but i will be observing that to see if it is.

Also my cat taking a cat nap. No open tables here :/