I bought the blocks of dehydrated substrate (not sure of the exact name as I don't have them right in front of me). But I was told by some reptile 'experts' at a store that it would help to increase humidity. I believe it's a coco based one. I added water to it in a bucket and let it sit and increase in size. I followed the directions, but there was so much excess water that I had to squeeze it out hand by hand. It took forever and it just seems like there would be an easier way to do this. Does any of this even make sense? Where did I go wrong? I will look tomorrow for the name of these blocks.
Rehydrated substrate- help! It was a mess!
- Thread starter Roy's Mom
- Start date
You used too much water initially. No big deal though, because it will evaporate out.
Make sure your enclosure is staying warm at night when adding humidity like this. You have a CHE on a thermostat?
Also, coir is very messy, as you are discovering, and this is why I don't recommend it for leopard or sulcata babies. Its not harmful or dangerous, its just a mess. Fine grade orchid bark works better in my experience and that is what I use for mine.
I have found if you use the amount of water recommended on the label it is indeed too much water. Have you considered trying peat moss? It is similar but doesn't need to be rehydrate. Just add water a little at a time until you get the consistency you want.
I have a 14 year old leopard and want to redo his hidebox. I read in one of the posts that coir helped the humidity, but you're right. It's SUPER messy. I definitely don't mind it, if that's what needs to be done. But I'm a beginner. I've got bulbs overhead and an electric heater. No timer yet. It's currently between 70-85.
I'm planning on copying your hidebox but a slightly smaller version. I found the mini oil heater online tonight. He gets outside in the sun almost daily. I am going to be honest here and say I'm not sure what the difference is between the CHE and the other heaters. Once I have the oil heater going, do I need additional heaters? I was thinking about making the enclosure large enough to place a heating matt on one end so that he can decide how much heat he wants and can alternate around the box. Thank you for the comments and suggestions. I've only been in this forum since Thursday and I'm trying to read as much as I can before I ask questions that have already been asked.
Great! Thank you. I will try that.
If you use coco coir you'll need to make a thick layer and hand pack it down. After a couple of weeks it settles in and becomes less messy, but I would never use that for an adult.
70 is too cold in humid conditions for a leopard. Don't let it drop below 80, day or night.
If we are talking about an insulated night box for outside, then the mini oil heater should be enough to maintain temperatures. Only your thermometer can answer that, and the answer will be dictated by your box design and construction. Nothing wrong with adding a Kane heat mat too.
At 14 years of age, your leopard doesn't require the humidity a baby requires. You would do fine with either cypress mulch or orchid bark in the tortoise's shelter.
I use coco coir for my leopards. I add just enough water to hydrate it. I also use a mini oil radiant heater in my 8 X 4 foot box. Even in below freezing temps my box stays over 80F. I also have a Kane mat in there.
I use a colander to scoop and press out any excess water in mine.
What about putting a layer of orchid bark or another recommended substrate on top of it to make it less messy for now and let it evaporate out?
Would that work?
What about putting a layer of orchid bark or another recommended substrate on top of it to make it less messy for now and let it evaporate out?
Would that work?
Do you put the Kane on top of the substrate?
The oil filled radiator type heater can be purchased at WallyWorld for a good inexpensive price. And if it fails to function whether from defect or from not meeting your heating needs, it's simple to return for a refund.
Here's a link I think…;
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Oil-Filled-Heater/53017084
Here's a link I think…;
https://www.walmart.com/ip/Oil-Filled-Heater/53017084
They have advertised a larger (?) one but it has a safety automatic shut off that I'm not comfortable with. The beauty of heating devices for reptiles is they can have the power interrupted and then when the power is restored it will "pickup" where it left off such as a light that is on, unplugged, plugged back in while still in the on position, and it is "still on".
A heater that has a built in fail safe off setting seems to me to be one that will not turn back on once the "safety switch" has been triggered. Hope this helps you out some.
I build a raised platform to mount the Kane mat to. This way I can have substrate just a bit lower than the mat, if that makes sense.
Theo.tortoise.lover.7
Member
Don't worry, its just a bit too much water. One thing you can do it out it on a cookie sheet and place it in the oven at 450 for a little bit, or just place it outside if it is sunny and warm out. Just spread it out so that it can dry. I really prefer these bricks, though, because they really do retain moisture and increase humidity. Just be careful about shell rot. The other thing that it good about the dehydrated bricks is that they are super cheap and you can store it pretty easily. But like some other people said, you probably don't need it.
Orchid bark is also a very good substrate, I use that as well. So is cypress mulch. I find that the orchid bark retains the best humidity if that is what you are looking for. Cypress mulch works really well also. I actually found that the cypress is better than orchid back because it is exponentially cleaner than orchid bark and especially eco earth. If you have a large tortoise, I would go with cypress mulch. Then orchid bark, and lastly coco fiber (the compressed bricks).
Leopards don't really get shell rot. Neither do sulcatas, it's mainly a RF concern. You can also buy the coconut coir loose in a bag that does not need to be hydrated in order to spread it around. Then add the warm water once it's in place.
Theo.tortoise.lover.7
Member
I though they get shell rot from cold, damp substrate. Either way, I prefer to hydrate the substrate myself because it is much cheaper, and I have done it enough to get it to the perfect dampness.
Cold damp substrate will cause illness or death. Leopards and sulcatas can live in 100% humidity and not get shell rot. They shouldn't live in 100%, it's not needed to be that high, but if it were and warm/hot to the right temps, not cold they would be fine.
I'm talking leopards and sulcatas only. RF would get shell rot and so would some others.
Theo.tortoise.lover.7
Member
Ok, that is very interesting. It is also interesting that RF's are prone to shell rot even though they are from the tropics. I wonder why?
It is weird. My guess would be they just don't live/stay on wet surfaces too long in the wild plus it's much more of an arid environment then what's in our indoor enclosures and the way we make a humid environment. They need and can deal with high humidity, they just can't live on wet substrate.
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