Eco Earth and impactation

[Adinar]

Today I decided that I am going to be upgrading out 3 cresties to a new 10 gallon tank since the 2 older ones are growing rapidly. Normally I wouldn't consider a loose substrate for them but I have yet to hear anything about impactation and them. Normally I do take them out of their tank and feed them in critter keepers, so wouldn't be too worried about them eatting it. Out youngest of the three though is still fairly small. About 3 and a half inches long from the tip of his nose to the tip of his tail. (Give or take since he was being a bugger when I was measuring him) Is this too young to have him on eco earth? And more importantly, is there an extremly high risk for impactation for all of them if kept on this?

 

[Valley Reptiles]

If you pack it down so it's not loose it should be fine.
I use to keep all my babies on eco earth but changed to paper towels just because it was easier.

 

[acpart]

I've had my crestie on eco earth since he was tiny. He is in a planted tank and there's sphagnum moss on top of the eco earth, also a half buried water dish and a hide. There's not much space for him to eat the eco earth and he spends most of his time above the ground level anyway.

ALiza

 

[Adinar]

Ooh, moss huh? I might have to look into that. Up until this point they've been in a critter keeper with papertowel, but since I was going to move them into something bigger, I want a little more impressive enclosure.

Thanks a bunch for replies.

 

[leoman777]

for my crestie i have paper towel and then some moss over it

 

[biggiy05]

I've had my crestie on eco earth since he was tiny. He is in a planted tank and there's sphagnum moss on top of the eco earth, also a half buried water dish and a hide. There's not much space for him to eat the eco earth and he spends most of his time above the ground level anyway.

ALiza

Aliza that's a great idea. I've got some plants ordered for my crestie. I'm buying some hides for my new leo so I think I'll order some moss too.

Did you just say it on top of the eco earth and it begins to stick on it's own or what? I know mine likes to go in one corner so I'll leave that as eco earth since it's easier to scoop. What plants do you have?

 

[acpart]

I'm using an exo-terra 12x12x18. I made the water dish and hide out of ceramics. The water dish is in the back right corner and is partially buried so only about 1/4" of the sides stick up. The hide is like a half cylindar and just sits on the bottom of the cage on the left. I got one of those fake vine things and twisted it up and around so the crestie has some place to climb. Then I got a split leaf fern from Black Jungle (native to New Caledonia) and it winds around the fake vine. Pothos is good, and I have a bromiliad in there but it was transplanted from another tank and isn't doing so well. I got some of those pill bugs (roly polys that close up into a gray ball if you bother them) from the back yard and put them in there to help eat the poop. I rarely see them, but they have definitely multiplied. The nice thing is that I haven't cleaned out the tank since I set it up because it's pretty self sustaining.

Aliza