How do I make the floor of my tank more natural looking? (sand under tiles?)

[jschaf1]

Hey everyone,

I am always looking for ways to make my tank setup look even better and I feel like the one major asthetic flaw in my setup is that the floor of the tank does not look "natural" enough. I use repti carpet which I know has several advantages but it just doesn't look "real" enough and I would like to use something that looks a little more natural. In another thread someone mentioned using slate tiles on top of a layer of sand. Since slate tiles are very uneven the sand would help level things off plus may help with distributing heat transfer better. I thought it was a very interesting idea but I know alot of people here feel like sand should never be used under any circumstances.

My question is this. Is sand ok if it is used underneath tiles and is only peeking through the craks between slate tiles or any other type of tile? The surface of the floor would probably be covered 90-95% with actual tile and the sand would be visible only between craks. Would this kind of floor setup be ok?

If this kind of setup is ok what kind of sand and tiles would you guys recommend? And please don't burn me at the stake for asking about sand. Remember the surface would be mostly tile with the sand underneath to level things off and probably be visible only between the cracks of the tiles.

If anybody has already tried a similar setup please post some pics. I would love to see.

Here is a link to a thread I made with some pics of my current setup: http://geckoforums.net/showthread.php?t=53065

Thanks Guys!!!!

 

[Misstasha]

why are you wanting sand in your tank!?!?!

 

[Misstasha]

the only reason i put it in is to retain heat under the soil - you wont need it under the tile - i didn't do that!

 

[Tony C]

Washed play sand should be fine, you only need a thin layer to even out the tiles. If you use too much you may have trouble with heat transfer from your UTH. I use tile in my beardie cages, and just put a double layer of paper towel under the tile. It doesn't show and provides sufficient padding to protect the glass.

 

[jschaf1]

why are you wanting sand in your tank!?!?!

I am talking about sand UNDER slate tiles NOT sand only or sand on the top. The sand would be used to keep the slate tiles level since they tend to be very uneven and therefore would move around quite a bit.

the only reason i put it in is to retain heat under the soil - you wont need it under the tile - i didn't do that!

To clairfy in this topic thread I am NOT reffering to your setup which I am aware I also commented on today. I was reffering to someone else who mentioned they used slate tiles on top of sand.

Hope that clarifies the confusion.

 

[jschaf1]

Washed play sand should be fine, you only need a thin layer to even out the tiles. If you use too much you may have trouble with heat transfer from your UTH. I use tile in my beardie cages, and just put a double layer of paper towel under the tile. It doesn't show and provides sufficient padding to protect the glass.

Thanks! I didn't think about protecting the glass too. That is a good point.

If you use too much you may have trouble with heat transfer from your UTH.

I was wondering about that as well. Thanks!!!!!!

 

[Misstasha]

i did say you were refering to mine i was jus saying i did not do that! My tiles fit perfectly in my tank.. and its even. I didn't think about protecting the glass - I'll prolly put paper towel underneath the tile i have - but i wouldn't do sand... jus personal preference

 

[CYBERICK1]

Hey JS!

You are probably referring me... or to one post a did a few days ago... as far as my 2 cents go, I haven't had any problems with the sand between the stone cracks. Basically there are quite together each side by side and don't have that much space for sand to be exposed other than the space were 4 tiles come together... kinda hard to explain. I'll post you up some pics later on tonight when I get home to show you what I mean... that way you'll probably get an idea to give it a 'go' with it or not. :main_thumbsup:

(And yes, I did it to level the stones and to actually protect the glass... didn't go with paper towels 'cause it didn't "feel" right/safe to me... but that's just me! Purely personal preference... plus, I think if water gets accidentally spilled in the tank, I think sand will absorb the water much better than paper towel reducing the risk of stress cracks in a heated glass...)

 

[little98dime]

I use 12x12 slate tiles with washed play sand under them and have done so for all my Leos. All 3 of my females have no issues at all. The gaps in the tiles aren't very big and sand doesn't come up between them. I have noticed that the temps are WAY more stable than with carpet or other substrates.