Substrate

[Dron2124]

So i went to clean my tank today and there was some mold on the substrate. What could cause this? I am using coco fibers and had a tree in the substrate right were all the mold was could it be due to the tree or what?

 

[T-ReXx]

It's too wet in the cage. Coco is pretty quick to mold if it's kept too damp. There are a few options to correct this:

Dry out the cage. Mix the substrate up by hand every so often. I'd also consider putting in a drainage layer of Hydroton(expanded clay pellets).

Use Detrivores. If you put in a drainage layer and use live plants, introducing a colony of springtails can help keep things clean. Springtails will feed on mold and gecko droppings. I use them in my live tanks, and they do an excellent job of keeping things clean. They're so tiny most geckos won't eat them, and if they do they're not harmful.

Switch substrates. For my non-natural tanks, I use paper towels. It's not pretty, but it's easy and keeps things very clean.

Mix in an anti-fungal. Adding sphagnum moss or peat moss does a lot to cut down on mold as they have natural anti-fungal properties. In my crestie cages I use a layer of Hydroton, covered by a section of window screening covered by a 50/50 mix of coc fiber and peat moss, with a layer of orchid bark on top for looks. Once seeded with detrivores and with a couple of live plants(I use pothos, which are virtually impossible to kill) the only mantainance needed is a weekly wipe down of the glass and cage furniture.

 

[Dron2124]

i def want to keep the natural looking tank thats for sure. it would look horribale with a papertowel on the bottom. Even though joker will not touch the bottom of the tank i have not seen him go down past liek half the tank. Thank you for the advise on the substrate i am letting everythign dry now since i am done cleanign things and just keep an eye on the substrate then.