2 male cats live with me and my grownup children. Every reptile is illegal in my country. Only ever seen reptiles on TV or UA-cam... still watch and comment.
i don't have any reptiles or inverts yet, but ive had great success with lightly crushing the clay balls, to massively increase the surface area, this has worked amazingly for a hybrid hydroponic setup ive been running with sensitive veggies and herbs.
Kiri N nice! I hope I can get a nice ball python! I honestly don’t care if mine will be cool looking I just want a nice ball python. I will update you once I come back.
I said the same thing came back with a female pied ball python, a female tangerine leopard gecko, a mack snow leopard gecko, a mango bearded dragon and a tegu
Emily setting up some cages: alright this is how you do this/that The people who disliked the video: cages are weird I don’t like this stick. DISLIKED!! Me: oooooooooooooohh I like that dirt it’s nice I want it.
Peat is an amazing thing! Peat at the bottom of the bog is, sometimes, anaerobic, meaning it contains no oxygen and therefore no bacteria.When digging for construction, workers in Britain and Scotland discovered the absolutely remarkably preserved remains of Iron Age Celts that had been sacrificed to the bog by ancient druids. This was my thesis in college. You could say peat moss...grew on me. (yeaaaaaaahhhhhh)
I'd love to read up on this, we tend to make our own Compost or buy from a local green shop (their Compost is primarily food waste) so I had no idea about peat moss!
I didn’t know Peat moss was bad for the environment! I will change to a different soil when I run out!! Edit: I meant Peat Moss harvesting is bad for the environment, not the Peat Moss itself
Have you considered looking into Serpadesigns or Ant Canada? They both do some amazing Bioactive works on their channels which could definitely give you some inspiration for your displays at the new building. Best of luck Emily, and have a great 2020! Edit: The Substrate mix that Sepra uses is 1 Part Coco Fiber, 1 Part Orchid Bark, 1 Part Charcoal, 2 Parts Sphagnum Moss and 0.5-1 part sand. This seems pretty similar to what you used, so I imagine you'll have good results.
I didn't read this first, but I also suggested Ants Canada! I don't plan on keeping ants any more than I plan to keep snakes, but I find both channels fascinating. I have watched 1-2 Serpadesigns videos and thought they were good, but I decided to limit my pet channels to just Snake Discovery and Ants Canada.
@@shadodragonette Same with me, only we do have 1 5 lined skink and 3 leopard gecko's. My 4 year old wants a snake but Grandma is scared of snakes. She loved watch Snake Discovery.
I'm not an expert by any means but I remember hearing in other bioactive tutorials that it's a good idea to let the tank sit by itself for around a month or so before introducing the reptile so that the bacteria and cleanup crew has time to establish itself. Otherwise the reptile may introduce more waste than the rest of the tank can keep up with. That's just something I've seen people say, at least. If you and Ed are also new to bioactive setups then this may be something to look into further.
This is why she squized out aquarium filter, since aquarium filter already has an established colony of bacteria and you simply just transfer it over to another tank. Thats why she said its a quick start
I’d think that it depends on specifics, if I had a large colony of isopods and spring tails and start with adding the colony of bacteria I’d imagine you’d have to leave this for very little time for it to keep up. And a set up should sit for a couple days min to make sure your humidity and temp are stable and correct for your animals needs. So if you did that I think it would be fine to add animal almost immediately
I Swear im not stalking your channel its just luck! But that being said, Love your channel!! Edit: Also, the video so far is so useful, im looking to get a reptile sometime and these videos are a lifesaver!
i'd love to see a bioactive enclosure specifically for ball pythons! also - any thoughts about bioactives without false bottoms? i've seen a few people make them so they can still use heat mats, but i'd love to hear yalls opinion on this!
Heat mats are not a good heat source. A halogen flood bulb connected to a dimmer/dimming thermostat is the most natural and beneficial option during the day. They produce infrared A and B like the sun, heat that penetrates deep into the skin tissue and heats them far more effectively than heat mats. Whereas heat mats only produce IRC, which only heats the surface of their skin. Ceramic heat emitters are good for nighttime heat.
Rabbit poop is really nutritious for plants and small insects. You can grow vegetables in 100% pure rabbit manure and since my father has started spreading it on our property we've seen many mushrooms grow that we had never seen before. Some of wich were edible and very tasty like the horse mushroom. I can't say for sure but I wouldnt be suprised if it was as good as peat moss. So I think this would be a potential substitute, just find a breeder or a friend with a rabbit pet. I was suposed to sell the manure produced by my rabbitry but my father really wanted to use it himself XD guess I'll have to wait until he doesnt need it anymore.
Love this video! Quick question re the experiment: Will the different sizes of the chameleons (small vs big) possibly affect the results? Like, if the smaller chameleon produces less feces will the good bacteria have less to eat? Or if the larger produces too much, could the enclosure get dirtier?
The size won't really matter, at least I think not, but you do have a good point. Both still need upkeep but with the amount of bacteria and things in there they should stay equally clean, but I think the leaves in the smaller one's enclosure might disappear faster
Keelia Silvis there would technically be a difference due to, as you mentioned, less food consumed and less feces produced, but it would be so minute it wouldn’t be noticeable. Very good question tho
I don't know how active false chameleons are but I've compared the growth rate of the same plants in my baby tank vs the adult crested gecko tank and because my oldie loves jumping and crushing plants, they don't do as well as the baby tank. And the feces does make a difference as well.
The clay balls look like cocoa puffs! Lol 😜 and who could watch Emily and be like I dislike this! This sweet funny smart girl I dislike it. People are weird
I thought they were acorns at first, and wondered how that would work for the lowest layer. I can’t tell you how glad I am that they weren’t something that would degrade like acorns!
In re to the latter part of your comment: I believe they’re people who are jealous of this wonderful channel’s popularity and love to dislike everything they upload
There are springtails in the soil naturally in my area, and there are Rollie pollies here too, so I usually just wake some dirt from behind my garage and use that in my enclosures Toads do sometimes eat the Rollie pollies though
That’s real handy! I was about to mention taking care with the material and possible contaminants in the soil, but I suppose the springtails and the microorganisms would help clean it.
Once its established you shouldn't have to clean or mess with the enclosure ever again unless there's issues like plants dying or you just don't like the way it looks. The point of going bioactive is to have a completely self sustaining environment like outside. You of course would have to make sure you have enough food sources for the isopods and springtails and you may have to add more of those guys in if you notice they aren't breeding or you don't have as many as you should, but otherwise it shouldn't have to be cleaned or anything.
No views. 64 likes and 8 comments. Makes a lot of sense youtube 😂 btw love the videos. Im a big fan of yours. Thanks for making very good eductional videos for all of us 😁😁
Hi Emily, I was wondering if you could reply to me when your business is done because I would love to come when your there! I really want to meet you! I recently got a crested gecko and will soon get a snake, this is all because of you! You got me to love reptiles and now my mom is getting into reptiles too (still working on snakes though)
Could you do a video for setting up a bioactive vivarium for a woma? As I have built 2 vivs for my womas but I'm unsure what substrate and plants to use for them
sugar plum I did one for my mantis and have failed miserably. So glad they are doing one so I can learn. I didn’t realize the drainage layer should stay wet :(
Hello emilly i have an Indian ringneck parrot I give it as much love as i can but is not that friendly with me what would you suggest i should do i want to build a friendship with it I hope you answer thank you 🐦🐦
Your bird is probably an Indian ring neck or an eclectus. I recommend the UA-cam channel Birdtricks. They have some great videos on bonding and learning bird language.
@@omarsuliman6695 No problem! I've had good experience with point/clicker training cockatiels when they are hand shy. Maybe something to look at. Good luck!
BirdTricks is amazing! I'd recommend starting with their tutorials for touch training and be sure that your bird's diet is correct - they are great resources to explain how your bird should be eating and reasons why! It can really help!
Hi Emily! I just wanted to say that I really thoroughly enjoyed your video. Your habitat looks well built but in reality it's very simple. I enjoyed the way that you explain the information was simple for me to understand. I recently did a bioactive enclosure for my ball python. My substrate mix consisted of orchid bark, sphagnum Moss, Coco fiber and charcoal. like your mixture it was mostly I balled and not actually measured out but the consistency was somewhat similar to what you have. It's worked really well so far although it's only been 2 months. At the suggestion of some people on a bio-active Facebook group I added in organic topsoil because my plants were not doing very well and since then my plants have done much better. Another thing that I did was I have not added in my ball python yet in order to allow my plans to establish rootsbefore I have a somewhat heavy bodied snake slithering around them although that won't be a problem with your false chameleons. I baste my substrate a mix that circle design here on UA-cam as well as a video that Clint's reptiles posted on building bio-active. I like that your video was much more informational as to what the elements in the terrarium actually do. the majority of videos that I've seen have just been how to build it with little to no explanation of why to do things a certain way. Excellent video!!!
I would love to move to bioactive setups for my snakes once they get to adult size. I do have one question though, is there a good way to treat for snake mites without having to completely tear down a bioactive enclosure and rebuild it later when the mites have been taken care of?
I've heard that you can add predatory mites that will eat the parasitic mites to prevent snake mites or mites on lizards in a bioactive setup, just adding those predatory mites into your cleanup crew.
I was just looking through and saw this pop up. I’ve never seen one of your videos so early!! They’re so interesting and also so educational and you always explain everything perfectly for me (sometimes I can find it hard to understand what people are trying to say and need it explained in a different way) so thank you for that ...I just LOVE your videos. xx
Using beneficial bacteria from aquarium filters is a great idea! When looking into ecosystems for fish tanks, someone found that the beneficial bacteria in aquariums live in soil as well! They don't need water to survive, so I'm sure that using the filter media helped with establishing the terrarium faster.
I keep dart frogs, and bioactive is basically the best way to keep them. One thing for people to be aware of setting up a bioactive tank is that you dont add unwanted pests. It's usually recommended that you rinse your plants, and boil or bake any sticks you bring in from outside to kill any hitch hikers. My first frog tank now has a bunch of unplanned millipedes. Yay.
Personally I wouldn't add milipedes with my frogs since milipedes secrete a toxin through their skin which can be potentially harmful for a dart frog since they absorb substances through their skin
I think antscanada does the fish tank filter thing for his ant colonies. He’s has a great channel, and you might want to check him out if you want more ideas!
Fantastic that this video came out the same day I decided to start remaking my corns habitat into a bioactive one! I'm happy you're shining a light on the peat-issue. Thank you so much!
You're like the patron saint of snakes. My mom and I were discussing setting up a bioactive tank for Honey, and BOOM! you post a video on that very subject. You're the reason I got a snake and one of the reasons I'm able to take good care of her. Thank you so much for everything you do!
The Bio dude has a substrate called terra firma that claims to not need a drainage layer. Does it really make it so you don’t need a drainage layer? Has anyone had success with this substrate and live plants?
I always make my own substrates for Bioactive Enclosures. This last time I used charcoal and gravel for the drainage layer, and then Coco coir, Organic Super Soil (Bat Guano), and Sphagnum Moss for the soil layer! I also mixed in some ReptiBark for soil aeration! I'm very excited to see how it all works! But so far, I'm very thrilled.
I'm not sure what the 5 are, will go and watch again after this video but I'm considering getting a black tailed Cribo. I live in UK. However, I'm a noob to danger noodles so I'll be interested in what others reply to your comment 😊
One suggestion I had. I quarantined my plants. Basically I washed them in water to take as much of the existing soil off and then replanted them in my prepared substrate and placed them in a plastic tote for a few weeks. Basically I did this because a lot of plants sold at garden departments and in similar places have soils with chemicals and fertilizers that won't be good to have in your finished vivarium. My logic behind it was that plants are very sensitive to changes in soil and this way they had some time to get rid of the fertilizers in their roots as well as to get accustomed to the soil they would now be living in. Personally I would at least wash the roots of all the plants that I put in a vivararium that I intended to put my pets in just to make sure that I get all the chemicals and fertilizers out.
There's not much fertilizer that is gonna harm an animal unless it eats pounds of substrate. It's not much difference than letting poop break down in the tank. 2 day old drinking water is worse imo.
I’m surprised you’re using tree fern fiber if you’re concerned about the sustainability of peat. People in the orchid community have been turning away from tree fern for a while time now because it’s often harvested from an tree that takes a very long time to grow (depending on where it’s produced). Just thought I’d mention it because you made a point about the environmental impact of the products you’re using and from my knowledge tree fern is absolutely something to avoid if you care about those things (unless it’s sourced sustainably, which a few companies have been trying to do, you just have to know your source). It can also be more expensive and difficult to find than other more environmentally friendly alternatives so in my mind there’s no reason to use it!
I finished setting up my second arid bioactive enclosure for my rescued Leo.. he’s doing really well (and before people come for me I watch the humidity and everything). I always love to mix my own substrate for both of my enclosures I used coco fiber, organic cacti potting soil, earthworm castings, a bit of sand for drainage and clay to compact it a bit. (I also have some moss on the humid side) Ps: my female is in a 50 gallon and my male (he’s a lot smaller) is in a 30 gallon so they gave a good range of heat and humidity
Great information and thank you for educating me (us) on the detrimental harvesting practices of peat moss. I will avoid purchasing this in the future.
Dear Emily, somehow, I went from watching AntsCanada, to watching you and GoHerping, to watching the likes of VenomMan20 and Chandler's Wild Life! My life has been changed! I never dreamed I'd dream of keeping and perhaps breeding reptiles. My whole Missions class is concerned for me.
I make my own, similar to the mix you all made here. Buying pre-mix costs way too much when I'm working with an Iguana haha. I do have orchard bark in my mix and sadly didn't get charcoal in the smaller enclosure but we're about to build the larger one and I will be trying to get charcoal for that one. Need a fair bit more substrate due to plant size and enclosure but.. I feel it's a better look over all then just a bunch of ramps like a lot of people do for the iguana set ups..
I accidentally set up one kinda. I have a few store bought substrates mixed and from basil we got some sneaky springtails for free and it's just weird. Also got some moss on the top and thick sticks for the snail to climb on. Edit: I think it might even be the same exoterra terrarium.
Concerning compost, if you can't find any, I suggest making your own ^^ it's really easy, especially if you have a garden: just purchase a specialized type of bin (or make your own with wood, it's pretty easy) then plonk all your green (banana skins, vegetable peels, tea...) waste into it. DIY compost in just a couple months :)
9:31 I'm trying to shop for stuff to make one of these for frogs this is when she starts listing the ingredients if I don't delete this I'm sorry could you remind me to delete it
Could you maybe talk about some popular kept reptiles/amphibians/etc. that these types of enclosures are good for? I’d love to know what animals do well in bioactive enclosures! Also maybe a little bit about upkeep?
This is great, I'm in the process of making a bigger terrarium for our cornsnakes and it's a big help to see how bioactive enclosures work. I do wonder where I can find the bugs...
thank you for letting me know about the peat moss issue, i had no idea that it was so damaging to harvest. i will make sure in the future to never get peat moss or anythign with it as an ingredient.
This is so awesome! I have a question about working with the enclosure! How do you keep mold from forming in your enclosures? I don't have a reptile myself yet, but I can already see this being a problem for me as my plant babies have had a few mold issues in the past in their soil. This is easy to care for and fix, but it seems like it would be difficult to cure in an enclosure. I'd just love to know from you or other commentors! ♡
Awesome video! The false chameleons look so cute and beautiful. Love how you explain everything and mention where people can buy the supplies you mention. I'm wondering if you're gonna make a video about the springtails/baby snails and the isopods. Because I'm curious about when you started with them, how you keep them and how you take care of them.
Just a suggestion, but maybe look at Carnivorous plant soil. You get a lot of those soils that have no peat moss in it because it's too nutritional for the carnivores. They're also always full of vermiculite and/or pearlite, because that keeps the soil airy without releasing too much moisture. I used to cultivate carnivorous plants and found that the soil was good for some reptiles as well.
I tried one them for my mantis and I really struggle!!! So I tried moss for the ground cover (club) it all died. However i didn’t wet the substrate and I ended up getting nematodes.
I have a Gopher snake how loves to dig around and make tunnels. I also really wanted plants in my tank, but thought having a planted enclosure would make it a pain to dig her out if I had to. So I put potted plants in there. Made it look like a little porch garden.
I love snakes and frogs but my mom hates them, so sometimes me and my siblings will go outside and find some frogs and ask her to come outside and she will see a bin full of frogs! She gets mad at us but it is so funny to see her face when we pick them up and walk towards her!🤣
Ball Pythons do not require any special lighting. Their only real requirement is proper heat and humidity. Preferably belly heat from heat tape under the tank or tub (properly controlled with a thermostat of course).
I have a bio active setup.... Its been over a year still going strong i used abg from joshs frogs .. I just keep adding leaves spagnum moss . and going to add more soil just orderd some to add more. .. But i also use bioactive booster from josh frogs to sprinkle on substrate then have to spray it down it jumstarts everything
Another problem with peat/turf is that it contains a lot of CO2 and the collection destroys bogs which often are some of the largest ecosystem in terms of size and biodiversity. My mom has been buying turf free gardening soil since I can remember but maybe it's not really available in the US. For the Germans: That soil is labeled Torffrei and normally has a NABU label on it(we buy ours at OBI but I'm sure it's available at other places)
Would this be good for an adult Cuban False Chameleon or two? I'm looking in to them but I'm having trouble finding a sure set way to make them feel as heathy and happy as possible. Also could you make a Cuban False Chameleon care video?
This video could not have come out at a better time! For the last month, I've been researching how to do something like this for my ball python. The only question I still have left is how do you heat it? Clearly an under the tank heater (UTH) would be inefficient. Do halogens get warm enough to heat the bottom of the tank? Can they be hooked up to a thermometer like a UTH to regulate temperatures? Would a ceramic heat emitter be more effective or would it damage the plants in some way? I guess this is more than one question, but you get the gist.
this was a great video! and great timing, I am working on a personal false background for what I plan to be a bioactive set up for my first reptile! One source I am using is SerpaDesign, he does his own mix but I didn't notice if there was peat in it.
Ed & Emily you should look into getting one of those chemical compression bottles as a water mister. The larger ones work really well to mist your aquariums and they have a long hose from the bottle to the mister spout so you don't have to hold the bottle. A friend of mine has hers on a 3 castors rolling plant stand so she wheels it around 🚿misting her aquariums.
Me: Doesnt have pets and don't plan to have anytime soon...
Also me: Watches video on setting up bioactive setups for pets...
Vj Hawj me
@@chaos383 thats me
Lol
2 male cats live with me and my grownup children. Every reptile is illegal in my country. Only ever seen reptiles on TV or UA-cam... still watch and comment.
@@gubjorggisladottir3525 What country you from?
i don't have any reptiles or inverts yet, but ive had great success with lightly crushing the clay balls, to massively increase the surface area, this has worked amazingly for a hybrid hydroponic setup ive been running with sensitive veggies and herbs.
I’m going to Repticon tomorrow! (Basically a reptile expo thing.)
But I can’t buy anything.
I said that to myself but ended up coming home with a hognose
JL Arm but did your mom tell you to not buy anything? I really hope to get a ball python.
Fun! Wish I could go to furcon... =(=
Kiri N nice! I hope I can get a nice ball python! I honestly don’t care if mine will be cool looking I just want a nice ball python. I will update you once I come back.
I said the same thing came back with a female pied ball python, a female tangerine leopard gecko, a mack snow leopard gecko, a mango bearded dragon and a tegu
A ghost Ed has been spotted (in the reflection of the enclosures)!
Do you know if I can put millipedes in my bio active tank with my snakes?
What about bioactive for a bearded dragon?
Half of us don't even have reptiles
And here we are watching this
Probably way more then half, if we’re being honest.
I'm littlerly waiting for a shayan video
I got a snake because of them. 😫Thanks Emily.😍🐍🐍😂
My reptile is a desert animal but I’m still watching this lol
Accurate. ;-D
Emily: Now we get to add LIFE to them!
Plants: ....
Pants: Are we a joke to you?!
rainwater739 “pants” 😂
rainwater739 *plants. Pants are a joke to me... 😂
Lol this may be my favorite comment LOL
She pulled a GioGio
“And Ed insisted on using his Ed Roberts mug”,” line made my day.
Hey Chad!! Is your false chameleon a girl or a boy!? CHAD we want to know!
😉
why does this scare me
@@Sillysealciel Same😭😂
@RATHALOS Stfu
JKJKJK
I'm sorry, I don't know. I haven't got one yet.
Emily setting up some cages: alright this is how you do this/that
The people who disliked the video: cages are weird I don’t like this stick. DISLIKED!!
Me: oooooooooooooohh I like that dirt it’s nice I want it.
Want to eat the dirt 😍
Come art with me ! Honestly it’s some great dirt.
XD
I like sticks
I use crickets to clean up the waste. They're too loud, need some isopods.
Peat is an amazing thing! Peat at the bottom of the bog is, sometimes, anaerobic, meaning it contains no oxygen and therefore no bacteria.When digging for construction, workers in Britain and Scotland discovered the absolutely remarkably preserved remains of Iron Age Celts that had been sacrificed to the bog by ancient druids.
This was my thesis in college. You could say peat moss...grew on me. (yeaaaaaaahhhhhh)
Bog mummies bog mummies bog mummies
I'd love to read more about this! Where can I go to learn more?
I'd love to read up on this, we tend to make our own Compost or buy from a local green shop (their Compost is primarily food waste) so I had no idea about peat moss!
@Butt Chug Brother Well now it is. It was a fuel source, you could burn it or make houses out of it. My thesis was on the Iron Age.
@@DesireeWalker there is another youtuber named Catlin Doughty that talks about it. The channel is AskAMortician
I didn’t know Peat moss was bad for the environment! I will change to a different soil when I run out!!
Edit: I meant Peat Moss harvesting is bad for the environment, not the Peat Moss itself
peat moss harvesting is bad for the environment, peat moss itself isnt.
Have you considered looking into Serpadesigns or Ant Canada? They both do some amazing Bioactive works on their channels which could definitely give you some inspiration for your displays at the new building.
Best of luck Emily, and have a great 2020!
Edit: The Substrate mix that Sepra uses is 1 Part Coco Fiber, 1 Part Orchid Bark, 1 Part Charcoal, 2 Parts Sphagnum Moss and 0.5-1 part sand.
This seems pretty similar to what you used, so I imagine you'll have good results.
I didn't read this first, but I also suggested Ants Canada! I don't plan on keeping ants any more than I plan to keep snakes, but I find both channels fascinating. I have watched 1-2 Serpadesigns videos and thought they were good, but I decided to limit my pet channels to just Snake Discovery and Ants Canada.
@@shadodragonette Same with me, only we do have 1 5 lined skink and 3 leopard gecko's. My 4 year old wants a snake but Grandma is scared of snakes. She loved watch Snake Discovery.
I love Ants Canada, and they have some super interesting bio active setups.
Yes ants Canada is so good
I literally just came here from serpa
Yay! Setting one up for a rescue rough green snake rn ❤
Nice
Ur a good person!
Thank you for rescuing it😊
Be careful when rescuing becasue sometimes wild snakes do better wild♥️🐍
Hey, how's the noodle doin!
I'm not an expert by any means but I remember hearing in other bioactive tutorials that it's a good idea to let the tank sit by itself for around a month or so before introducing the reptile so that the bacteria and cleanup crew has time to establish itself. Otherwise the reptile may introduce more waste than the rest of the tank can keep up with. That's just something I've seen people say, at least. If you and Ed are also new to bioactive setups then this may be something to look into further.
That makes so much sense! Like it has time to create its natural biome first
This is why she squized out aquarium filter, since aquarium filter already has an established colony of bacteria and you simply just transfer it over to another tank. Thats why she said its a quick start
Yeah that makes a lot of sense but a month seems a little long to me idk
I’d think that it depends on specifics, if I had a large colony of isopods and spring tails and start with adding the colony of bacteria I’d imagine you’d have to leave this for very little time for it to keep up. And a set up should sit for a couple days min to make sure your humidity and temp are stable and correct for your animals needs. So if you did that I think it would be fine to add animal almost immediately
This actually helps me a lot-
I Swear im not stalking your channel its just luck! But that being said, Love your channel!!
Edit: Also, the video so far is so useful, im looking to get a reptile sometime and these videos are a lifesaver!
Ya know, notifications are used
Ninja Panda Girl
Notifications don't come 30 seconds after the video is uploaded!
@@casualkhajiit oh really? Kay, I thought it was like that but I was always 25 minutes late.
"Sorry for the focus problem. Ed was playing with the camera"
God damnit, Ed! You had one job! XD
Malene Snejbjerg Snickering...
1:25 oh my god she’s so smol I want to very gently pat her
Me too
Same 😂
Lol almost missed that STAPLE moment lol!
I'm pretty sure I've seen one of your comments on a different channel
Dog picure
i'd love to see a bioactive enclosure specifically for ball pythons! also - any thoughts about bioactives without false bottoms? i've seen a few people make them so they can still use heat mats, but i'd love to hear yalls opinion on this!
Heat mats are not a good heat source. A halogen flood bulb connected to a dimmer/dimming thermostat is the most natural and beneficial option during the day. They produce infrared A and B like the sun, heat that penetrates deep into the skin tissue and heats them far more effectively than heat mats. Whereas heat mats only produce IRC, which only heats the surface of their skin. Ceramic heat emitters are good for nighttime heat.
I’ve grown orchids, usually miniatures and want to build an orchidarium with some kind of small animal.
There are a few geckos that would probably have similar needs
ORCHID MANTIS
A mourninh gecko
@@kakkernakker unless they keep one... otherwise I hope they're ready to own a clan of them.
Rabbit poop is really nutritious for plants and small insects. You can grow vegetables in 100% pure rabbit manure and since my father has started spreading it on our property we've seen many mushrooms grow that we had never seen before. Some of wich were edible and very tasty like the horse mushroom. I can't say for sure but I wouldnt be suprised if it was as good as peat moss. So I think this would be a potential substitute, just find a breeder or a friend with a rabbit pet. I was suposed to sell the manure produced by my rabbitry but my father really wanted to use it himself XD guess I'll have to wait until he doesnt need it anymore.
Emily: now we get to add life now!!
Me: ummm. If it’s bioactive isn’t *everything* alive?
I love how you care about your animals some people just neglect them keep up the great work
Love this video! Quick question re the experiment: Will the different sizes of the chameleons (small vs big) possibly affect the results?
Like, if the smaller chameleon produces less feces will the good bacteria have less to eat? Or if the larger produces too much, could the enclosure get dirtier?
The size won't really matter, at least I think not, but you do have a good point. Both still need upkeep but with the amount of bacteria and things in there they should stay equally clean, but I think the leaves in the smaller one's enclosure might disappear faster
Keelia Silvis there would technically be a difference due to, as you mentioned, less food consumed and less feces produced, but it would be so minute it wouldn’t be noticeable. Very good question tho
@@willgraham4868 baby animals actually eat more then their grown counterparts
I don't know how active false chameleons are but I've compared the growth rate of the same plants in my baby tank vs the adult crested gecko tank and because my oldie loves jumping and crushing plants, they don't do as well as the baby tank. And the feces does make a difference as well.
Have you made an update video on this build? Would love to see the results :) Really enjoy all of your videos and always learn a lot from them!
The clay balls look like cocoa puffs! Lol 😜 and who could watch Emily and be like I dislike this! This sweet funny smart girl I dislike it. People are weird
I thought they were acorns at first, and wondered how that would work for the lowest layer. I can’t tell you how glad I am that they weren’t something that would degrade like acorns!
In re to the latter part of your comment: I believe they’re people who are jealous of this wonderful channel’s popularity and love to dislike everything they upload
There are springtails in the soil naturally in my area, and there are Rollie pollies here too, so I usually just wake some dirt from behind my garage and use that in my enclosures
Toads do sometimes eat the Rollie pollies though
That’s real handy! I was about to mention taking care with the material and possible contaminants in the soil, but I suppose the springtails and the microorganisms would help clean it.
only real issue of outside soil is the chance of parasites and poisons also coming with it
payoff is usually pretty good though
I bought nice orange Rollie pollies for my toads tank and he ate all of them in a day 😅
Veronica P You need to teach him not to be a pig, everything, even orange Rollie pollies, in moderation. 😅
That could potentially come with some pretty bad parasites and pesticides and such.
my only questions are how often the enclosures actually need to be cleaned and if so what products would be recommended?
Once its established you shouldn't have to clean or mess with the enclosure ever again unless there's issues like plants dying or you just don't like the way it looks. The point of going bioactive is to have a completely self sustaining environment like outside. You of course would have to make sure you have enough food sources for the isopods and springtails and you may have to add more of those guys in if you notice they aren't breeding or you don't have as many as you should, but otherwise it shouldn't have to be cleaned or anything.
@@ashleyduran6455 cool thanks
Emily: *puts in a bunch of fancy layers*
Me: *puts in paper towels and bedding for my gecko*
Also me: *cries*
The people that disliked it were probably trying to watch the video but then their reptile walked on the dislike button
Ok but like she keeps saying snakes but obviously THEY ARE NOODLES... I thought she was a professional.
1:25 so smol
Her:Wait what I'm getting a mansion 😏
No views. 64 likes and 8 comments. Makes a lot of sense youtube 😂 btw love the videos. Im a big fan of yours. Thanks for making very good eductional videos for all of us 😁😁
they count people who've finished watching most of the video
also slow to update youtube is slow as ever
Hi Emily, I was wondering if you could reply to me when your business is done because I would love to come when your there! I really want to meet you! I recently got a crested gecko and will soon get a snake, this is all because of you! You got me to love reptiles and now my mom is getting into reptiles too (still working on snakes though)
Could you do a video for setting up a bioactive vivarium for a woma? As I have built 2 vivs for my womas but I'm unsure what substrate and plants to use for them
check out the Reptile and Amphibian Bioactive Setups facebook page
sugar plum I did one for my mantis and have failed miserably. So glad they are doing one so I can learn. I didn’t realize the drainage layer should stay wet :(
Hello emilly i have an Indian ringneck parrot I give it as much love as i can but is not that friendly with me what would you suggest i should do i want to build a friendship with it I hope you answer thank you 🐦🐦
Your bird is probably an Indian ring neck or an eclectus. I recommend the UA-cam channel Birdtricks. They have some great videos on bonding and learning bird language.
@@malachitemoon8359 thank you very much for your help i hope it becomes more friendly in the future and yes it is an Indian ring neck
@@omarsuliman6695 No problem! I've had good experience with point/clicker training cockatiels when they are hand shy. Maybe something to look at. Good luck!
BirdTricks is amazing! I'd recommend starting with their tutorials for touch training and be sure that your bird's diet is correct - they are great resources to explain how your bird should be eating and reasons why! It can really help!
Hi Emily! I just wanted to say that I really thoroughly enjoyed your video. Your habitat looks well built but in reality it's very simple. I enjoyed the way that you explain the information was simple for me to understand.
I recently did a bioactive enclosure for my ball python. My substrate mix consisted of orchid bark, sphagnum Moss, Coco fiber and charcoal. like your mixture it was mostly I balled and not actually measured out but the consistency was somewhat similar to what you have. It's worked really well so far although it's only been 2 months. At the suggestion of some people on a bio-active Facebook group I added in organic topsoil because my plants were not doing very well and since then my plants have done much better. Another thing that I did was I have not added in my ball python yet in order to allow my plans to establish rootsbefore I have a somewhat heavy bodied snake slithering around them although that won't be a problem with your false chameleons. I baste my substrate a mix that circle design here on UA-cam as well as a video that Clint's reptiles posted on building bio-active. I like that your video was much more informational as to what the elements in the terrarium actually do. the majority of videos that I've seen have just been how to build it with little to no explanation of why to do things a certain way. Excellent video!!!
I'm honestly so happy to see how much more animated Ed gets overtime. I'm glad he feels more comfortable with his presence on the channel.
Emily: Talks about different dirt
Me: DIRT IS DIRT
I would love to move to bioactive setups for my snakes once they get to adult size. I do have one question though, is there a good way to treat for snake mites without having to completely tear down a bioactive enclosure and rebuild it later when the mites have been taken care of?
I've heard that you can add predatory mites that will eat the parasitic mites to prevent snake mites or mites on lizards in a bioactive setup, just adding those predatory mites into your cleanup crew.
I was just looking through and saw this pop up. I’ve never seen one of your videos so early!! They’re so interesting and also so educational and you always explain everything perfectly for me (sometimes I can find it hard to understand what people are trying to say and need it explained in a different way) so thank you for that ...I just LOVE your videos. xx
Using beneficial bacteria from aquarium filters is a great idea! When looking into ecosystems for fish tanks, someone found that the beneficial bacteria in aquariums live in soil as well! They don't need water to survive, so I'm sure that using the filter media helped with establishing the terrarium faster.
FINALLY somebody explained the components of a bioactive environment!!! Thank you!!!
When I watched a snake video I lost the fear of snakes thank you so much
I been looking on a video like this for ever, love your vids snake discovery.
I keep dart frogs, and bioactive is basically the best way to keep them. One thing for people to be aware of setting up a bioactive tank is that you dont add unwanted pests. It's usually recommended that you rinse your plants, and boil or bake any sticks you bring in from outside to kill any hitch hikers. My first frog tank now has a bunch of unplanned millipedes. Yay.
Millipedes are super beneficial though!
Personally I wouldn't add milipedes with my frogs since milipedes secrete a toxin through their skin which can be potentially harmful for a dart frog since they absorb substances through their skin
I think antscanada does the fish tank filter thing for his ant colonies. He’s has a great channel, and you might want to check him out if you want more ideas!
Fantastic that this video came out the same day I decided to start remaking my corns habitat into a bioactive one! I'm happy you're shining a light on the peat-issue.
Thank you so much!
So what wrong with using peat moss?
Is my turtle going to be okay using it?
William Lewis I’m hoping (and assuming) you found out the answer(s) to your question(s).
You're like the patron saint of snakes. My mom and I were discussing setting up a bioactive tank for Honey, and BOOM! you post a video on that very subject. You're the reason I got a snake and one of the reasons I'm able to take good care of her. Thank you so much for everything you do!
Thank you for the peat sensitivity!
The Bio dude has a substrate called terra firma that claims to not need a drainage layer. Does it really make it so you don’t need a drainage layer? Has anyone had success with this substrate and live plants?
I always make my own substrates for Bioactive Enclosures. This last time I used charcoal and gravel for the drainage layer, and then Coco coir, Organic Super Soil (Bat Guano), and Sphagnum Moss for the soil layer! I also mixed in some ReptiBark for soil aeration! I'm very excited to see how it all works! But so far, I'm very thrilled.
Emily: you can buy leaves from many different places
Me: yes, such as outside!
I’ve been having problems with my bio active tank my spring tails keep on disappearing but the isopods I put in are fine
I love ur videos u inspired me to get a corn snake and I love him 😍
What snake do you suggest for a beginner on England apart from the 5 you listed in your vid
I'm not sure what the 5 are, will go and watch again after this video but I'm considering getting a black tailed Cribo. I live in UK. However, I'm a noob to danger noodles so I'll be interested in what others reply to your comment 😊
@@Raych666 thanks for the suggestion
@@Raych666 what part of the UK do you live in?
@@Prepper.N Plymouth 😊
Went to visit my friend and meet her new wife, luckily we both watch your videos so we were able to bond over our love of snakes and your videos 😀
One suggestion I had. I quarantined my plants. Basically I washed them in water to take as much of the existing soil off and then replanted them in my prepared substrate and placed them in a plastic tote for a few weeks. Basically I did this because a lot of plants sold at garden departments and in similar places have soils with chemicals and fertilizers that won't be good to have in your finished vivarium. My logic behind it was that plants are very sensitive to changes in soil and this way they had some time to get rid of the fertilizers in their roots as well as to get accustomed to the soil they would now be living in. Personally I would at least wash the roots of all the plants that I put in a vivararium that I intended to put my pets in just to make sure that I get all the chemicals and fertilizers out.
There's not much fertilizer that is gonna harm an animal unless it eats pounds of substrate. It's not much difference than letting poop break down in the tank. 2 day old drinking water is worse imo.
I read the title as “radioactive” and got very concerned/confused!
Emily: dude your gonna be n on camera
Him :yes that's correct
They're so adorable 😍😍
I’m surprised you’re using tree fern fiber if you’re concerned about the sustainability of peat. People in the orchid community have been turning away from tree fern for a while time now because it’s often harvested from an tree that takes a very long time to grow (depending on where it’s produced). Just thought I’d mention it because you made a point about the environmental impact of the products you’re using and from my knowledge tree fern is absolutely something to avoid if you care about those things (unless it’s sourced sustainably, which a few companies have been trying to do, you just have to know your source). It can also be more expensive and difficult to find than other more environmentally friendly alternatives so in my mind there’s no reason to use it!
Oh my gosh I’m so glad that you are talking about the problems with using pete moss
Would you add the update to the description? I haven't been able to find it and I'm very curious!
I finished setting up my second arid bioactive enclosure for my rescued Leo.. he’s doing really well (and before people come for me I watch the humidity and everything). I always love to mix my own substrate for both of my enclosures I used coco fiber, organic cacti potting soil, earthworm castings, a bit of sand for drainage and clay to compact it a bit. (I also have some moss on the humid side)
Ps: my female is in a 50 gallon and my male (he’s a lot smaller) is in a 30 gallon so they gave a good range of heat and humidity
Great information and thank you for educating me (us) on the detrimental harvesting practices of peat moss. I will avoid purchasing this in the future.
Dear Emily, somehow, I went from watching AntsCanada, to watching you and GoHerping, to watching the likes of VenomMan20 and Chandler's Wild Life! My life has been changed! I never dreamed I'd dream of keeping and perhaps breeding reptiles. My whole Missions class is concerned for me.
I make my own, similar to the mix you all made here. Buying pre-mix costs way too much when I'm working with an Iguana haha. I do have orchard bark in my mix and sadly didn't get charcoal in the smaller enclosure but we're about to build the larger one and I will be trying to get charcoal for that one. Need a fair bit more substrate due to plant size and enclosure but.. I feel it's a better look over all then just a bunch of ramps like a lot of people do for the iguana set ups..
When it said “Ed was messing with the camera” I said out loud “god damn it Ed” and everyone else in the room looked at me 😂
I accidentally set up one kinda. I have a few store bought substrates mixed and from basil we got some sneaky springtails for free and it's just weird. Also got some moss on the top and thick sticks for the snail to climb on.
Edit: I think it might even be the same exoterra terrarium.
Concerning compost, if you can't find any, I suggest making your own ^^ it's really easy, especially if you have a garden: just purchase a specialized type of bin (or make your own with wood, it's pretty easy) then plonk all your green (banana skins, vegetable peels, tea...) waste into it. DIY compost in just a couple months :)
9:31 I'm trying to shop for stuff to make one of these for frogs this is when she starts listing the ingredients if I don't delete this I'm sorry could you remind me to delete it
Just out of curiosity, what’s the cleaning and upkeep regiment for a bioactive enclosure?
Could you maybe talk about some popular kept reptiles/amphibians/etc. that these types of enclosures are good for? I’d love to know what animals do well in bioactive enclosures! Also maybe a little bit about upkeep?
This is great, I'm in the process of making a bigger terrarium for our cornsnakes and it's a big help to see how bioactive enclosures work. I do wonder where I can find the bugs...
Reptile shows and reptile stores online 😁
thank you for letting me know about the peat moss issue, i had no idea that it was so damaging to harvest. i will make sure in the future to never get peat moss or anythign with it as an ingredient.
This is so awesome! I have a question about working with the enclosure! How do you keep mold from forming in your enclosures? I don't have a reptile myself yet, but I can already see this being a problem for me as my plant babies have had a few mold issues in the past in their soil. This is easy to care for and fix, but it seems like it would be difficult to cure in an enclosure. I'd just love to know from you or other commentors! ♡
springtails eat the mold
Stop overwatering.
Awesome video! The false chameleons look so cute and beautiful. Love how you explain everything and mention where people can buy the supplies you mention. I'm wondering if you're gonna make a video about the springtails/baby snails and the isopods. Because I'm curious about when you started with them, how you keep them and how you take care of them.
Thank you so much for consistently focusing on environmental impacts and trying to offer alternates. Such important information
Just a suggestion, but maybe look at Carnivorous plant soil. You get a lot of those soils that have no peat moss in it because it's too nutritional for the carnivores. They're also always full of vermiculite and/or pearlite, because that keeps the soil airy without releasing too much moisture. I used to cultivate carnivorous plants and found that the soil was good for some reptiles as well.
Can’t wait to see an update! It’s crazy how different they look just being male/female!
Hey emily so I have a few questions is there a website I can go to so I can ask instead on youtube or no
If not then I will ask here
Lol
Ed : *plays with da camera*
Me : wot is happening
My sis : ItS aN eArThQuAkE
Me : ......lol
I want another video with just ed again! I love him so much!!
“Hey Chad make sure you’re False Chameleon is a guy because it might not be”
Chad - *Hold up*
I really want a snake now that i've seen your channel.
I tried one them for my mantis and I really struggle!!! So I tried moss for the ground cover (club) it all died. However i didn’t wet the substrate and I ended up getting nematodes.
Moss can be a pain to grow they need a lot of moisture and even then they arnt always happy
I recently saw someone set up a bioactive tank and found it kinda soothing so i was excited to get the notification for this video!
I have a Gopher snake how loves to dig around and make tunnels. I also really wanted plants in my tank, but thought having a planted enclosure would make it a pain to dig her out if I had to. So I put potted plants in there. Made it look like a little porch garden.
Thanks for telling us about peat moss! I had no idea that extracting it was so damaging to the environment.
I love snakes and frogs but my mom hates them, so sometimes me and my siblings will go outside and find some frogs and ask her to come outside and she will see a bin full of frogs! She gets mad at us but it is so funny to see her face when we pick them up and walk towards her!🤣
Hey Emily! What lamp would you recommend for a Ball Python? I wanna know from somebody who's owned reptiles and cared for them properly. :)
Ball Pythons do not require any special lighting. Their only real requirement is proper heat and humidity. Preferably belly heat from heat tape under the tank or tub (properly controlled with a thermostat of course).
I have a bio active setup.... Its been over a year still going strong i used abg from joshs frogs .. I just keep adding leaves spagnum moss . and going to add more soil just orderd some to add more. .. But i also use bioactive booster from josh frogs to sprinkle on substrate then have to spray it down it jumstarts everything
Another problem with peat/turf is that it contains a lot of CO2 and the collection destroys bogs which often are some of the largest ecosystem in terms of size and biodiversity.
My mom has been buying turf free gardening soil since I can remember but maybe it's not really available in the US.
For the Germans: That soil is labeled Torffrei and normally has a NABU label on it(we buy ours at OBI but I'm sure it's available at other places)
If you aren't familiar with SerpaDesign, you should check out his channel for bioactive terrariums! He also makes his own substrate mixtures as well.
Would this be good for an adult Cuban False Chameleon or two? I'm looking in to them but I'm having trouble finding a sure set way to make them feel as heathy and happy as possible. Also could you make a Cuban False Chameleon care video?
This video could not have come out at a better time! For the last month, I've been researching how to do something like this for my ball python. The only question I still have left is how do you heat it? Clearly an under the tank heater (UTH) would be inefficient. Do halogens get warm enough to heat the bottom of the tank? Can they be hooked up to a thermometer like a UTH to regulate temperatures? Would a ceramic heat emitter be more effective or would it damage the plants in some way? I guess this is more than one question, but you get the gist.
this was a great video! and great timing, I am working on a personal false background for what I plan to be a bioactive set up for my first reptile! One source I am using is SerpaDesign, he does his own mix but I didn't notice if there was peat in it.
Ed & Emily you should look into getting one of those chemical compression bottles as a water mister. The larger ones work really well to mist your aquariums and they have a long hose from the bottle to the mister spout so you don't have to hold the bottle. A friend of mine has hers on a 3 castors rolling plant stand so she wheels it around 🚿misting her aquariums.