Reptile & Amphibian Forums

So a while back I got the idea to try and make a tank for my smaller frogs and crested geckos that involved stacking two 55's and having a false bottom. Well, now I'm thinking about maybe doing that, except using it for an arboreal snake (more research has left me with a nagging voice in the back of my head that wants me to save up for a green tree python instead of an atb).

Should I even bother with a false bottom? I was thinking of just rigging up a simple powerhead sponge filter, making the whole bottom water, and putting some small fish/inverts in there. I figure that would make cleaning easier, since if the snake defacates into the water, it'd just be broken down like fish waste is in a regular aquarium. Would that cause health issues for snakes though, since there would be active colonies of various bacteria throughout the enclosure?

Any thoughts, ideas, etc would be much appreciated.
Jeff

Well, if you do go with an ATB, I wouldn't put water in the bottom, as they do like to hang around on the ground.

I would also venture to say that a small sponge filter would not be sufficient to remove the waste produced by an adult arboreal. A sponge filter is only mechanical filter, in that it removes particles from the water but doesn't really bio-degrade them. There would be some beneficial bacteria in the gravel or whatever you use on the bottom, but not enough to cope with the occasional snake poop. I think you will find that your water musses up and that you will be stuck doing frequent water changes to keep it clean.

I've never done this myself, mind you, so my "educated" opinion might just be BS and I'm interested in seeing what other people have to say; but I do know fish, and filters, and sponge filters aren't good for anything but the smallest, or most lightly stocked tanks.

for arboreal snakes it is a good idea to have water in the bottom of the tank for the humidity benefit and easy cleaning, but I would not recommend putting fish in it due to the fact that snake fecies harbor harmful bacteria that may kill the fish, also it would not be a good idea for the snake to feed on the fish because of the likelyhood of parasites. Another downside is that a filter probably wouldn't be too effective against the massive amount of fecal matter produced by the reptile. I recommend building a tank with a built in drain in the bottum and as soon as you notice snake feces in the water, you simply drain the bottom, disinfect, and refill. I hope this advice helps you out.