Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ok ive been looking all over on the net. some ppl use 2:1, some say 50/50 one even said 5:1.

Im not sure if i will be using vermiculite or perilite. but how do you mix yours?

i do know that is should be wet enough to stick together but dry when you squeeze it. but i was just hoping to make it as easy as possible so i dont have to keep adding water or squeeze the heck out of it.

i know eggs are a longgg way away butttt im just so excited.. i wanna be completely ready

Mixing your incubation medium is a good skill to learn, however since this is your first clutch there will be plenty of other things for you to worry about and "get right". Since you will only be having the one clutch I would recommend going with HatchRite.

It will take virtually all of the guess work out of getting the medium right. Just remember to weigh your egg container with the HatchRite in it before you add the eggs and again afterwards. Subtract the difference. This is the weight of your eggs.

To keep track of how much (if any) water has been lost in the medium through the incubation period you can refer back to the weight of everything (medium, container, and eggs combined). Once a week when you check on the eggs and open the lid (briefly) for a fresh air exchange, you can have your scale nearby along with a small cup of water. If the weight is low you can add small amounts of water (pour it in a corner to prevent getting any on the eggs) until the scale reads the same as your original reading.

hey thats the best idea ive heard yet!!!! i will definitely go with that!

My first incubation clutches - I got my vermiculite just wet enough that it stuck together - but not that you could squeeze water out of - thought I had it perfect but spent the next several weeks battling moldy eggs. So lesson learned - now I'm starting out with a bottom layer of damp vermiculite - followed by a dry layer - during my air exchange I test the top layer and if needed I eye-dropper a little water in each corner - has worked beautifully for my ball and gecko eggs - no denting, no molding - big healthy babies. Will likely try the substrateless method this season - just to say I did.
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Tosha
JET Pythons

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