Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I know this is wrong forum but no one goes to the water dragon forum....What substrate is good and holds humdiity. Also can i buy it in bulk for cheap from like home depot? I am looknig into peat moss and anyone know bout it, or orchid moss. What sub do you reccomened? BTW this is for my water dragon

I actually hate subtrates.

Although they do provide a natural look, they stink like crazy, small pieces might be ingested, and when soiled, they are not as easy to clean up.

I used to use that fake-grass carpet thing, cut into squares, like tiles. Whenever one square got soiled, I'd remove it, replace it with a clean one kept aside (always keep a few), and clean/sterilize the other. Repeat the cycle.

That's what I would use.

Careful where you buy it, and how it comes packaged. There can be small organisms that can later infest the enclosure.

extracts of cedar and other soft woods, such as pine, contain a number of aromatic (volatile) compounds including hydrocarbons, cedrene and cadrol. Naphthalene (the active ingredient in moth balls) is also a member but is a distinct compound.
These compounds are known irritants of skin, and cause not only irritation, but the degeneration and death of the cells in the respiratory tract. Once this destruction is set in motion, the animals' defensive barrier is eroded, enabling infection by various microorganisms and secondary microbial infections of the lungs. The medical literature notes increased rates of respiratory infections found in poultry which is raised with cedar shavings in the poultry house. Owners of caged birds have noted similar infection rates, particularly in poorly ventilated areas.

If you mist the animal on a regular basis, you'll be fine.
Also, another method to keep the enclosure humidified, is to leave ice-cubes on an absorbent towel (like Bounty), say, two layers of it. The ice will gradually evaporate due to the heat of the enclosure (I assume you have glass), providing some humidification.

Sand, even edible sand, can cause intestinal impaction.

Hence why I recommend my alternative with the fake grass.
It's easy to clean/sterilize/deodorize, it can be cut into squares to provide quick and easy replacement, and it looks quite nice when accessories are added to the enclosure!

Hope this helped!

-IJ