Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Currently im seting up a 30x30x71 reptarium to house an iguana. Id like to use drift wood to make furniture and ramps but im not sure if its safe. I know ive heard some monitor species can get parasites from certain types of wood.

Is this true for Iguana's as well, and shouldnt driftwood be safe, since its been dead a long time? If anyone could set me straight on this, id appreciate it.

if i were to use driftwood i would be sure it had been cleaned well, 2 ways id choose to do it 1. cook the crap out of it, but thsats not realistice for large bit, so 2. the better option would be to soak it in a bleach and water solution, i think my vet tech texts like the 32:1 water to bleach, i may go even a bit stronger, then rinse well and leave it out in the sun for a good 48 hrs, this is what ive done when adding wild woods or donations from unknown homes before and not had trouble. id say nothing is 100%, say if the place you leave it (ours is the driveway) has a parasite hanging out it could be transmitted. if its a healthy adult or sub adult your setting up for i wouldent worry to much about parasites, i have an iggy living outside full time and is so far doing well w/out parasite control (i figuer ill catch a poop here and there to have read at the vet, and just keep an eye out for external parasites)
good luck and share some pics when your done!!
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hanging out under heat lights burns up my brain cells!!

Thanks for the info, bleaching them sounds like a great idea. Hopefully it will even give the wood a more uniform color.

The cage should be done by the end of this week and be the home of an Iguana hatchling soon! Ill post pics =P

Ive finished the ramps and platforms, but now Im wondering what I can use to give the Iguana extra traction. Some of the ramps are a little steep and the top shelve is slightly slanted due to the shape of the wood.

Anyone know of a good material I can wrap around the ramps?