Newty advice please...

[a]

Hi. As you can see, I'm an axie keeper at heart.
However, I recently purchased a viv.
One side is broken, so I need to replace it, and I'll be giving a crack a thick layer of silicon inside and out to seal it.
The door needs replacing too - darn couriers...

Anyway - I'll cut to the chase.
I'm a student, with little cash.
I have a very nice waterfall, and some fab ideas - but what would be suitable, and how?

My ideas are:
Build a plastic grid and mesh to place substrate on, raised from the floor.
Only have PART of the grid in, so some floor is still available.
Flood the floor, under substrate, and allow this to be both a resevoir for the waterfall, AND a pond for them to paddle in.

How deep max should the water be?
How do you reccommend I filter this - I don't want the pump for the fountain crammed with gunk...

I intend to heat from underneath via a heat mat.
I'll be adding corkwood to radiate the heat, and provide climbing surfaces.

Any other ideas and info?
Thanks.

 

[john]

A few observations...

The heat will be a negative thing as many species prefer lower temperatures. Check the care sheets specific to your chosen species. The false floor is a good thing and many use it with great success. Search this board and the ones for Dart Frogs and you will fing lots of examples. The water depth is variable based again on specific species. The key is to research your species, provide the basic set-up with respect to percentage of land and water. The actual decoration is limited only by your imagination.

Good luck and have fun

 

[jennifer]

Without knowing what species you plan to keep in it, it's hard to advise on a setup. The title says "newty advice" so I assume newts. You surely won't need the heat mat.

 

[amber]

Thank you - I was thinking Orientalis...
I have been dipping for bits of info, but I'm in no means of a hurry!

Lack of funds lol...
At least that saves me some.

 

[amber]

I've been having a potter about - Orientalis doesn't really fit what I'm looking for, so I've chosen to go in depth on Ambystoma tigrinum mavortium.

I'll take it over to the appropriate board now.

 

[jennifer]

As you are interested in branching out to newts, and not in a big hurry, I would encourage you to try to find some captive bred newts. There are a number of breeders in the UK. Sometimes there are ads here on this forum, but you'd do better to ask around.

 

[TJ]

<font color="ff0000">MOD MESSAGE</font>: I moved this post here from the Cynops (fire-bellied newt) discussion section as it's general in nature