Carpets

When setting up your vivarium or terrarium for your pet reptile you will have a choice of substrates that will work in many environments.  The carpet reptile substrate can be used alone or with other substrates like bark, sand or moss.  It can be a protective layer if you want to use a product such as Reptitherm U.T.H. This type of carpet is a non abrasive soft product, which means the soft underside of the reptile will not get irritated.  The carpet will be absorbent so it will pull any waste materials away from the surface, another plus in keeping bacteria away from the soft underside of your reptile.

Using a soft carpet substrate is much better than using a carpet product made from astro turf.  Astro turf is non absorbent and because they are made from plastics they can irritate the reptile’s underside.  A soft carpet will limit exposure to bacteria build up and possible infections.

Reptile cage Carpet

When you purchase the cage carpet substrate there are generally two in a package so that cleaning maintenance is a breeze.  The cage carpet comes in gallon sizes with the smallest being a five gallon size.  The carpet substrate then continues with a ten gallon, fifteen to twenty gallon, twenty nine gallon, forty gallon and fifty five gallon size. The cage carpet substrate can be found in several colours including grey, brown, green and blue. A reptile substrate liner that could be used is the hydro fleece.  It is most often used with a hydro drain clay substrate.  This type of liner helps to prevent the substrate from seeping into the drainage layer.  It will let water seep through without any issues.

The hydro fleece liner is designed so that small granular materials like humus can’t penetrate through to the drainage layer.
Hydro fleece is easily cut to fit into the terrarium or vivarium and it will not rot.  If the area you are trying to cover is large the hydro fleece can be overlapped.  This method achieves the layer separation that reptile owners are trying to achieve.

Another type of reptile substrate liner is one that new reptile owners find easy to use and their reptiles like it.  It consists of a biodegradable enzyme product that helps to reduce odours.  All the new owner has to do is roll out the liner and cut it to fit the terrarium or vivarium.  It is absorbent and non abrasive so it won’t harm reptile feet or undersides.  It can be cleaned with simple cold tap water and reused.  The cleaning aspect of this liner is what differentiates this from the cage carpet.

Many starter habitats come with some form of cage carpet or liner for beginners.  It takes the guesswork out of choosing the right substrate for your new reptile.  If you have questions about whether to use a carpet, liner or other type of substrate for your pet reptile you should consult with a professional.   You can also read the pet care guide that should come with the reptile.