Different substrats on the same tank

[apple]

I have some tanks with sphagum moss.
But as I read that snails also need coir and some dried leaves,a small pond (yay ;D) should I combine all on the same tank?


apple

[section8angel]

I'm going to put a tub of soil mixed with coir in my tanks with the matting and moss so as they have something else.

And I know other people use gravel with soil and leaves. Beth is that you? Lol i know you've got leaves and soil, can't remember about gravel. (I'm too lazy to go look at the pics lol)

[Arno]

Thats what they have in nature,mixed things ..

[apple]

I have some tanks with only coir and moss, others ( the mentioned ones) only with sphagnum moss ( and a piece of bark, they seem to love it lol ) and finally some with only coir and dried leaves.
I once put a small dish with water, on the albino margies tank, but they actually burrowed under it lool, and all the water went out... gshhhh
So I´m about to combine all substrats ( excepts the «hairy» matting ah sorry « capillary» one ROFL). And those of perlite. But actually I´m curious about the capillary matting, but only if it´s combined with all the others.
Thanks for answer.

apple

[apple]

snailwatcher said:

Thats what they have in nature,mixed things ..

100% of the same opinion here!

[apple]

Does the moss from the pine forests suits well as snail substrat?
I´m asking this, because usually pine forests turn soils into acidic or slightly acidic.
Once that´s true, doesn´t moss carry acidic content in it?
But it´s also true that snails and slugs are also seen crawling in the leaf litter of pine forests...
I´m not interested in using the soil of the pine forest, just in it´s moss, but I´m worried about moss itself.

apple

[Arno]

apple said:

Does the moss from the pine forests suits well as snail substrat?
I´m asking this, because usually pine forests turn soils into acidic or slightly acidic.
Once that´s true, doesn´t moss carry acidic content in it?
But it´s also true that snails and slugs are also seen crawling in the leaf litter of pine forests...
I´m not interested in using the soil of the pine forest, just in it´s moss, but I´m worried about moss itself.

apple

I have been using moss that came from pine forests,they sell it here around Christmas time.Since it has been watered a lot it is fine to use for snails and I haven't seen any ill effects on my snails.

[Val]

snailwatcher said:

Thats what they have in nature,mixed things ..

Yes they do but you can't re create nature in a tank can you? There is no rain to clean the substrate and no other insects to help break down waste matter.

Val

[sezzy5889]

although i have changed to capillary matting but i have a tray of soil in the tank too, as i read somewhere (can't be bothered to find thread) that they eat small amount of soil, it good for them.

[Arno]

valerie said:

snailwatcher said:

Thats what they have in nature,mixed things ..

Yes they do but you can't re create nature in a tank can you? There is no rain to clean the substrate and no other insects to help break down waste matter.

Val

Oh but I do have my little army of woodlice which is very good at cleaning up a lot of the waste.

[Val]

snailwatcher said:

valerie said:

Yes they do but you can't re create nature in a tank can you? There is no rain to clean the substrate and no other insects to help break down waste matter.

Val

Oh but I do have my little army of woodlice which is very good at cleaning up a lot of the waste.

Haven't got rain though have you??? ;D ;D ;D

[section8angel]

Weren't you making a rain machine thing Arno? Nyah nyah lol

Does rain actually clean the soil though? It makes it wet and mixes it up a bit, but how does it actually clean it when in the wild there's so much more than snail sh*te in it lol.

[apple]

I guess it was Paul that was about to do it... Maybe I´m wrong lol.
It´s possible, just watering the tank with a bit more violence loool, but after that we already should have some kind of holes under the tank, then we just have to place another tank directly below it, to give the same effect lol when the water goes out from the first tank.
I´m kidding,lol I guess that a rain machine may have some kind of small pump ( in english you say that ?) which re-use the water with some filters, and with the small pump (battery or engine) the water goes up inside the tubs ( that have lot of small holes, from which the water by pressure goes outside like if it was rain) inside the tank, then once it passes through the compost, it has some conducts below that gets the water again that it can be filtered by the pump, and re-sent again to the tubs to rise inside it by the power of the enginee. LOL, it just came now the idea, lol, maybe i´m just saying garbage lool.
Ah btw, the engine can be electric ( ecological and don´t need fuel) or powered by sun-light, using proper batteries ( you there in Uk and Netherlands have more machines powered by sun light, than here, my government looks like those african lazy ones, have sun but don´t move a finger).ROFL. You all have to go here to kick their *ss and save my country YAYy LOL. Here that techonology it´s quiteexpensive, but after one year or two you are already spending less money than the ordinary electric system that usually people use, and is the one that i´ll use on my house, hopefully. ROFL.

[Paul]

Here is my idea:

www.petsnails.co.uk/docs/rain_machine.html

[section8angel]

Ahh it must have been Arno copying it then? I'm sure I saw you asking him about how his was going, somewhere Paul lol

[apple]

Very interesting Paul, and that´s not very expensive.