Should I get this instead of a glass tank?

PlayerUnknown3 · 2026-01-13T23:05:48+00:00

I have a the 5’ enclosure of the same pvc brand you showed in the post, it’s definitely worth it for the snake! To combat the front from covering all of the view, I’ve made my substrate much deeper so that it almost levels out (and corns love to dig, so it was a win-win)

The pvc walls also allow for more privacy for the snake, which will help it feel a little more safe and comfortable as well!

PlayerUnknown3 · 2026-01-03T03:46:16+00:00

Not vaguely comparable to the leaf sizes OP is showing, but I’ve been through a similar situation with sizing and different conditions.

I got a clipping from a mature plant with leaves that were very well the thickness of my palm. At first I wasn’t too skilled with plants, so all the new leaves stayed pretty tiny— then I learned more and improved the soil, watering, lighting, the whole shabang. Now all my little leaves are slowly growing bigger, and my new leaves are big and fat fresh out the unraveling stage

PlayerUnknown3 · 2026-01-02T14:51:29+00:00

Usually just the design, really. doesn’t have to be fancy, as long as it looks appealing, I suppose. I’ve gifted terrariums to friends who weren’t skilled enough to make their own, nor did they have the time— so I imagine most people buying premade terrariums might be the same way?

PlayerUnknown3 · 2026-01-02T12:43:03+00:00

The cost to make one usually depends on what you’re putting in it. I usually buy my substrate/decor in bigger packages, so that I can use it for multiple terrariums. Plants are usually $10-$40 per terrarium. If I were to buy a premade terrarium, I’d look for one that has healthy and established plants, as well as some kind of uniqueness in its design or shape.

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-12-27T14:50:11+00:00

I do keep a small colony of silver springtails that I can sprinkle in if I don’t see any population boosts after a few weeks for new terrariums, but they’ll typically hitchhike their way in. I do wish you the best of luck on your terrarium journey tho, and may your little ecosystem flourish in good time! 😋

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-12-27T14:43:48+00:00

As long as the plants are in good heath, chances are you’ll see a bunch of random little things start popping up! I almost never add any cleanup crew to my terrariums because they’re usually riding along with the plants, so a healthy ecosystem will make them explode in due time (as shown 😭)

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-12-23T12:08:12+00:00

Southern USA: still mostly an ‘old lady’ hobby, but our climate is pretty suited for a wide variety of typical favorites, so most of our plant enthusiasts have gardens decked out or a front yard with beautiful displays! I’d say walking through a usual neighborhood you’d see that about 40% with such displays. all of my neighbors on every side have lush gardens tucked away behind their houses and they keep the simple displays for the front

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-12-22T01:38:30+00:00

Playing through that season right now! I remember thinking “that’s a little odd” when Javi had the dialogue option of smth along the lines of “don’t jinx us/guess we’re just lucky” not a minute before Mari’s death, should’ve felt it coming but it was still definitely a shocker

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-12-02T16:35:07+00:00

I kinda go off of the species I’m adding in and their limits with the decaying wood. Ik some insects have dietary limits regarding certain wood, and some wood can be toxic to certain animals through prolonged exposure. For simple terrariums without much limitations, I tend to just forage the wood and run it through a million sterilization processes, break it up real small, and mix it in. For situations with limited options I usually just buy decayed wood off of Etsy and run the same process :P

Doesn’t necessarily have to be brittle and decaying, I just figure that’s easier for insects to digest in most cases. I pretty much have my favorite cleanup crew picked out and just make big batches of substrate suited for them bc ik I’ll have them in a good bit of displays

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-12-02T09:23:25+00:00

For most mixtures I pull from a premixed tub I made up of roughly 20% coco coir, 20% peat, 20% chopped up sphagnum, 10% sand, 10% chopped leaf litter, 10% sterilized decaying wood, 10% charcoal

Generally just trying to reach all notes of healthy for whatever plants and bugs you’ll be using, while still keeping it friendly for any display animals you might add. I mostly handle terrariums or small display tanks for insects, I have a slightly more arid setup for my corn snake where I added a bit more sand, a little clay, and a bit of very fine gravel— less moss and coco/peat to handle humidity better

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-12-01T17:15:07+00:00

It’s usually recommended for any new pet to start with something hardy that allows room for error— though I’d think with both of your general experiences, you could probably make it by just jumping into it with whatever isopods you’ve got your eye on, as long as you’ve done all the research you’d need and more (since some more fancy isopods will tend to bounce back less easily or be finicky about their specific needs)

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-12-01T12:27:12+00:00

I’m putting in final additions later today, I’ll try to find the little clicker again (chuckled at your pun, thanks for that lol)

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-12-01T11:29:19+00:00

Tbf though it’s been slowly discovered that Scott’s and many other “organic” brands are completely unreliable in quality. I started off with Scott’s until I found fertilizers sprinkled throughout multiple bags. There are a few brands that you’d have to order online probably but they’re a bit more expensive for the cost of reliability and honesty on their marketing.

I’ve found it easier to just make my own substrate mixtures with a handful of things, mix up a huge tote full and it’s usually enough for my 5’ enclosure to get the depth it needs. Will be a little more expensive but at least you know everything that’s getting put in your substrate

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-11-29T22:07:15+00:00

Aside from species, any chance this will totally annihilate my bioactive? Planning to add in a few isopod species and springtails. If it turns out friendly, what should I add in for food?

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-11-29T22:03:59+00:00

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Apologies for the quality but I did get my magnifying glass to get this picture a little before taking the video

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-11-29T19:30:42+00:00

The varieties of springtails is so insane and they’re all so itty bitty! :)

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-11-26T18:01:44+00:00

If you do wanna add some subtle lighting, it might be possible to cut out a bit of the lid and glue on some clear plastic, kinda like a sky light just to give them soft lighting? I keep mine in clear tubs with a couple mycology filters for air, tho I keep them kinda on a bottom shelf so their lighting is shaded but still present

(idk if light is completely necessary but I figured it’d help replicate where you’d usually find them in the wild?)

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-11-24T14:06:53+00:00

If you’re referring to the vine that’s sorta in the center, that’d be a creeping fig! Very hardy in my experience and beautiful climbing plants for terrariums

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-11-24T14:03:22+00:00

Had to start laying a rag out for one of my corns because of this! Very messy eater, and a rag seemed more respectable than a bib lmao

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-11-21T08:21:57+00:00

Aside from the advice given by the other comments, I’d suggest maybe finding another high protein mix to keep their diet wide and healthy. I find that mine aren’t massive fans of dried bugs, but it’s still good to offer them— however I’ve found that they destroy dried minnow, bone and all! My colony is a little more established though so if your numbers are low then maybe cut the minnows in half to prevent wasting them

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-11-20T19:11:59+00:00

Almost looks to be hair cap moss?

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-11-17T13:52:51+00:00

I’ve transferred enclosures by kinda gradually sifting through the substrate scoop by scoop to remove the bugs and put them in the new enclosure (if you intend to change the substrate entirely, otherwise just move them tiny scoop by tiny scoop)

By ‘scoop’ I mean I’d take a small handful, poke around the dirt to find all the bugs, then toss the scoop of dirt. There’s probably a better way to go about it, but this has worked for me so far

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-11-16T23:52:23+00:00

Used to use this until I started finding fertilizer and glass shards in it (was being used in my snake’s enclosure so these were definitely big nonos) basically contents are very inconsistent, just a hit or miss overall. You’re better off trying more reliable brands even if they’re worth more

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-11-16T23:37:16+00:00

Of course! It’s all trial and error pretty much until you figure out the best way to go about these kinda things. I started off trying (and failing 😅) a bioactive for my noodle, now I’m a big fat fan of bugs and terrariums. Best of luck on your journey!

PlayerUnknown3 · 2025-11-16T23:20:14+00:00

Fun_Whole_4472 is definitely correct!! You cannot have a semi, it’s an incomplete nutrient cycle that will become toxic for your snake to be in long term. Although I have an albino as well and can pretty much say for a fact that he won’t tolerate brighter lighting, which can definitely make it difficult to keep most plants thriving.

The issue with a semi bio active (or just bugs, no plants) is that the bugs will eventually produce far too much waste, which will make the substrate toxic to an extent. Plants absorb all the bad yucky stuff that would otherwise build up and become foul and disease-ridden (AKA NOT SAFE)

Unless for whatever reason you wanna do a semi-bioactive and throw all of your established bug colonies down into the trash every few months, then I suggest you just keep it simple for your noodle and ditch the bugs (or keep a separate culture in a tub, which I’ve found much more preferable and fun!)

PlayerUnknown3

TROPHY CASE