Soil Question

Originally Posted by froggiez

I noticed when I change the water dish in my Gray tree frog terrarium that water spills on the soil and doesn't evaporate quickly so I know it is a little over soaked, dummy me forgot to place rocks under the soil for draining purposes so I am wondering could I just let it go down naturally, dry out, still misting the tank and putting fresh water in the container of course. also I noticed it seems everyone uses moss over the soil, is that best or just a preference?
soil is organic no fertilizers btw..but a cheap organic brand, nothing fancy with peat moss or anything in it.
I would hate to have to move little gray to change and fix the soil since this is his first week in his new home, but will if I need to.
any suggestions?

If you have good ventilation yes it should dry out naturally without any problem. Grays don't need much misting either as long as they have access to water. You can quit misting all together until things start looking a little to dry.

Thank you...I have a screen top but the original hood sitting on top for the light until I am able to get a regular strip light, I have the flip top lid open so air will get through the screen parts, so that should be ventilated enough?
Thanks for the quick reply!

Originally Posted by froggiez

Thank you...I have a screen top but the original hood sitting on top for the light until I am able to get a regular strip light, I have the flip top lid open so air will get through the screen parts, so that should be ventilated enough?
Thanks for the quick reply!

Yes, it should be plenty.

Hmm what I'd do if this ever happened to me. But this is because my room is quite damp as it is and things dont dry over a course of an hour. What I would do is move the frog to another place for the time being. If you have a heat lamp or even a basking light will work(uvb) put it on top of the terrarium. It should dry it up pretty quick. :P If you dont have a heat lamp just take the tank outside and let it sit for 30mins out in the sun. It should dry up alot of it. If the tank ends up being too dry just mist it up again. Also for waterspills.... hmmm.
If your dish isnt too big you could get a plastic bag or a large ziplock bag and put the bottom of the dish on it. Though I use a bowl so this works better for me? In any case do that and get some moss and put it where the dish is. The water will go into the moss. :P

I don't think there is a need to do anything at this point.

I agree with Kurt, leave the frogs alone. It will be fine.

thank you all...I will give it a little bit of time to see if it dries out on its' own...I had a plastic Tupperware dish that would bend and spill water when I took it out, now I have a ceramic drip pan from my old planter in there and I will probably just soak the water up and wipe it out then add more to it from the tank so I don't have to remove it. Think I may get some moss though

I use dog and cat bowls with treefrogs and other frog adept at climbing. They are sure cheaper than the bowls in the reptile section of the store.

cool I may have to look into that, not sure if little gray like to submerge himself, he was living in my porch plant and I didn't have any water in it except what I watered the plants with of course.

Originally Posted by Kurt

I use dog and cat bowls with treefrogs and other frog adept at climbing. They are sure cheaper than the bowls in the reptile section of the store.

Or if he wants something thats a single color and cheap he could go to walmart and go to the kitchen section and look at the bowls. I bought a 2dollar bowl there, its nice to look at and its green. I took pottery a while ago and made my own dishes and ornaments. You could do that. :P

That is a good idea too!

Originally Posted by froggiez

That is a good idea too!

I saw this one made of bamboo. It was like a chinese wooden bowl? It was nice. But my parents didnt want me to use wood for some reason. :P I plan on making my own dish soon out of gravel. Iam going to make a mold and then get glue and get gravel and mix it together. It should look nice and spiffy. Id make it onto a large pool.

The bamboo one sounds pretty nice too! Show pics when you finish yours

Originally Posted by froggiez

The bamboo one sounds pretty nice too! Show pics when you finish yours

Ill try. If I get my computer fixed my lazy father hasnt lift a finger on it and I dont know squat about fixing em. So Iam pretty well stuck on my wii. Also if you wanna see very nice designs for terrariums go to michaels or any crafts store. Just make sure the item doesnt have a weird aroma and NEVER buy moss from there(trust me). Also always clean the items more than 6times to make sure any chemicals are gone. :P

will do...thank you!

Originally Posted by froggiez

will do...thank you!

you're welcome bud.

I buy all my sheet moss from Michaels. It's a lot cheaper than buying it at reptile shops and it is the exact same thing. I've used it in every frog tank I've set up with absoultely no problems. Read the packages they will tell you if they are safe for terrariums or not.

Originally Posted by bshmerlie

I buy all my sheet moss from Michaels. It's a lot cheaper than buying it at reptile shops and it is the exact same thing. I've used it in every frog tank I've set up with absoultely no problems. Read the packages they will tell you if they are safe for terrariums or not.

Oh my mom; everytime I went there with her she told me the moss tends to have some additives and colorant and scents. Which is why I avoided it. So I may be wrong on that.

Read the packages there's one or two that even mention being safe for use in terrariums with reptiles and amphibians.