Substrate for your corn snake
Substrate is the flooring of the enclosure. Imagine substrate as your carpet. There are different choices for substrates with some more beneficial than others:
Aspen – perhaps one of the, if not the, most common forms of substrates for arid species. Aspen is a type of tree that is cut down, chopped up and splintered into tiny pieces. Aspen is cheap, easy to clean and readily available to replace as and when you need to top up or clean out and replace the whole lot.
On the flip side, aspen creates a hazard when feeding and if your corn snake is fed on aspen, you may experience ingestion of piece which can lodge in your snakes mouth or digestive tract. Some keepers negate this by removing their snake to another tub/enclosure for feeding but this is a dated practice that places unnecessary stress on your corn snake. It’s also quite ‘dusty’ so I’d recommend a large strainer/sieve and give it a shake out first if you decide to use this. Aspen can also become mouldy if wet/moist so keep an eye on water bowl spillages.
Lignocel – is, in my opinion, a better option than aspen. Significantly less dust, absorbent and holds tunnels well if you find your corn snake burrowing. Lignocel also holds humidity better, not that corn snakes require high humidity, to retain that low-mid level of humidity rather than aspen which tends to become drier and drier. Lignocel can still lead to issues with ingestion, so bare this in mind but if you want a relatively inexpensive, safe substrate – Lignocel is my answer.
Bark – most commonly used is orchid bark. Looks pretty and gives off that natural aesthetic, whilst also giving your corn snake a dust free environment. Bark does retain high humidity and is expensive compared to most if not all of the other options listed here. It can also be quite abrasive on burrowing snakes and does not retain tunnels well. As long as you keep an eye on humidity levels, it’s a safe substrate for your corn snake and wont cause issues with needing to relocate for feeding or placing plastic down to feed on.
Sand – builder’s sand the type you would find at a merchants or most stores, is not suitable for corn snakes. Without becoming too technical, builder’s sand is like tetris blocks, designed to ‘fit’ together to create a foundation. This can lead to impaction which will require medical intervention or even death.
Play sand is by far a much safer option with the structure being more rounded and not binding together. But it’s not recommended to use sand alone for corn snakes due to irritation. Instead consider sand part of a substrate mix.
Coco coir – using 100% coco coir or coconut fibre retains too much moisture and is not suitable as a substrate alone. High humidity levels may cause scale rot or respiratory issues.
Arid Mixtures – Some companies like Arcadia designed an arid mix which you can pretty much pour straight into the enclosure. You may find the humidity spike initially until the excess moisture evaporates but overall, it’s a simple, safe and relatively inexpensive way to create a natural looking enclosure.
Homemade – Recently homemade arid mixes have become more of ‘thing’ and it’s cheaper long term than buying arix mixes, though the initial outlay is going to be higher. You’ll need a mix of 50% organic topsoil or potting compost (needs to be organic to avoid pesticides, etc), 25% coco coir and 25% play sand. If you want to go down the bio active route, reduce those %s slightly to account for 5-10% overall mix of moss which you can buy dehydrated in blocks for relatively lost cost. Then follow the hydration process and add to the mix.
This mix is great for corn snakes but does require more of an initial outlay. You’ll need a large container for mixing, the purchase of each of the ‘ingredients’ independently will be expensive and you’ll need to find storage for these items or store everything pre mixed.