Some sand questions.

So Ive decided on trying to get a Desert Hair this winter. Im just designing its tank atm and I was wondering what types of sand are best. I heard calci sand has its problems and isnt a good solution. Home depot has sand that works well? Are there places online to order from?
Im wondering if its possible to get coloured sand that is safe because I really want a desert red colour sand, (possibly black). Something like that red earth you might see in Australia. And when you buy sand, do you bake it?

Nev wrote:

So Ive decided on trying to get a Desert Hair this winter. Im just designing its tank atm and I was wondering what types of sand are best. I heard calci sand has its problems and isnt a good solution. Home depot has sand that works well? Are there places online to order from?
Im wondering if its possible to get coloured sand that is safe because I really want a desert red colour sand, (possibly black). Something like that red earth you might see in Australia. And when you buy sand, do you bake it?

some people mix excavating clay with the sand, so the burrows are secure ( in the event of burrowing)
black or red sand would really make the scorp stick out, so id lean on that idea...
my basic opinion (being that i dont own one and havent, just done a butt load of research)
would be for you to try and get sand that would mimic the desert regions they come from...

also for baking it, i have no idea...
i wouldnt know how to sterilize sand without being told the step by step process...
i dont think there should be any difference at all with sand now that i think of it...

id wait for more opinions though

Yeah Ill be mixing with excavating clay. How is that reptisand by Zoomed? Not the calci but the no additives reptisand. Can I mix that with excavating clay?

sounds perfect...
i used it when i bred leopard geckos and if i remember correctly, it says on the website you can use it for any animal that lives in a desert like environment

i ended up scrapping the sand for reptile carpet, cause i found out that the leopard gecko could eat the sand, but i believe a scorpion would be alright on it

Yeah, its bad for lizards because its not a natural grain. Theyre square so they und up playing tetris inside the lizard until their entire system is blocked.
I think I might try a mix of excavator clay and reptisand.

the repti sand is pure quartz desert sand...so it is natural.
but yeah i wanted to avoid impaction at all costs...
with a desert species of scorpion, i dont believe this is a problem

A lot of people swear by the Home Depot sand because it's so ridiculously cheap compared to anything from a petstore, but I've used reptisand and it worked fine.

If you're using excavator clay, the usual ratio is 70% sand to 30% clay. It does an amazing job of holding up burrows but is still soft enough for the scorpion to dig. Just give the tank several days to a week to completely dry up (and it's going to be really heavy, just so you know).

Also, I noticed that my H. arizonensis took forever to burrow in it. You can possibly avoid this by using a "starter burrow." Just dig a shallow depression under a rock in the tank and your scorp should expand on that. You can even put it against the wall of the tank in the hopes of having a visible burrow.

I was thinking about starting a burrow for him by placing a pre made tunnel against the window and then placing the sand over that. Will a scorp use that if I just add a little sand inside to make him feel as if he dug a tunnel himself? Or will they think its already occupied and never use it?

I've seen emps take to a half-pipe of PVC against the glass, so it might work. I'd just be worried about it not being grippy enough for their little claws.

I was thinking the same plus Im also a nut with details and keeping a terrarium as real as possible so if I did do the pvc I would cover it with earth and sand via a silicone coating.