comments on sand as a substrate

we are looking to make some of our caging more decorative and busy, we were considering using sand in some of our cages. we have heard mostly negative comments so far on other forums but would like to get some opinions here. any help would be great.
Thanks in advance,
Greg and Kristin

I don't recommend it. It's abrasive and it doesn't absorb feces or urates well. I use aspen, but it isn't very decorative. I guess if I was concerned with aesthetics, I'd go with the darker wood chip/shaving products like cypress mulch or repti-bark. I used to use repti-bark, and it looks good, but you have to freeze it first to kill the wood mites with which it's often infested.

Originally Posted by greg4000

we are looking to make some of our caging more decorative and busy, we were considering using sand in some of our cages. we have heard mostly negative comments so far on other forums but would like to get some opinions here. any help would be great.
Thanks in advance,
Greg and Kristin

Greg,
Just to expound upon what Dean said, sand is very abrasive and as the snakes crawl around on it their scales become very dull. While your enclosure may be very appealing to the human eye, the snakes within will appear very unattractive.

Additionally, if you are feeding within the enclosure, (not recommended) the chance for impaction is greatly increased.

Sand will also have a negative effect upon your efforts to maintain proper humidity within the enclosures.

I cannot think of a single good reason for using sand as a substrate.

Good luck with your animals.

They both covered the answer very well!

thats pretty much what we figured but it never hurts to get opinions. they are on aspen right now and thats probably how they will stay. again, thanks for the info and reinforcing what we thought the general concensus would be.