Getting Ackies Need Advise and Suggestions

[Aanayab1]

Sorry but this first post will be wordy, I promise to keep it as concise as possible.

I have decided to get a trio of Ackies... So let the learning truly begin.
Few things I need to put out there before beginning this.
I take constructive criticism very well. I also take every bit of help offered and research it so I can come to an informed/slightly educated decision of my own, I will of course, post the decision I come to and see if I have learned the point the helper was trying to get across(I may also include questions to better understand what the poster meant). Actual experience with the species at hand, be it good or bad will help me learn greatly.

Before starting this thread I read the monitor enclosure in this section... unfortunately not much useful information was retained do to confusion caused by all the bickering between the posts, but I think I got the important points. I got out of it; deep substrate, large cage a must, babies can be either housed in the full adult cage or a temporarily housed in smaller cages as long as the adult cage is truly built and not just a mythical object. Humidity and all three types of temperature are detrimental to the health of my animals.

Here are my plans as of now. I will be going with their permanent home.

I will be using the tub style monitor setup that ProExotics uses with some modification. You can see pictures of them on the web site in their photo gallery.

The dimensions will be 4'x2'x4' (if someone has had long term success with something else please chime in).

It will have 18- 20" of substrate (Still researching mixes and looking for what works well at that depth).

I will be insulating the bottom of the cage as I saw infernalis has done on his cage. Still debating doing the sides and top as well...

I will be incorporating a drainage and closed loop circulation system for 4-6" of water I plan to keep at the bottom of the cage... The Idea behind this stems from my experience keeping dart frogs with this type system.
If I keep water at the bottom in some LECA balls the water will wick its way up into the bottom of the soil without over soaking it. It will keep the humidity more stable(in theory) just as in a frog tank. The point behind it is keeping the water that settles from going stagnant via aeration and circulation, it keeps air even at the bottom of the soil so there is no way for the decomposing poo/urine/food scraps to go anaerobic. I will be able to drain the water to remove the nitrates, ammonia and nitrites and add fresh water. This way once a week I will be able to simulate rain fall, drain off the excess and keep the water at a constant depth. The purpose of the rain fall simulation is to rinse the soil without having to disturb the tunnels/burrows. I will explain more later(if asked) and provide drawings to help better explain.

I apologize for being so lengthy. Please chime in with any and all thoughts.

Antonio