Zilla Terrarium Liner, Odor Reducing, 30BR/40BR/50/65 Gallon

Bought this to use for our leopard gecko in my classroom. It’s easy to clean and very durable.

Easy to clean and use; its basically just a sheet of felt. We like to keep one in the tank, and one on hand for when we clean up in there, so we can just swap right away rather than have to clean it and wait for it to dry before replacing it. It’s a bit large for our 40 gallon tank, but it can be easily trimmed to size or folded under. Pic attached showing our bearded dragon Fireball, and the product below him.

We used to use a gravelly, desert-looking substrate, and while the look was really cool, it was difficult to clean because of the uneven, rocky surface. Also we would hose it off in our tub, and rocks/debris would be all over the place when we were done. No such issues with this. Does it look as cool? No. But you must accept the good with the bad, I suppose. 🙂

I love the look and texture of this bedding, but it’s just slightly too long for my 40 gal long tank. Not horrible though, I just trimmed off about an inch or so, but that’s what made it lose a star, in my opinion, just for the inconvenience. It’s very easy to clean and absorbs some of the more liquid feces, which definitely cut down on that distinct beardie poop smell. I bought two so I could immediately put in a new clean one once I took the old one out to be cleaned. Also, because it’s packaged in a roll, it has a curve to it and takes a long time to settle down flat. It’s a big enough curve that crickets can crawl underneath and either get crushed or die of dehydration, so I’m losing a lot of them and the crushed ones are a little difficult to clean. Hopefully it’ll settle down soon and that won’t be a problem anymore.

This substrate liner has been very convenient. I am new to owning a reptile and after much research, I found that most people agree that a substrate liner is the safest option for a baby leopard gecko. Apparently, whatever loose substrate is placed in the terrarium will end up in their mouths and cannot always pass through safely. This particular liner stood out to me due to its price point but I am happy to say that the quality is there as well.

I chose the brown color since my terrarium is more of a rocky desert scene. I have a 10 gallon tank and I found the 10 gallon liner fit perfectly without needing adjustment. I just unrolled it and put it right in. The ends do curl a bit at first but straighten out fairly quickly. I have not had any issues with my gecko getting stuck to this liner. I have removed it once so far for cleaning. It was a little strange to clean a piece of scratchy felt and I had to rinse for a while. However, when I was done, the mat dried very quickly and looked as good as new. I am quite happy about that.

In fact, I have such a favorable impression of this product that I have already purchased a second one of these so that I can place in a clean one immediately when I take a dirty one out to wash. I think I will continue using this product even as my gecko gets older since it is so convenient. Its also more sanitary than traditional substrate I think. There are less places for germs to be and also, it is easier to see when the substrate needs changed. As a bonus, it also gives insects less hiding places.

I am extremely content with my purchase mainly because I bought it at a ridiculously low price. I got the 50 gallon in brown for less than $12! What a steal! Now I have so much of it that I can chop it up into multiple pieces small enough for my 10 gallon… I just bought a baby Mexican Black Kingsnake and this substrate is perfect for her. It makes cleaning her home so easy. You just swap out the used for the new and then wash off the used one to be used again. Basically I will do that for a bunch of rounds until I need to toss the used substrate out for reaching the end of its life. Then, I grab another new cutting of the 50 gallon and swap it in for the old substrate that was tossed. I’ll do this again and again. I’m not sure how long I’ll be using each cut of substrate – I haven’t determined a time. I’m going to leave that up to my snake, because it really matters how often she uses it and how much it is able to be cleaned. Anyways, like I said, I’m very happy with my purchase, not only because this substrate is the most snake and human companion friendly for its ease of use, but also because I lucked out with the price.

I use this liner as a protective barrier in my BP tank to keep him from making direct contact to the glass bottom over the under tank heater. This seems to work very well. I use the 18×36 in a 40gal breeder tank and had to trim off about ¾” from the end (long side). I’d rather have to trim than have it too small though. The width was perfect. I like the brown color because it blends in with the Eco Earth bedding that I use and the liner is very soft for the animal. When it’s time to clean, it washes up very easy with a hose and air dries quickly. I do have 2 so that there is always one ready to put back in. I also use a green one alone on the bottom of my Crested Gecko tank. Clean-up is very easy. These carpets seem like they would be great for many kinds of reptiles and I believe they were originally intended to be used alone.