I have air filters, and do a lot to help the rats live longer and more comfortably, but I am hoping someone knows which house plants are super producers of oxygen. Ideally this plant isn't toxic to cats, and doesn't need much light. Sorry, but plants aren't really going to help here. I had 2 rats as pets and know what you are talking about regarding their health. They were adorable pets and super friendly. I chose them because of their friendliness and short life span as I wanted to teach my young son about death while allowing him to have a pet that wouldn't bite him and rats fit the bill perfectly. Their sharp nails were the only drawback, but overall I strongly recomend rats over hamsters and gerbils to any parent wanting a pet for their young children. Unfortunately a plant is not going to raise the oxygen levels in your home any more than walking around with a spray bottle spritzing the air is going to raise humidity levels in your home. The effect will be extremely minor and short lived as there is constant air exchange with the outside. There is evidence that having *a lot* of plants in a 'tight' building can improve indoor air quality by filtering out the bad and replacing it with clean, but in all likelihood your air filters are significantly more effective than a handful of plants in low light (meaning slow growth and transpiration) will be. By all means start growing houseplants if it interests you, but I strongly doubt it will do anything to assist the rat's respiratory function as they age.

Brandon - first - oh no!! Makes me sad to know that our access is cut off - going back into past swap info was so useful... :( Second - the water iris sounds like it may have come from Karen - I know this because my "mini water garden" came from her in the same type of bucket. She also brought me things at the fall swap for my water garden in the same type buckets. I know that the one she gave away the most was Black Game Cock Iris... Tiffany

Sealing the tiles before laying them might prevent the grout from taking hold Not really, but I also prefer to grout afterward. That said, if you're DIYing this, it depends on whether the hex is honed or polished. if it's polished, there'd be no need to seal first, no matter who's setting it. But if it's honed, and you're installing it, it might not be a bad idea to seal it first, being that you're not used to it.

I didn't say before but that's a really nice size! Yes they will all grow in there. Heating cables would really help any subtropical in ground. Plants hardy to zone 9b should work. musa basjoo banana was accidentally planted in ground and it had it's first winter in the GH. The coldest month was Jan and growth stopped, resuming in Feb. I didn't use heating cables and this is the result pic from Feb 2017