Using moss to slighty raise humidity for slings??

Phlerr · Apr 22, 2012

I was just thinking that using a small amount of moss (frog moss/terrarium moss maybe?) to slighty elevate the humidity for my slings. I also thought it might be a good source of water for em to drink from. Does anyone have any experience with this and had good results? I've usually just mist but it seems Im always coming up with an idea that this or that may work better..........which doesnt always work

. But any words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated.

sbullet · Apr 22, 2012

There are many things to use in your substrate to elevate and sustain humidity. Sphagnum moss is one of those things. Vermiculite, eco-earth in general... there's loads.

grayzone · Apr 22, 2012

IMO nothin beats a good misting a time or two a week PLUS a small waterdish... given your t is like 1.5" (a plastic bottle cap works wonders)... Moss DOES help, but i mostly use it for decoration

Anonymity82 · Apr 22, 2012

I've found that eco earth works really well if you just pour water directly on the substrate once a week. The amount of eco earth you use will play a big factor on just how much water you use. Moss tends to smell funny imo.

Kris M · Apr 22, 2012

I don't know if this applies to spiders or not, but many humidity loving reptiles don't actually prefer constant humidity.
It's often times better to let the humidity drop, then through misting raise it way up again.
Again I'm not sure if this applies to spiders at all, but something to give thought to.

Phlerr · Apr 22, 2012

I already use coir as my substrate and I only mist half of the enclosure so the other half is dry all the time. Im sure how I mist is sufficient for my T's, I havent gotten any complaints yet

. But like I said before this was just an idea that crept in my head and I didnt want to start trying it out until I got a few opinions on here. Also I wanted to point out that I wasnt wanting to use it as a substrate, just a piece with the diameter of a quarter or half-dollar nothing huge or anything like that. Thanx for the replies so far everybody.

Storm76 · Apr 22, 2012

I'm using moss in the sling enclosures of my purpureas as a little experiment to the amount of moisture and misting needed that way. So far, moisture stays longer in there and I have to mist less. So it's certainly helping, but my T's also drag that stuff up into the higher regions and incorporate it into their webbing

Not what I intended, but just T's being T's

SamuraiSid · Apr 22, 2012

EDIT: ^^ I should really take a lesson from Storm and record how much this actually benefits my slings.

Phlerr said:
I was just thinking that using a small amount of moss (frog moss/terrarium moss maybe?) to slighty elevate the humidity for my slings. I also thought it might be a good source of water for em to drink from. Does anyone have any experience with this and had good results? I've usually just mist but it seems Im always coming up with an idea that this or that may work better..........which doesnt always work . But any words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated.

I've been doing this with some of my slings for the past month. Good results... hard to say. It certainly works but I do question if its even necessary. I just fluff some up and throw it in the corner. A heavy misting, and its set for a few weeks. Helps if you want to keep the majority of your enlcosure on the dryer side. I do this because my basement suite is stuffy, and I want to reduce the available space for mold to grow. Its a lot easier to pick up a bit of moss with tongs, than have to fish out a spoon and dig out the mold. It works for me

sjl197 · Apr 22, 2012

Yes, moss is fine and helpful to keep humidity for species that like humidity. I've done it using washed spaghnum moss from my garden for the last 12 years or so.

Isaax Critterz · Mar 15, 2023

I used moss from my local pet store ( pro tip: Pet stores = bad info about tarantulas )

kingshockey · Mar 15, 2023

i just use moss for my really dinky slings quarter inch or less in size serves dual purpose . a place to start a burrow/hide and source to drink from after using a syringe to wet the moss at 1.5 inches they all get a bottle cap as a water dish that gets flooded over now and then

cold blood · Mar 15, 2023

fwiw....this thread died 11 years ago.

kingshockey · Mar 15, 2023

it happens when you lack enough coffee in your sytem still

Using moss to slighty raise humidity for slings??

Phlerr

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