is this a proper tank setup for pedes?

I have a 10 inch (or so) vietnamese giant, and on the other tank a 6 inch southwestern cent... I spoke to caco about this, but its better if you guys see my setup in a picture. The top of the tank is a slide out lid with metal mesh wire on the top I inserted a pin and taped the sides so theres no absolute way he can get out unless he chews through that mesh wire... The bedding is T-Rex "jungle bed". This bedding can be found at:
http://www.t-rexproducts.com/Dynamic/product_detail.asp?item=81566&series=

I got that bedding since it seemed almost perfect for pedes, but can microscopic dust for this bedding irritate pedes? my spinipes came out to scratch himself then went back into his den. I love this hobby, I might have found a new home haha, these pedes are intruiging... hopefully we can start a local pede chapter in inland empire, california. Thanks for any info guys/gals highly appreciated.

ps. by the way there are stick on reptile heaters underneath both tanks, is that a good idea? its fairly cold in my room about 60-70 degrees... and to keep humidity should i get aluminum and cover the mesh screen (tape it) and cut several holes in the aluminum foil to retrain moisture?

Hi crashergs,

That setup looks fine to me. Just keep an eye on the metal mesh to make sure the pede can't chew through it, they certainly can chew through thin metal mesh.... Other than that, it might be an idea to either deepen the substrate, or add more hides, as there doesnt seem to be many choices for the pede to hide at the moment. Lastly, i would place the heatmat on the back of the tank, not underneath, as centipedes are likely to burrow when they are too hot, even if the heat source is underneath. Also, heatmats can get way too hot with a layer of glass and substrate over them, i've had one crack the bottom of the tank due to overheating. It's much safer to stick it on the back of the tank.

Cheers,

danread said:

Hi crashergs,

That setup looks fine to me. Just keep an eye on the metal mesh to make sure the pede can't chew through it, they certainly can chew through thin metal mesh.... Other than that, it might be an idea to either deepen the substrate, or add more hides, as there doesnt seem to be many choices for the pede to hide at the moment. Lastly, i would place the heatmat on the back of the tank, not underneath, as centipedes are likely to burrow when they are too hot, even if the heat source is underneath. Also, heatmats can get way too hot with a layer of glass and substrate over them, i've had one crack the bottom of the tank due to overheating. It's much safer to stick it on the back of the tank.

Cheers,

Click to expand...

you're the man, dan

one other thing... some ppl keep there cetnipedes on bone dry substrate with a water dish... the screen top cages are perfect for that. BUT if you want to try keeping the substrate a little more moist then you might want to cover ~1/2 - 3/4 of the top with plastic wrap

Here are a couple of my 5 gal setups. As you can see, I'm a believer in giving them deep sub. Overkill with the one on the right. A tarantula is in that one so I'm not worried about it getting to the screen top. I mix peat and granite sand. I bury a rock or two, or maybe an old cedar stump to give them something to dig next too and make their room. And it helps prevent the sub from caving in. I then place a good sized flat rock on top. My big pedes have been under for about two months now. That of course would be the winter thing to do (locally caught pedes). That tells me they are happy, ....or dead! Hoping to see babies in the spring. I get the rocks and wood from my backyard, creeks, rivers and lakes. As you can see, I have plenty of rocks in my backyard. I would mail them to everybody if I could.

NICe setups

I like those setups id love to add more substrate but im kind of worried of the pede being more able to puncture the top of the mesh. I will add more hiding spots, im going to dremel some rocks enough so they feel squished which caco said they liked. You can see how humid my enclosure got by adding layers of duck tap.

crashergs said:

I like those setups id love to add more substrate but im kind of worried of the pede being more able to puncture the top of the mesh. I will add more hiding spots, im going to dremel some rocks enough so they feel squished which caco said they liked. You can see how humid my enclosure got by adding layers of duck tap.

Click to expand...

the one draw back to a moist setup like that is that mites and mold are MUCH more likely

i shoot for the substrate to be a little less moist than that right after i water it, and water again when the topmost layer of substrate is dry, but the bottom is still moist