Cleaning old world enclosures

[Butterbean83]

I've got a question. I have two old worlds and with them being old worlds I'm not keen on escapes and wiping down the lids is bad enough, but I can't get to the sides to wipe down the steam or whatever that is blocking view because of the substrate. I'd have to do it every 20 minutes if I did, as is the case with the lids of the deli cup it would just look cloudy again. I'm using Spider life substrate. Thankyou and it's great to be on this forum

 

[Charliemum]

I've got a question. I have two old worlds and with them being old worlds I'm not keen on escapes and wiping down the lids is bad enough, but I can't get to the sides to wipe down the steam or whatever that is blocking view because of the substrate. I'd have to do it every 20 minutes if I did, as is the case with the lids of the deli cup it would just look cloudy again. I'm using Spider life substrate. Thankyou and it's great to be on this forum

You need more ventilation the sides shouldn't cloud up as you put it there should be enough air flow so that doesn't happen and if you are worried about working in a t's viv with the t in it you can either a. Put a clear cup over your t and hold it there till you have finished or if its a t in a burrow block the burrow with some card again till you finish working.

 

[Butterbean83]

You need more ventilation the sides shouldn't cloud up as you put it there should be enough air flow so that doesn't happen and if you are worried about working in a t's viv with the t in it you can either a. Put a clear cup over your t and hold it there till you have finished or if its a t in a burrow block the burrow with some card again till you finish working.

Thankyou. I put loads in but it's still steaming up as I can't make them big enough because the sling may get out although I did make them bigger at the top.it can't quite get too. The spider life substrate is quite moist so I may take some out as with it being quite close to the top therein probably lies the problem. I put moss in too as it's a sling and needs moisture and a tiny waterbowl that a sling can't drown in. Thankyou. I think the type of plastic doesn't help much either

Hopefully if I can make slightly bigger holes but not big enough for the sling to escape something if I can find the right thing to use the sides will dry up better now need to wipe them. Don't wanna stress the T out moving it again as it already been moved about and has the lid off plenty because I kept removing the lid to wipe it yesterday?

 

[Glorfindel]

i fold up a paper towel into a small 2 or 3 inch square, then grip it with Long Tongs and Carefully / Quietly wipe down the Inner Front Panel.
H20 & Elbow Grease

 

[Kada]

What species and size? Either need less moisture or more ventilation to allow evaporation. I agree with above, if you are getting lots on condensation, too moist or too little air flow.

 

[viper69]

I've got a question. I have two old worlds and with them being old worlds I'm not keen on escapes and wiping down the lids is bad enough, but I can't get to the sides to wipe down the steam or whatever that is blocking view because of the substrate. I'd have to do it every 20 minutes if I did, as is the case with the lids of the deli cup it would just look cloudy again. I'm using Spider life substrate. Thankyou and it's great to be on this forum

What’s your question? I see above someone rambling on.

 

[Butterbean83]

It was clearly how do I keep wiping down the sides with the substrate in them when it steams up so often with a normal temperature and not too much moisture, I think the substrate was a bad choice, and the rest was me stating that I have less experience than most with old worlds and that it was at first, a bit challenging for me opening the tubs.

 

[Charliemum]

It was clearly how do I keep wiping down the sides with the substrate in them when it steams up so often with a normal temperature and not too much moisture, I think the substrate was a bad choice, and the rest was me stating that I have less experience than most with old worlds and that it was at first, a bit challenging for me opening the tubs.

Less water more holes and sorry it didn't tell me you had answered because the post got moved to a different thread

 

[Butterbean83]

Less water more holes and sorry it didn't tell me you had answered because the post got moved to a different thread

No worries thankyou for your answer I added a small amount of excavator clay and mixed it in, took the water bowls out, the slings one was tiny anyway, they've now webbed so I've added droplets to their webs. Still not clearing it up, I took the tape off the Exo Terra Mini as that had too much airflow and people usually do with those but still some slight condensation at the sides. It's more the sling in the deli cup, I mixed some excavator clay in, obviously not much, I had already made what holes it couldn't reach bigger, and took the moss out as I only have it moss as people usually say slings need more moisture, I think it seems to be because the substrate is moist itself for some reason straight out the bag (Spider Life, it's all I've got for now aswell as excavator clay) and because it's full to about 2.5" or so inches it's close enough to the top of the 16 Oz deli cup that the moisture gets to the lid quicker.

I'm wanting to swap them anyway or sell them so I will be putting an ad up as I want A T Vagans or A Harpactira, I do well with, and enjoy the Desert or Semi Arid set ups.

 

[kingshockey]

you can carefully poke more holes into the deli cups or just be patient and allow the dirt to dry out enough to no longer cause the condensation. then its just a matter of figuring out how much and how often to add water to the dirt. things get easier once you learn how damp dirt looks versus swampy etc. you can get blunt syringes at the pharmacy used for giving infants medication then you can measure how much water to add into the dirt

 

[Charliemum]

No worries thankyou for your answer I added a small amount of excavator clay and mixed it in, took the water bowls out, the slings one was tiny anyway, they've now webbed so I've added droplets to their webs. Still not clearing it up, I took the tape off the Exo Terra Mini as that had too much airflow and people usually do with those but still some slight condensation at the sides. It's more the sling in the deli cup, I mixed some excavator clay in, obviously not much, I had already made what holes it couldn't reach bigger, and took the moss out as I only have it moss as people usually say slings need more moisture, I think it seems to be because the substrate is moist itself for some reason straight out the bag (Spider Life, it's all I've got for now aswell as excavator clay) and because it's full to about 2.5" or so inches it's close enough to the top of the 16 Oz deli cup that the moisture gets to the lid quicker.

I'm wanting to swap them anyway or sell them so I will be putting an ad up as I want A T Vagans or A Harpactira, I do well with, and enjoy the Desert or Semi Arid set ups.

T vagans are a great spider I have their cousin Tliltocatl sp tortuguero (bigger pimpedup version of t vagans) the black n red are quite amazing and they are usually great eaters too, Harpactira may not be the best to get though I have a saf I never see her she made her burrow n the most I see is toes so if your looking for a spider you can see Harpactira may not be the best choice. Plus if your not comfortable opening the viv for the ow you have now, getting a Harpactira is still ow so you have the same problems as before, if you want something a little less spicy and that spends 90% of their time on display even as slings I recommend ;

Acanthoscurria geniculata tanks of the t world,
Pamphobeteus the slings are a little skittish but run to the burrow and they love food, get any they are all great ,
Nhandu again any they all sit out and are extremely food aggressive seen mine barrelroll into the hide as she scooped up the food so funny to watch my favourite are caraponensis,
Tliltocatl albopilosus any of the 3 locals love food dig n tend to be really chill no flinging themselves about when you open the viv i keep all 3 local and they are all brilliant spoods,
Aphonopelma again all are great, little tanks that demolish everything ,my chalcodes and serratum are out all the time n have been since they were 1inch dls, although my seemanni dug n live in the burrow they are still great to keep.

I keep about 80 species of tarantula atm and for someone newer to the hobby remember start small you can always get spicy t's once you are more confident with things like feeding and rehousing, I actually started with my native giant house spiders and was keeping them for 5 months before I got my first t , there is no rush the t's will still be there once your confidence is better. Its no good having a t that you can't open the viv of especially with slings they are mucky little things that need constant house cleaning and frequent health checks

 

[kingshockey]

You can also make yourself a sling trap. i do it with all my slings works great from a wheelchair with only one working hand to use they got no place to run if they run out of a delicup

 

[Charliemum]

You can also make yourself a sling trap. i do it with all my slings works great from a wheelchair with only one working hand to use they got no place to run if they run out of a delicup

I do this too! I have back and stomach issues because of the morphine they left me on so like your good self I cant risk an escape.....Yay for poor health haha great suggestion Shocky

 

[kingshockey]

I do this too! I have back and stomach issues because of the morphine they left me on so like your good self I cant risk an escape.....Yay for poor health haha great suggestion Shocky

yeah an escape means a dead t or cat for me both unacceptable outcomes

 

[Charliemum]

yeah an escape means a dead t or cat for me both unacceptable outcomes

Same, I have 4 cats atm my son is neuro divergent , and my mum lives with me atm as she's just been diagnosed with cancer and i want to look after her so definitely no escapees.
All our cats are part ferrol too we have train tracks out bk of our house and they came from there I have been working with them for years and 3 don't care about the spoods they are old and are more bothered about cuddles and being somewhere warm but we recently had a small black n white female called Luna dumped on us from a woman round the corner who didn't want her (she moved the next day) and Luna has had no socialisation at all and chases anything that moves , I know she would definitely chase the t's if an escape happened.
Better safe then sorry as the saying goes.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

T vagans are a great spider I have their cousin Tliltocatl sp tortuguero (bigger pimpedup version of t vagans) the black n red are quite amazing and they are usually great eaters too, Harpactira may not be the best to get though I have a saf I never see her she made her burrow n the most I see is toes so if your looking for a spider you can see Harpactira may not be the best choice. Plus if your not comfortable opening the viv for the ow you have now, getting a Harpactira is still ow so you have the same problems as before, if you want something a little less spicy and that spends 90% of their time on display even as slings I recommend ;

Acanthoscurria geniculata tanks of the t world,
Pamphobeteus the slings are a little skittish but run to the burrow and they love food, get any they are all great ,
Nhandu again any they all sit out and are extremely food aggressive seen mine barrelroll into the hide as she scooped up the food so funny to watch my favourite are caraponensis,
Tliltocatl albopilosus any of the 3 locals love food dig n tend to be really chill no flinging themselves about when you open the viv i keep all 3 local and they are all brilliant spoods,
Aphonopelma again all are great, little tanks that demolish everything ,my chalcodes and serratum are out all the time n have been since they were 1inch dls, although my seemanni dug n live in the burrow they are still great to keep.

I keep about 80 species of tarantula

yeah an escape means a dead t or cat for me both unacceptable outcomes

I never had a cat attack a large tarantula but small ones .:: don’t stand much chance unless they hide on a wall were cat can’t reach .

atm and for someone newer to the hobby remember start small you can always get spicy t's once you are more confident with things like feeding and rehousing, I actually started with my native giant house spiders and was keeping them for 5 months before I got my first t , there is no rush the t's will still be there once your confidence is better. Its no good having a t that you can't open the viv of especially with slings they are mucky little things that need constant house cleaning and frequent health checks

T vagans can get up to 7” . Mine was 5” lost to a stuck molt… iwas crushed so sad …i got to buy a few more if I ever find a job . It’s going to be hard to order them tho .

You can also make yourself a sling trap. i do it with all my slings works great from a wheelchair with only one working hand to use they got no place to run if they run out of a delicup

yeah I used to do that , still do when doing maintenance. I wanted to permanently do it but slings are being hidden atm .

Same, I have 4 cats atm my son is neuro divergent , and my mum lives with me atm as she's just been diagnosed with cancer and i want to look after her so definitely no escapees.
All our cats are part ferrol too we have train tracks out bk of our house and they came from there I have been working with them for years and 3 don't care about the spoods they are old and are more bothered about cuddles and being somewhere warm but we recently had a small black n white female called Luna dumped on us from a woman round the corner who didn't want her (she moved the next day) and Luna has had no socialisation at all and chases anything that moves , I know she would definitely chase the t's if an escape happened.
Better safe then sorry as the saying goes.

Neurodivergent that’s a new one I haven’t heard of .

 

[Charliemum]

Neurodivergent that’s a new one I haven’t heard of .

It's an umbrella explanation. My son has high functioning autism, (what was aspergers,) phisical tourette syndrome, and ADHD, rather then rattle all those off it is easier to say Neurodivergent then it covers it all.

And I am sorry for your loss, I lost mine to a moult too, moulted a week after the little one came and didn't make it out of the moult I assumed through complications from shipping in premoult. (I didn't know the sling was in premoult little floofer was bought from a online shop ) Always heart breaking to loose a t though. <- hugs for you.

 

[Butterbean83]

You can also make yourself a sling trap. i do it with all my slings works great from a wheelchair with only one working hand to use they got no place to run if they run out of a delicup

Brilliant idea this Thankyou

T vagans are a great spider I have their cousin Tliltocatl sp tortuguero (bigger pimpedup version of t vagans) the black n red are quite amazing and they are usually great eaters too, Harpactira may not be the best to get though I have a saf I never see her she made her burrow n the most I see is toes so if your looking for a spider you can see Harpactira may not be the best choice. Plus if your not comfortable opening the viv for the ow you have now, getting a Harpactira is still ow so you have the same problems as before, if you want something a little less spicy and that spends 90% of their time on display even as slings I recommend ;

Acanthoscurria geniculata tanks of the t world,
Pamphobeteus the slings are a little skittish but run to the burrow and they love food, get any they are all great ,
Nhandu again any they all sit out and are extremely food aggressive seen mine barrelroll into the hide as she scooped up the food so funny to watch my favourite are caraponensis,
Tliltocatl albopilosus any of the 3 locals love food dig n tend to be really chill no flinging themselves about when you open the viv i keep all 3 local and they are all brilliant spoods,
Aphonopelma again all are great, little tanks that demolish everything ,my chalcodes and serratum are out all the time n have been since they were 1inch dls, although my seemanni dug n live in the burrow they are still great to keep.

I keep about 80 species of tarantula atm and for someone newer to the hobby remember start small you can always get spicy t's once you are more confident with things like feeding and rehousing, I actually started with my native giant house spiders and was keeping them for 5 months before I got my first t , there is no rush the t's will still be there once your confidence is better. Its no good having a t that you can't open the viv of especially with slings they are mucky little things that need constant house cleaning and frequent health checks

I've already got spicy that I didn't ask for so I want to (I can't mention too much cos of rules but they're in the classifieds now) and I'm gonna get a Vagans if I can, I've read about the sp Tortuguero and I would have one of them, just a subspecies of Vagans aren't they? I know there's an island off Mexico where Vagans get bigger than usual.

I'd love a Vagans. Can keep them on dryish substrate and I love my desert set ups. Chalcodes are one of my favourites looking Ts too!! A Geniculata are stunning but a little more flicky with their urticating hairs I'm told which can be quite irritating, Pamphobeteus, stunning males but some of the females are bland.

Phormictopus are where it's at for colours in both sexes but they're fast and bitey haha, but one I'm looking to get in the future, my oldest girl is interested in the hobby so don't wanna put her off with an 8" wrecking machine like a Phormictopus species just yet haha. I want a T she can observe and help me with when she stays, it's gonna be her T but obviously under my guidance and I do the maintenance when she's not here but she helps while she's here so Harpactira probably not a good idea, they're reluctant to bite apparently but very fast and if they do bite then it can be miserable for whoever they inflict it on for as much as weeks. I do think they're beautiful though.

Oh and I did put more, plus bigger holes in, even mixed in some excavator clay and the condensation still happens, the thing with that is, that the substrate won't dry out because the lid when I lift it to wipe is dripping because it's been left overnight, I wipe it frequently throughout the day so it isn't dripping but probably staying damp in there, good job it's mostly with the sling though as they need more moisture but it does happen to a degree with the juvenile in it's faunarium just not as much, that guy has been burrowed for days. Only the Sling eating none of my scops or the Huahini just the Natanicharum Sling taking a prekilled small cricket and one that hadnt quite been killed. I reckon he'd take another one if I give him it.

 

[Charliemum]

I've already got spicy that I didn't ask for so I want to (I can't mention too much cos of rules but they're in the classifieds now) and I'm gonna get a Vagans if I can, I've read about the sp Tortuguero and I would have one of them, just a subspecies of Vagans aren't they? I know there's an island off Mexico where Vagans get bigger than usual.

I'd love a Vagans. Can keep them on dryish substrate and I love my desert set ups. Chalcodes are one of my favourites looking Ts too!! A Geniculata are stunning but a little more flicky with their urticating hairs I'm told which can be quite irritating, Pamphobeteus, stunning males but some of the females are bland.

Phormictopus are where it's at for colours in both sexes but they're fast and bitey haha, but one I'm looking to get in the future, my oldest girl is interested in the hobby so don't wanna put her off with an 8" wrecking machine like a Phormictopus species just yet haha. I want a T she can observe and help me with when she stays, it's gonna be her T but obviously under my guidance and I do the maintenance when she's not here but she helps while she's here so Harpactira probably not a good idea, they're reluctant to bite apparently but very fast and if they do bite then it can be miserable for whoever they inflict it on for as much as weeks. I do think they're beautiful though.

Vagans is perfect then , I am sure your girl will love it.

It's probably the excavator clay that's messing with the humidity I have never used it and honestly I haven't seen ppl using it with spiders, scorps yes spiders no . I would suggest not putting anymore water in till the condensation on the roof stopps or making new vivs without the clay and moving slings into that.

 

[Butterbean83]

I've only just put the excavator clay in it doesn't seem worse just not really much better

Excavator clay keeps humidity down for my Scorps I know that plus it gardens and dries out quicker. Yeah I just put a couple of droplets on their website every few days now. No sense in making the condensation worse, the sling probably gets droplets from the lid hitting the web before I wipe the lid of a morning anyway. The sling seems to be doing fine the humidity worries me but if I didn't get it enough humidity that could be worse so just keeping in top of it. I think it's the spider life substrate and it being quite close to the top. I need a taller one that's not any wider with thicker plastic and I think the little guy will really thrive, The deli cup plastic seems to condensate far more as my juvenile was in a 32 Oz and I moved him into an Exo Terra plastic mini faunarium and the condensation improved a lot.