New member , advice needed

[Grahamolad]

Hi guys , as previously mentioned in introduction , I kept spiders years ago. I've now decided to get a tarantula.
I've a juvenile N.Chromatus due to arrive tomorrow. I'm looking to clarify if my set up is ok.

45x45x30 exo .
4 inches of coco fibre, but deeper in parts so average is 5/6 inches and maybe 7 at the back.
Cork bark hide in cool end.
Water dish with stones in , in cool end.
Heat mat on outside on side of tank. Controlled by microclimate thermostat.
The bit I'm having doubts about is :

Thermostat set to : 35 celcius
Stick-on thermometer, on inside , on heat mat is reading : 28 celcius
Digital thermometer / hydrometer , on inside , two inches from heat mat is reading : 21 celcius and 75% humidity.
Stick-on hydrometer, on inside at cool end is reading : 70% humidity.

Which is the correct temperature? I'm guessing lower the thermostat ? I had thermostat yesterday set to 28 celcius but the digital thermometer was reading only 18/19 celcius so I highered up the thermostat to 35 celcius so the thermometer was reading higher. Now , 20/21..... I'm just not sure what to go by .

I'm living in Ireland.

Any advice would be great.

( sorry for long winded post )

Regards
G

 

[Grahamolad]

 

[Grahamolad]

Light attached to tank will not be in use. Just added light for pics.
G

 

[Grahamolad]

Pic

 

[Enn49]

The set up looks great but it worries me that it may be a little large for a juvenile, of course it depends on its size.
The best guide to temperature is that if it's warm enough for you to sit comfortably in the room then your T will do fine with no extra heat and humidity will be fine as long as there is a water bowl full at all times. I'm in the north of England and temps vary for 64F at night and 76F during the day and all my Ts are quite happy with that.
There is no need to put stones in the water bowl, Ts won't drown.

 

[Grahamolad]

Thanks very much Enn49 .

Do you recommend removing heat altogether or lowering it.
I can also devide tank I suppose should spider become stressed . What would these signs be ? What to look out for ?
Stones in water bowl was for crickets not to drown but I guess I'll be taking them straight back out should spider not feed.
Thanks
G

 

[Grahamolad]

Temp is room is normally 18 Celsius or so. Roughly.

 

[Arachnoclown]

I think you'll be ok with the enclosure size. The main reason people in the hobby talk about size is due to the spider not eating the prey item right away. I would just injure the prey item so it cant get away. Spiders dont stress from large enclosures...that's just silly. Juvenile tarantulas survive in the wild with no enclosure....right???

 

[Grahamolad]

Thanks for the advice Arachnoclown.
G

 

[spodermin]

Yes, remove the heat source and humidity extension. Overflow the waterdish and dampen half the substrate once a week then let it dry out. As long as there is enough substrate to prevent a fall enclosure size is irrelevant. Heat mats will cook your tarantula

 

[Grahamolad]

Thanks. Even though inside thermometer is always showing 19 Celsius all the time ? I have her 2 weeks but she's not interested in food . I've tried meal worms , morio worms, small and medium crickets but he runs away from everything. Abdomen hairs are still fairly red and bald spots abdomen are still white. Is there anything I can do ?
Cheers

 

[Rs50matt]

Thanks. Even though inside thermometer is always showing 19 Celsius all the time ? I have her 2 weeks but she's not interested in food . I've tried meal worms , morio worms, small and medium crickets but he runs away from everything. Abdomen hairs are still fairly red and bald spots abdomen are still white. Is there anything I can do ?
Cheers

It was 6 months until my e Campestratus ate for the first time in my care. Give it enough time to settle in and don't worry about it offer once a week but they can honestly go a very very long time without food. Just make sure you have a waterdish of fresh water so it can stay hydrated.

 

[Luna]

I'm not one to encourage murder.... but you could murder a cricket that's too large, then offer it as a scavenger feed. Leave it close to where it frequents, still whole but slightly damaged so she can sense it.

I've had great luck with that thus far

 

[Tnoob]

I'm not one to encourage murder.... but you could murder a cricket that's too large, then offer it as a scavenger feed. Leave it close to where it frequents, still whole but slightly damaged so she can sense it.

I've had great luck with that thus far

I made the mistake of leaving my feeders where my cat could get to it. Fed one to my OBT. It ate faster than I had expected it. Hungry little demon spider...

 

[Steve66]

Don't need a heat source if the room doesn't get to cold, my rule of thumb is if I can sit comfortably for at least half hour in a t-shirt and not feel cold than its okay for the tarantula. My house is like a fridge! So I have a heat mat on the side with a thermostat set at 20 Celsius, Viv sits at about 19-20 celcius at warm end and 18-19 celcius at the cool end.
The Viv looks great, but if you are getting a juvie or smaller I would try to feed with tweezers just to make sure it gets the food, apart from that should be good to go

 

[Grahamolad]

Thanks for reply. House is cold . He seems to always be on the glass at the mat. Mat set to 20 celcius. Viv reading is 21. Have tried worms and small crickets with tongs but he just keeps running away.
Graham

 

[Steve66]

That case it may be the size of the Viv, let her settle for a couple of days, see if anything changes, if not try moving her to a smaller viv. Dependent on size, I tend to aim for a good 3-4inch leg space when small, so not a massive Viv.

Sure more experienced keepers here can give you a more accurate guide or check out dark den on YouTube he's brill and you can see the sort of enclosure he keeps his collection in.

Hope that's a bit of help.

 

[Grahamolad]

Cheers for advice

 

[spodermin]

Heat mats bad, my final words