Subtrate dry out rate

[TheGreatWhiteKoos]

Good day all, hope you and your T's are pleasant.

For the last couple of months I started using ECO EARTH substrate for all my tarantula enclosures. I like it very much, easy to work with, good moisture retention and easy on the eyes. As winter is starting to set in here in South Africa, I needed to supply a suitable heat source to my enclosures.

I am using a heat pad covered with a sheet of polystyrene situated on the side of my enclosures. I immediately noticed at drop in the humidity inside my enclosures. I can't believe that the substrate dried out so quickly within only 2 days. I now strongly consider peat as substrate. Maybe I should move my cages further away from the heating pad or insert another sheet of polystyrene to curb the heat transferred to the enclosures. Currently the temperature is between 25-27'C so a slight drop shouldn't do any harm.

Any suggestions?

 

[Ceratogyrus]

In winter my temps drop down to 15 and I have no losses. It's get pretty chilly out there for the tarantulas in winter in the wild and they have survived millions of years, so don't worry too much about temps.

 

[TheGreatWhiteKoos]

Ok thanx for the advice Ceratogyrus...much appreciated. I think I'll stick to ECO EARTH. I might just add a little vermiculite.

 

[TheGreatWhiteKoos]

Ok so I moved all my enclosures a bit further away form my heating mechanism...and I am glad to report that everything is back to normality....Humidity between 60-70% and the temperature between 20-24'C. Much relieved

 

[ipreventdeath]

Any time heat is added, whether naturally or unnaturally, things will dry out as the water evaporates. The higher the heat and dryer the surrounding air, the faster the moisture loss.
My roses are desert animals anyway, so the dryness is natural for them, but I still keep a moisture gradient through their burrow by keeping the lower substrate damp and the upper substrate bone dry. I used this method with burrowing, desert scorpions as well. I plan on keeping my avic in a semi desert type environment, only with less ventilation for more humidity retention, as it gets older.

 

[TheGreatWhiteKoos]

I agree ipreventdeath. But in my opinion I would think that Avics (which are naturally found in tropical habitats) won't prefer dry substate or low ventilation.

 

[ipreventdeath]

True, they are found there, but most adult Ts can be kept in a desert or semi-desert environment as found by many T keepers. Ventilation is important to prevent mold build up, but without excessive moisture, mold build up isn't as much of an issue. It's all about balancing the proper amount of moisture with the proper amount of ventilation. And as a caveat, this is what is recommended for sub-adult to adult Ts, not spiderlings, by Stan Schultz and others.
As it is now, my avics enclosure is kept fairly dry and she/he is just about 2.25in (6cm?). The substrate is never wet and rarely damp. During a molt is the only time I would try to bump up the humidity a bit for the prevention of as much moisture moisture loss as possible during the event. Other than that, misting will be infrequently done.

 

[ipreventdeath]

This is all my preference by the way. I'm not recommending you change your methods if they're working for you. This is just my method for my set-up in my local area.

 

[TheGreatWhiteKoos]

Yes I agree now, just checked my "The Tarantula Keeper's Guide" which confirms your statement. This is another prime example of why I enjoy the hobby so much, I learn something new everyday

 

[ipreventdeath]

And this type of discussion is what furthers the hobby and contributes to it's success.

I'm also glad I bought Stan's book. Well worth the investment.

 

[Bast]

With our Avics, I have been keeping the substrate moist (read: not wet) and waiting for it to dry out before re-misting/overflowing water bowl. The slings have much more ventilation, as their enclosures are much smaller and I feel would be at higher risk for stagnant air. Our bigger avic (3") has less ventilation, however I don't keeping overflowing her dish until the substrate starts to look dry. So far all is well with all of our spiders...including the 'fragile' A.versi slings. Personally I don't really think they are as fragile as they are made out to be, I feel like most likely the culprit in those cases is over care of the spiderlings. I don't really fret over any of our T's enclosures, as I feel they are pretty adaptable. Less is more sometimes

 

[Kurt Nelson]

Drying out in 2 or 3 days is a good thing. It means that you have the perfect ventilation. So you're T's wont die of stagnant air, that's for sure! Humidity is important, but letting it dry out is good too, kills mites and helps stop mold from growing. The T's aren't going to die from a day or two of lower humidity, unless it's a T blondi or something that desiccates easily.

Avic slings and the so cold ASDS is fake. It's just a word made up for poor husbandry. The reason why avic slings die so easily is because people keep it too humid and or don't have enough ventilation. People over think humidity way too much.