cleaning

[ettore]

Hey guys!

what do you use to clean the glass inside? i mean, normal glass-cleaners (sorry, i don't no the right word) are said to be bad for the geckos health....

any "nature"-products? such as lemon juce or some stuff like that?

 

[Brandon Parry]

warm water and a razor blade works for me.

 

[ettore]

and what do you use if you have lime deposits??

 

[Brandon Parry]

the razor blade

 

[lessthantito]

you can also try lemon juice for some of the really limey spots

 

[Protean]

use a new razor blade at a 45 degree angle. it will remove everything including partially sealed silicone - which is not so fun to remove.

jason

 

[ettore]

ok, i'll gonna try it

it's only that i don't want to use any chemical cleaners, just because of the health of my little friends...

thanks for the help!!

 

[cliff_f]

Razor blades are the way to go. They will clean you glass really nice. I just recently went threw and cleaned all my tanks, then I went out and got some RO water so they dont get dirty really quick.

 

[ettore]

ehm...what's RO water???

 

[Riverside Reptiles]

ehm...what's RO water???

Reverse Osmosis.

 

[ettore]

ok, and what's the use of this water??
sounds weird

 

[cliff_f]

A Reverse Osmosis system takes out all the clorine and metals and basically all the bad stuff to where you have pure water. RO water is really good water to use in aquariums also.

 

[troubleintreble]

I haven't had the pleasure of cleaning out the new cage yet...but I can tell you I've been cleaning a 120 Gallon tank for two bearded dragons for the past 8 years...I've found that the best way to get a spotless clean as well as getting rid of odor, would be hot water and white vinegar...Light on the vinegar, heavy on the water!! If dried immediately with a soft cloth or paper towel, you'll find there are no streaks and the tank will have a clean, natural smell. (Don't worry, the vinegar smell doesn't last long, and it's the most natural item that does the job!)

 

[ettore]

ah, I see

sounds good, but i guess such a system is rather expensive and thus i could not afford it

but a razor blade and warm water will do it too
thx!

 

[Tokoloshe]

Cleaning - substrate and flies

Hey all, a cleaning question I have for a naturalistic terrarium is how to keep the substrate from accumulating too much fecal matter.(I know to remove it if I see it but I can't stress the animals out each day by moving everything around just for feces.)

I have been using spring tails (2 species) and they do a great job.

However, with wc animals how do you prevent the soil from becoming a bacterial breeding which leads to heavily infested...dead animals in the long run.

Thanks in advance for the help.
Tokoloshe.
PS How do I get rid of the tiny little flies (fruit) that are breeding in the tanks/

 

[phearamedusa]

you could get a carnivorous plant. Saw a really neat one with sticky leaves(natural fly paper) pitcher plants, or a Venus fly trap maybe.

 

[thrower]

When you say you got some RO water, I'm assuming you spray your animals with it. Just as a heads up, but I am a little shy about just spraying with RO water. RO removes all of the bad stuff like chlorine and heavy metals, but it also removes almost all of the salt ions as well. The salt ions are the source of the lime deposits, but they also serve an important purpose in the body. They keep the concentration of ions in the body high enough for electrical nerve impulses to function correctly. I haven't heard of any first hand problems with geckos, but people have died from drinking too much distilled water...

Anyway, I still spray with RO/distilled water occasionally, but I try not to do it too often.

 

[Riverside Reptiles]

When you say you got some RO water, I'm assuming you spray your animals with it. Just as a heads up, but I am a little shy about just spraying with RO water. RO removes all of the bad stuff like chlorine and heavy metals, but it also removes almost all of the salt ions as well. The salt ions are the source of the lime deposits, but they also serve an important purpose in the body. They keep the concentration of ions in the body high enough for electrical nerve impulses to function correctly. I haven't heard of any first hand problems with geckos, but people have died from drinking too much distilled water...

Anyway, I still spray with RO/distilled water occasionally, but I try not to do it too often.

I have a RO filter on my tap water. Myself, my dog, my birds, my house plants, and all of my herps drink RO water with no ill effects. I've heard of what you speak of from drinking too much distilled water but never heard of anyone getting sick from RO.

 

[acpart]

If you buy a Britta filter or something similar (the kind people put on their faucets or water pitchers) and use that water you won't have deposits.

Aliza