Calling Terrarium Owners: Mold

Angel079

I usually hide out in the freshwater section but I'm hoping to find some help here for my neighbor and her Terrarium she had recently built.

She's built it up on the inside with coconut fibers and silicon and maybe also rock to create a "wall" in the back in which a waterfall comes down.
She's planning on housing frogs in it. Now when she had finished building this wall and it was dry, she tested the waterfall and water was left in it w/out lights or heat for few days before she emptied it. Now she's had mold develop on this very wall, so now obviously she's not going to stock it till that's resolved.
I tried helping her look for products that would eliminate the mold and in the long run still be safe to stock the terrarium later...

Do you guys have ANY suggestion there on a good product? Cause I'm not much help to her being the fish-gal...

Spike762

What color is it? If it's green, then it's algae. Mold develops in damp places more so than "saturated" containers of water.

Assuming it is mold, then it's just like cleaning mold off anything else... wipe it down with a bleach and hot water mix, then wipe down with hot water, then run hot water over it for at least 10 minutes.

-Spike

Angel079

Its mold.
Since its one these glass enclosed terrariums, when she had tested that waterfall and let the water just sit in the bottom of the "tank" part if you will it was just too much moisture in there but no heat, no light nothing and so along that fake back wall, mold developed.

Since it partly made of coconut fibers, don't you think the bleach solution will soak in there and then later be harmful to her critters (i believe she's set on frogs by now, but who knows this may change lol)

Spike762

Hm. Hot, running water will take bleach off of an object, so I'd assume it could rinse it out of the fibers. Water is the "universal solvent" they say. I would use a light amount of bleach in the bleach/water mix, and make sure to run under nice hot water for a while. This is just what I would do, which is the only advice I can give. Try a google search, maybe someone has had similar problems. I don't think water alone will destroy the mold. Trial and error now.

Basically a long way of saying "I dunno"

Good luck to your friend.

-Spike

Angel079

Thanks, will let her know. Its a VERY cute set up she's built there, so I just hope she'll be able to find a way w/out tearing it all down to shreds....

cbeard

Go outside and collect some pill bugs or "rolly pollys" from under logs, etc. They eat nothing but the mold, and enough of them will take care of the whole mold issue. They do not bite, won't hurt any terrarium inhabitant, and can be eaten by the reptile/amphibian without any harmful effects.

These are EXCELLENT for the vivarium hobby, and many keepers give up on their beautiful tanks/setups because of this mold problem.

Bleach can have harmful effects on many animals, and if you put bleach into an amphibian cage there is a good chance it will kill the pet quickly. Amphibians breathe through their skin, and even when I recommend cleaning solutions I don't recommend anything other than one part listerine, 10 parts water.

WH2O

Also take aome dirt and put it in water you will find wery small insects walking on the water surface, These are springtails, they also eat mold.