C. Lividum Setup

[Nonnack]

I've had one of the heat mats that was hooked up to a thermostat fail fantastically and hit temps over 100 degrees

You should sue producer, or something, it could burn down you house
I am not gonna argue about heating, looks like everybody have their own opinion. But about terrarium, this exoterra containers looks nice, but aren't perfect for genera that are obligate burrowers. You can't add deep substrate, there is no ventilation in bottom witch can cause some mold problems, and you will never see you T I am not saying this can't work, but for this genus something like this may be better :

 

[Andrea82]

You should sue producer, or something, it could burn down you house

I think he means 100 degrees Fahrenheit

@Arachnophoric
But that is still way too hot. Which is why i do not use mats or cables meant for reptiles. I understand the 'better safe than sorry' - practice. A space heater is simply too expensive to keep running 24 hours. I tried that first, and my energy bill went up from 90€ a month to 250€. That's just too much.
Heat mats and cables can be used safely with a bit of education and common sense, i think. My cable and mats have a protection system, if they get too hot, they just stop working altogether. The only bad result from this is that i have to buy a new one.

 

[Arachnophoric]

I think he means 100 degrees Fahrenheit

@Arachnophoric
But that is still way too hot. Which is why i do not use mats or cables meant for reptiles. I understand the 'better safe than sorry' - practice. A space heater is simply too expensive to keep running 24 hours. I tried that first, and my energy bill went up from 90€ a month to 250€. That's just too much.
Heat mats and cables can be used safely with a bit of education and common sense, i think. My cable and mats have a protection system, if they get too hot, they just stop working altogether. The only bad result from this is that i have to buy a new one.

Indeed, I did mean Fahrenheit. Pretty sure I'd be one snake less, otherwise And that's pretty wild that a space heater takes up that much energy!

Of course they can be used safely, and I believe I had been using it properly/with common sense, having it regulated via a thermostat that the heat mat was plugged directly into. It was an unfortunate malfunction of technology, and I'm just happy I caught it before it could do any real damage. Outside of that one incident I have yet to have any more issues. But if I don't need it, I'm not going to use it. I'm probably just taking for granted that my place stays very comfortable in temperature for both me and my tarantulas. I'm too much of a baby to handle anything a degree below 70F.

 

[atraxrobustus]

Hey all.

This is my first attempt at creating a viable new home for my C.Lividum.

Does anybody have any hints or suggestions as to anything I can do to further create the perfect home for my new room mate?

I've read lots of books and done loads of research but I just wondered if anybody had any more advice?

The hide is cork wood semi buried to encourage burrowing.

The substrate is eco earth. I have some vermiculite on the way and was considering mixing it in to help with water absorption

The tank itself is 12x12x12 and the substrate at its deepest is around 9.5" deep and at its shallowest around 6".

I'm considering getting some kind of plant to add to the tank as a little bit of living foliage.

The tank itself is open to change and I still have time before I want to move her in.

I want the happiest T I can possibly have.

Thanks so much for your suggestions.

If your refering to the the blue cobalt the species is C. lividus, not C. Lividum.

 

[atraxrobustus]

In general, heat mats are not recommended for T’s. Your best bet is a space heater that’s not blowing directly on the habitat.

The thing is that C. lividus likes to burrow deeply. They do this to get away from the excessive heat in their natural habitats. - a heat mat will burn it up!!! The best way of handling the issue of heat if you really need to supplement heat is to use a forced air blower controlled by a thermostat fed to the very TOP of the enclosure at the side Heat will rise, but if the top is already warm, heat then drops through the atmosphere. This mimics natural conditions closely. Place a few layers of cheesecloth (Which should be replaced with every cleaning) on the hose connected to the side terrarium (why I like plastic or plexiglass housing- easy to modify.) to keep the spider from crawling into the feed pipe when it's off. When it's on- they'll avoid it because they don't like air blowing across them at all.

 

[Andrea82]

The thing is that C. lividus likes to burrow deeply. They do this to get away from the excessive heat in their natural habitats. - a heat mat will burn it up!!! The best way of handling the issue of heat if you really need to supplement heat is to use a forced air blower controlled by a thermostat fed to the very TOP of the enclosure at the side Heat will rise, but if the top is already warm, heat then drops through the atmosphere. This mimics natural conditions closely. Place a few layers of cheesecloth (Which should be replaced with every cleaning) on the hose connected to the side terrarium (why I like plastic or plexiglass housing- easy to modify.) to keep the spider from crawling into the feed pipe when it's off. When it's on- they'll avoid it because they don't like air blowing across them at all.

Placing something on a Theraphosid enclosure that blows air on it?
Seems like a good way to piss off an already temperamental species and make sure it never surfaces again...

Man, i keep repeating myself...
A heatmat or cable does not have to be dangerous at all when used with common sense. For OB you simply place the mat or cable over the enclosure but not touching it. Make sure there is a gap of 5 cm between mat/cable and enclosure. Done.
Mats and cables should never be under an enclosure for obvious reasons.

 

[KeiraJ]

Sub is now about 4 inches deeper all round. This is my almost finished setup. I'm ready to have her move in!!

I realise she will likely rearrange the furniture but I'm happy with it the way it is right now. Hopefully she will be too

 

[Mojo288]

For OB you simply place the mat or cable over the enclosure but not touching it

I was just wondering if you've actually tried this, i mean placing an ambient heat element OVER an enclosure? I mean, heat rises, i don't really see this working too well (not gonna work like a heat lamp or ceramic heat emmiter).
If it did, (and we were talking about this specific setup) i wouldn't expect it to heat much more than the surface of the sub. if at all. But then again i don't really use this kind of equipment too often, so i could be wrong.

 

[Andrea82]

I was just wondering if you've actually tried this, i mean placing an ambient heat element OVER an enclosure? I mean, heat rises, i don't really see this working too well (not gonna work like a heat lamp or ceramic heat emmiter).
If it did, (and we were talking about this specific setup) i wouldn't expect it to heat much more than the surface of the sub. if at all. But then again i don't really use this kind of equipment too often, so i could be wrong.

It's a bit late right now and i have to het up early tomorrow, but I'll try and use my potato-cam to take a picture of how I've set it up tomorrow.

 

[Chris LXXIX]

As for the weather in Europe, i am quite familiar with the weather in the UK as i have lived in London for quite some time.

And you managed to keep your mental sanity? Amazing, man

 

[atraxrobustus]

Placing something on a Theraphosid enclosure that blows air on it?
Seems like a good way to piss off an already temperamental species and make sure it never surfaces again...

Man, i keep repeating myself...
A heatmat or cable does not have to be dangerous at all when used with common sense. For OB you simply place the mat or cable over the enclosure but not touching it. Make sure there is a gap of 5 cm between mat/cable and enclosure. Done.
Mats and cables should never be under an enclosure for obvious reasons.

Thats the reason for blowing across not down.

 

[atraxrobustus]

I was just wondering if you've actually tried this, i mean placing an ambient heat element OVER an enclosure? I mean, heat rises, i don't really see this working too well (not gonna work like a heat lamp or ceramic heat emmiter).
If it did, (and we were talking about this specific setup) i wouldn't expect it to heat much more than the surface of the sub. if at all. But then again i don't really use this kind of equipment too often, so i could be wrong.

Conductive heat rises UNLESS There's a convective current in the air- Therefore, this WILL work, but your going to be loosing ALOT of energy, and the electric bill will certainly see it.

 

[Chris LXXIX]

It's a bit late right now and i have to het up early tomorrow

Sleep well, Frisian princess. And dream about me busy not killing ants

 

[atraxrobustus]

You should sue producer, or something, it could burn down you house
I am not gonna argue about heating, looks like everybody have their own opinion. But about terrarium, this exoterra containers looks nice, but aren't perfect for genera that are obligate burrowers. You can't add deep substrate, there is no ventilation in bottom witch can cause some mold problems, and you will never see you T I am not saying this can't work, but for this genus something like this may be better :

It's a bit late right now and i have to het up early tomorrow, but I'll try and use my potato-cam to take a picture of how I've set it up tomorrow.

Potato Cam? That's priceless.

 

[Nonnack]

Potato Cam? That's priceless.

What do you mean?

 

[KeiraJ]

.

 

[Arachnophoric]

No. I'm pretty sure the Latin name for the Cobalt blue tarantula is Cyriopagopus Lividum........

It appears that Cyriopagopus lividus, the current name of the "Cobalt Blue Tarantula", was previous Haplopelma lividum, thus the confusion. So the correct name would indeed be C. lividus.

 

[Andrea82]

I was just wondering if you've actually tried this, i mean placing an ambient heat element OVER an enclosure? I mean, heat rises, i don't really see this working too well (not gonna work like a heat lamp or ceramic heat emmiter).
If it did, (and we were talking about this specific setup) i wouldn't expect it to heat much more than the surface of the sub. if at all. But then again i don't really use this kind of equipment too often, so i could be wrong.

Okay, so i managed to actually get a relatively clear picture .



I keep my spiders in a cabinet that is closed on three sides. As you can see in pic 1 i have placed the cable above the enclosures and (pic 2) on one side, but up by the lid. This way, there is a source of warmth on the sides and above them, without hotspots. Both these enclosures hold burrowers, E.pachypus to the left and A.ezendami on the right.
I don't lose much heat like this and still keep the ventilation adequate.

Edit: @KeiraJ
The correct name is C.lividus. When it was Haplopelma, the correct name was lividum, but that changed when it became Cyriopagopus

 

[Mojo288]

Okaaaaaaaay, that makes much more sense, i thought you meant it would work in open air, but yes it would work great to heat a smaller enclosed space.
That's pretty much what i had in mind when i said to heat a small cabinet/closet.

 

[atraxrobustus]

It appears that Cyriopagopus lividus, the current name of the "Cobalt Blue Tarantula", was previous Haplopelma lividum, thus the confusion. So the correct name would indeed be C. lividus.

That i didn't know- that the species had a prior classification in the genius Haplopelma. Definitely explains why I couldn't find C. lividum in the research literature. I was under the influence that the use of lividum was just an incorrect phonetic of lividus. - Where most people don't realize that these names actually do have a precise literal meaning in Latin, and changes in conjugation have effects on meaning in the Latin language.