Mystery T death possibly? Low temps

[Ultum4Spiderz]

whatsa. Good cheap tool for measuring temperature. My n cromatus died with full water dish, my basement feels cold but house thermostat says 69 degrees. Basement seems way colder , maybe 65 ? I need proper thermostat or meter .

I have a temp meter from a pet store but it seems inaccurate plus I misplaced it.
Anything cheap maybe at hardware store or online?
Very depressed loss , at an otherwise healthy spider . Last time I lost one during winter when’s my window cracked , 12 years ago but it was much smaller. The spider possibly had a bad molt ? None of my other spiders died in basement.

Thanks , been more successful this year . Except for this very sad loss . My dad wouldn’t let me hook up my heater either said bill goes too high. R.I.P.

 

[AphonopelmaTX]

I use one of those $20 temperature guns to take a temperature reading of the substrate and compare with the air temperture of the room which is taken with a callibrated indoor/outdoor thermometer.

If you decide to get a temperature gun, then keep in mind they only take an accurate reading from solid surfaces at a short distance. You will get a false reading if you try to measure the temperature of glass or clear acrylic.

 

[Vanessa]

I have one of those temperature guns as well, for my snakes, and they actually work pretty well for the cost. I think they are far more accurate than many of those store bought gauges designed for tanks (because I have those for the snakes too). I go around and check some of the enclosures as well when I checking on the snakes.

 

[Rigor Mortis]

I'm really sorry about your spider, N. chromatus is one of my favourite species. Having said that 65 degrees shouldn't kill a tarantula. Unless your thermostat is just awfully terribly off and it's really below 60, your spider should have been fine. We keep my house between 65 and 67 in the winter and my Ts don't seem to hate it. I know that you said this was a healthy spider, but was there anything out of the ordinary? Any weird behaviour, a possible fall, etc?

 

[cold blood]

cheap and accurrate.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

I use one of those $20 temperature guns to take a temperature reading of the substrate and compare with the air temperture of the room which is taken with a callibrated indoor/outdoor thermometer.

If you decide to get a temperature gun, then keep in mind they only take an accurate reading from solid surfaces at a short distance. You will get a false reading if you try to measure the temperature of glass or clear acrylic.

Were do you find them at ? Which store ?

 

[CJJon]

Let me help you out: http://lmgtfy.com/?q=aquarium+thermometer

 

[AphonopelmaTX]

Were do you find them at ? Which store ?

I got mine on Amazon. You would have to shop around at stores like Target, Walmart, Home Depot, or Lowes if you prefer buying in store. Temp. guns are not necessarily specialist tools or uncommon.

 

[Vanessa]

I use THIS ONE.

 

[Justin H]

I use this for general use in my house. It saves your low and high temperatures, which is really useful if you're worried about fluctuations. You can reset the high/low history by pulling out the battery for a second.

My temperature ranges are pretty large in the winter (~ 8 degrees). If your basement only receives residual heat, it can easily be 10-20 degrees cooler down there (depends how well insulated it is).

 

[Beggottenson]

My house is occasionally 60 degrees and usually anywhere from 67-75 degrees in the winter, I try my best to keep them as warm as possibly but my house is so cold, I have 7 tarantulas mostly slings and they’re all fine

 

[Rittdk01]

N chromatus is my favorite tarantula, aesthetically speaking. I own a dozen that I got from @coldblood as tiny slings that are growing fast and looking fantastic.

Real bummer about the death. A cold basement sounds like a terrible place to raise tarantulas. I hope you get some sort of heater setup going, or that your Dad will let you heat their space a bit.

 

[MissouriArachnophile]

Is it a finished basement with heating ducts or a typical basement that is usually colder than the rest of the house.

Basement could of been atleast 10 degrees colder.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

I got mine on Amazon. You would have to shop around at stores like Target, Walmart, Home Depot, or Lowes if you prefer buying in store. Temp. guns are not necessarily specialist tools or uncommon.

Ok thanks I put a few of my aboreal in my bedroom , the ones that were skinny and refused to eat in the basement. Possibly are heater is too old and dosnt work evenly throughout the house .
My dad unplugged my space heater won’t allow me to protect my Ts from the cold basement.
My dad hates them.

 

[Justin H]

Ok thanks I put a few of my aboreal in my bedroom , the ones that were skinny and refused to eat in the basement. Possibly are heater is too old and dosnt work evenly throughout the house .
My dad unplugged my space heater won’t allow me to protect my Ts from the cold basement.
My dad hates them.

My dad was the same way with space heaters. They cost a few extra bucks a month to run 24/7, especially in the winter. Maybe you could try and reason with him? Probably not if he's anything like my dad.

Could you move the rest of your collection to your room? Sure, some Ts can adapt and survive, but they'll do better upstairs.

 

[Ellenantula]

Sorry for your loss.
Unless it's a tiny sling, mine usually do okay temporary if temps dip in mid 60sF.
Have you considered a micro-climate (in the future) to keep just a small area warmer with 4 watt heat pad/thermostat?
I have used heat pads (with B lats) that only use 4 watts -- but again, used WITH thermostat controllers -- (if room heater not allowed) but just a heat source for Ts -- micro-environments only!)

I know room heating devices can be an issue with others worried about utility bills.
Best of luck in future T keeping.

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

Is it a finished basement with heating ducts or a typical basement that is usually colder than the rest of the house.

Basement could of been atleast 10 degrees colder.

It has heat duct but our heater hasn’t been working well . I can’t go in basement without a thick sweater.
Whole house seems colder then 69 degrees like the thermostat says.
I put a few of my more fragile species in my bedroom . They wouldn’t eat didn’t to the cold .
Can’t reason with my dad he thinks a 1 room sized heater , mid sized will raise his heating bill a ton .

 

[Teal]

The thermostat will not be reading the basement temperature, especially if your basement is underground.

I use a 10$ reptile thermometer with a line and probe. They are small, portable yellow, and available at Petco.

 

[MissouriArachnophile]

It only reads for the floor it is on. Unless your dad pays attention to all of the heating vents close the ones on the top floor and make sure the bottom ones are open in the basement. Did you ever get a thermostat and put it in the basement for a reading down there?
Side note if you need a heater in the basement, but not the rest of the house it's probably well below 60. Not to much longer before spring..maybe.

 

[Potatatas]

I have two digital thermometers, one for the room temp and one for my snake cage. Also have a heat gun for measuring hot spots in snake cage mainly but use it to measure T temps too.

It's useful to have more than one so you can check accuracy but probs overkill for you.

Pack of two thermos I bought - https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07716J318/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1