Your thoughts x-ventelation w/isos, springtails

Is the importance of cross ventelation exaggerated?

  • Yes

    Votes: 4 50.0%
  • No

    Votes: 4 50.0%

  • Total voters
    8

Rocky

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jul 10, 2016
Messages
40
Ok so I've been reading around and had some thoughts. Ive never had a t that so calls "requires" cross ventelation but of course I was planing on getting one in the future. But what gets me is the debate on how important cross ventelation is for some ts. Can one not have a culture of isopods and springtails in this enclosure and call it a day? Or is the importance of cross ventelation not over the top at all? My question here is what's youlls opinion on this matter? I've used isopods and springtails for all my more humid enclosures with no problems.
 

EulersK

Arachnonomicon
Staff member
Joined
Feb 22, 2013
Messages
3,291
The issue of cross ventilation is often not mold growth, it's stagnant air. No amount of isopods will fix stagnant air.
 

EulersK

Arachnonomicon
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Feb 22, 2013
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Is it true that stagnant air can accelerate mold growth?
Absolutely. Stagnant air itself can also kill tarantulas of any genus - the most prone to this though is Avicularia.

If you open the enclosure and there's almost a "smell" of dead air, then you need more ventilation. The smell is hard to describe, but you'll know it when you smell it. Hot, stale, humid air.
 

14pokies

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
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Oct 25, 2014
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Is it true that stagnant air can accelerate mold growth?
Yup. Perfect example for you..

I had around 70 slings up on shelves in my house and hadn't had any problems with mold or anything.. One day my girlfriend at the time brought home a cat.. I had to keep my slings inside of sliding storage bins wich obviously restricted airflow.. I had mold in some containers within a few days..
 
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jhilde

Arachnopeon
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Jan 13, 2016
Messages
20
I think having the right amount of ventilation is key. Whether it comes from the sides, top, or both is not that important.
 

Trenor

Arachnoprince
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Jan 28, 2016
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1,893
To me, the right amount of ventilation is more important than whether it is cross ventilation or not. I've seen both styles work well. Some of my enclosures only have vents on one side, others have vents on two side, and some have vents on all sides. When I started out, the main thing I looked for in deciding if I added enough ventilation is condensation. For most tarantula species you don't want this to build up in the enclosure. If you see condensation that means there isn't enough air moving in an area of the enclosure.

It should be noted that vents on the sides will let out less moisture over vents in the top. So, be sure to place vents according to what you need because there is a difference.

Ventilation is heavily dependent on the species you are keeping though, I keep my C.fimbriatus with very moist substrate. My default amount of ventilation caused the substrate to dry out too quickly. I used some packing tape pieces to block off some of the vents till I liked the conditions. While in my Avic enclosures I have a good amount of ventilation and I don't want any condensation building up in the enclosure.

Know your tarantula and setup their home according to their needs.
 
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Rocky

Arachnopeon
Joined
Jul 10, 2016
Messages
40
So are we saying that putting holes just on the top isn't sufficent enough? That having holes on top and a fan constantly on will end up killing the t?
 

Trenor

Arachnoprince
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Jan 28, 2016
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1,893
I am not a we and so I can only speak for me. ;)

What I am saying is that top holes will lose moisture faster than side holes. The size of the vents/holes also greatly affects moisture as well. Be aware of this and add the right size/amount/placement holes for the species you are housing.

My above post gives some of my guidelines on how I decide where/the amount of ventilation to use on a new enclosure.
 

14pokies

Arachnoprince
Old Timer
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Oct 25, 2014
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1,733
So are we saying that putting holes just on the top isn't sufficent enough? That having holes on top and a fan constantly on will end up killing the t?
No your reading into things and forming your own opinions on whats being said..

Trenor gave you a very good breakdown of tarantula husbandry as far as ventilation is concerned.
 

viper69

ArachnoGod
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Dec 8, 2006
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I can only speak about Avic husbandry. In short, the critical factor is proper air flow/exchange. How that is achieved doesn't matter IME, and based on the differences I've observed between European and USA husbandry for this genus. I have done a variety of air ventilation configurations, 1 side only, side number (2 and 4), and 4 sides with the top (my favorite config). All worked equally as well.

Succinctly, stale air kills Avics, slowly but surely.

If the air inside the Avic container doesn't smell like the air in my smithi/emilia etc, then I have a problem IME.

It's the rare person that can maintain tropical, humid conditions found in an Avic's native environment and have it thrive. It's this inability IMO, that has lead many (myself included) to go with a more ventilated container. The moment I did that, was the moment I had Avics growing and reaching maturation.

If they were tropical frogs, it would be easier to keep them. Even they need good air too, as do all animals and plants.
 
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