Any safe fragrances my partner can use?

JamieAlcroft1989

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Hey guys, my partner wanted to know if there are any safe ways to make the house smell nicer as we have 6 cats, one of which is as deaf as a door nail so he is not allowed outside so we have 3 litter trays in the house, all of which are kept clean but sometimes an unpleasant aroma does begin to form.. We used to burn wax melts quite frequently but have stop using all harmful fragrances and cleaning chemicals, especially in my living room where the spiders are kept (as it had the least foot traffic and plenty of air flow) but was wondering if there was anything that is safe to use in the rest of the house, not the living room, to make it smell nice? Thanks in advance
 

JamieAlcroft1989

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It’s an experiment- unless it’s fresh flowers
OK that's a possibility for us to be honest, we tend to use an all natural dish soap for any cleaning purposes including mopping the floor, and that has worked fine so far, so it is literally to just get a nice smell in the house
 

Hardus nameous

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I don't know if it'll be potent enough but you could try setting out some small dishes of rose-water to evaporate. I'm not sure about the U.K. but in the U.S. it's usually sold in middle-eastern grocery stores.
 

JamieAlcroft1989

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I don't know if it'll be potent enough but you could try setting out some small dishes of rose-water to evaporate. I'm not sure about the U.K. but in the U.S. it's usually sold in middle-eastern grocery stores.
Yeah think Rose water is pretty easily accessible around here so I'll give that a go. Thank you
 

Ultum4Spiderz

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Yeah use it in another room. I keep my Ts in basement.
@HooahArmy any alternative to candles?
I wouldn’t use any scented stuff around tarantulas. Flowers fine, ..
Gotta be stuff that is natural?
 

JamieAlcroft1989

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Yeah use it in another room. I keep my Ts in basement.
@HooahArmy any alternative to candles?
I wouldn’t use any scented stuff around tarantulas. Flowers fine, ..
Gotta be stuff that is natural?
That's what I was thinking, surely there is something natural that we could use, I'm going to give rose water a try and see how that goes.
 

Gevo

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Careful with the "natural is better" line of thinking. Certain essential oils can have potent effects on invertebrates. Cedar oil, for example, is definitely not something you want to have around your tarantulas, and I believe chrysanthemum oil is a key component of certain insecticides/arachnicides. It could very well be the case that some synthetics are safer than their natural counterparts.

The scent issue is a tough one because apart from a few specific things like bleach and cedar oil, we don't know exactly which fumes are toxic, in what forms they're toxic (incense, spray, diffuser, candle, etc.), in which amounts they're toxic, or whether certain species are more sensitive than others. DKS may be linked to the use of scents, but we don't know for sure. It hasn't been studied enough, and because we can't say what's safe, the only certain advice is to not use scents around tarantulas.

That's why it's an experiment.

That said, lots of keepers, myself included, do use some scented products in the home, and it's up to you to decide if that's a risk you also want to take. I have an aging cat too that requires a litter box on each of the three levels of the home, and even with cleaning everything daily, I can relate to needing to freshen things up a bit. Here are the precautions I take: I have my tarantulas in an area that is well ventilated and away from where I use scented products, I always wash my hands and wrists well before doing any feeding or enclosure maintenance so I don't accidentally transfer any oils I'm wearing, I try to buy products with good labelling so I can avoid anything with cedar or pine in it, I limit my use of products so that the fragrance is mostly confined to the room where I am and isn't filling the whole house, and I avoid incense and diffusers because they seem to waft smoke and fine essential oil particulates over longer distances than candles or passive diffusers like reed diffusers.
 
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TheraMygale

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I use everything.

from incense, to lavender, and the evil stuff deet. I am always in the woods, i don’t have a choice.

i am not saying that your partner should pulverize herself in Deet.

if she does not manipulate feeders or go near Tarantulas, it MIGHT, be fine.

it might not.

i think we overthink to much.

i can not have a toxine free house. Even if itried.

i am horticulturist. I come home covered in filth and my tarantulas are right there, in the entrance.

i spread myself with lavender essential oil. All day long.

don’t suffocate your tarantulas. Be clean when you do husbandry.

that is my advice.
 

Ultum4Spiderz

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I use everything.

from incense, to lavender, and the evil stuff deet. I am always in the woods, i don’t have a choice.

i am not saying that your partner should pulverize herself in Deet.

if she does not manipulate feeders or go near Tarantulas, it MIGHT, be fine.

it might not.

i think we overthink to much.

i can not have a toxine free house. Even if itried.

i am horticulturist. I come home covered in filth and my tarantulas are right there, in the entrance.

i spread myself with lavender essential oil. All day long.

don’t suffocate your tarantulas. Be clean when you do husbandry.

that is my advice.
Basement is probably the best place for tarantulas if you use a lot of candles upstairs.: and stuff. Or a dedicated tarantula. room. You can close off.
 

TheraMygale

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Basement is probably the best place for tarantulas if you use a lot of candles upstairs.: and stuff. Or a dedicated tarantula. room. You can close off.
i can’t. All is a test at this point.

so far, result is, everyone is clean and uses new clothes, gloves, when working with the tarantulas.

i am not exposing them willingly. But those fragrances are there. Those chemical elements, are 100% present, from day one they were in my home.
 

Ultum4Spiderz

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i can’t. All is a test at this point.

so far, result is, everyone is clean and uses new clothes, gloves, when working with the tarantulas.

i am not exposing them willingly. But those fragrances are there. Those chemical elements, are 100% present, from day one they were in my home.
Yeah the closer proximity to the spider, the more likely to affect it. I lost a few back when we used to spray for fleas… despite taking them out to the garage or putting them in a different room. Then the flea powder our cat was addicted to eating I had to quit putting it down.☹
 

TheraMygale

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Yeah the closer proximity to the spider, the more likely to affect it. I lost a few back when we used to spray for fleas… despite taking them out to the garage or putting them in a different room. Then the flea powder our cat was addicted to eating I had to quit putting it down.☹

You have way too much bad things happening to you. I would sage the bad word out of everything in your life.

You need some kind of mystical intervention.

There needs a self awareness program going in there in your home. All said with love.
 

Ultum4Spiderz

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You have way too much bad things happening to you. I would sage the bad word out of everything in your life.

You need some kind of mystical intervention.

There needs a self awareness program going in there in your home. All said with love.
Yes hope things get better .
 
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TheraMygale

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It would seem like I’ve been derailed financial because my parents favor my sisters. 👯‍♀️.. They have no trouble helping them. They will go quickly to help them but throw me under the bus. 🚌
Only going and getting a job can get me anything .
Just do what you want.

I could help you but that ship has sailed. At this point, what matters is what you want.

If you don’t like how things are playing out for you, the only change that can happen will come from you.

I learned that the long painful way. Don’t be like me.
 

Ultum4Spiderz

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Just do what you want.

I could help you but that ship has sailed. At this point, what matters is what you want.

If you don’t like how things are playing out for you, the only change that can happen will come from you.

I learned that the long painful way. Don’t be like me.
Yeah it’s hard to do anything this ear pain is like paralysis , I can’t think once pain gets to bad. Still haven’t got ahold of the specialist office closed early last time I tried to call. I will tomorrow.
 

TheraMygale

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Yeah it’s hard to do anything this ear pain is like paralysis , I can’t think once pain gets to bad. Still haven’t got ahold of the specialist office closed early last time I tried to call. I will tomorrow.

It took me years on a waitlist to get help from my local pain clinic.

In the end, all you will learn is how to accept and live with it.

They won’t tell you how the pain will go away.

However, this is beyond the OPs original post. You can pm me for more info on this.
 

Ultum4Spiderz

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It took me years on a waitlist to get help from my local pain clinic.

In the end, all you will learn is how to accept and live with it.

They won’t tell you how the pain will go away.

However, this is beyond the OPs original post. You can pm me for more info on this.
yeah back to worrying about candles and other fragrances.
 
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HooahArmy

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Hi there folks! Thank you very much for your patience! I was at a location with the Army that did not have electricity and was unable to answer but...

Here are some great ways to deodorize critter-stink, much of which I suffer too with dogs and too many fellow soldiers:
1. Love the rosewater idea! I do this with lavender and orange blossom water. This method COVERS smell.
2. Baking soda is my best friend! I shake it where it stinks, which is literally everywhere. Vaccuming it up afterwards can take the stink with it. This method will actually GET RID of smell.
3. Pet-friendly deodorizers. I have a few from Burts Bees and a whole slew from Air Wick. (use in non-spider areas)
4. Lemon/orange peel water. Spritz in stinky spots to help COVER stench, but away from spider enclosures.
5. Charcoal deodorizer pouches. Hang these around hot spots. They work well enough for me to deodorize soldier-smell! This method also GETS RID of smells!
 

TheraMygale

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Now that makes me think: i use milk of magnesium as a deodorant. It neutralizes the ph. Costs nothing when you see how long it lasts, and safe for the body. I add essential oil to it, but use essences that are not phototoxic.

there is also a difference with essential oil diffusers and nebulizers.

the nebulizers will shoot the oil in the air and is for medical use. I use those in my bedroom when sick or other needs. They are also not meant to be turned on for long periods. Its like a 10-20 minute thing.

a diffuser is diluted with water. Its mostly for aromatherapy: the scent. And they don’t carry very far if its a small diffuser. I don’t use those because i feel they are a waste of precious essential oils. Most of the oil builds up in the diffuser, then rather in the air.

i only buy high quality incense.

Get to know your medicinal plants. You’ll learn a lot of helpful things, and feel more confident on where, when and how to use them.

feel free to lapidate me, but someone did not listen to me and siliconed the windows. In the living room. Where the tarantulas are.

no one dead yet. Sometimes you can only deal with the cards you are given. Radical acceptance is what its called.
 
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