Bleach?

[Bluebird5591]

I tried searching but am getting conflicting information plus a lot of it is old.. I'm going to repticon this weekend and will more than likely be getting an a chalcodes. I have an old cage that i need to disinfect, is bleach safe to use? Repticon isn't until Saturday so i have plently of time to get it cleaned, quadrupled rinsed and left to sit for a few days. If no to bleach, what else should i use that would clean it well enough? There was a death in the cage years ago but it was an amphibian not a spider.

 

[Paul1126]

Wow no do not use bleach on anything you intend to put an animal in.
Bleach is toxic for us to breathe in.

 

[Bluebird5591]

Wow no do not use bleach on anything you intend to put an animal in.
Bleach is toxic for us to breathe in.

That's why I'm asking, i thought maybe it sitting in the sun for a few days would evaporate all that.. so what should i use to disinfect a cage with a previous death?

 

[Thekla]

If something is really dirty and needs more than water, I use dish soap and rinse it thoroughly with water afterwards.

 

[Paul1126]

That's why I'm asking, i thought maybe it sitting in the sun for a few days would evaporate all that.. so what should i use to disinfect a cage with a previous death?

How messy was this death? I never disinfect any of my enclosures, if I was going to I would use something natural. Sure you can use google to search up natural cleaning reciepes.

 

[Mirandarachnid]

Bleach is okay if you use a weak solution and rinse very thoroughly, fish keepers do it all the time. Google "clean an aquarium with bleach"

Personally, I use vinegar. Or, if it's really nasty I use dish soap, rinse well, then clean again with vinegar to get rid of any residue that may be left. Just rinse until you don't smell vinegar anymore.

 

[Bluebird5591]

How messy was this death? I never disinfect any of my enclosures, if I was going to I would use something natural. Sure you can use google to search up natural cleaning reciepes.

Not messy but I'm not sure what the cause was so just want to be sure it's safe. I know vinegar is used as a mild cleaning solution but wasn't sure it would be strong enough in this situation.

Bleach is okay if you use a weak solution and rinse very thoroughly, fish keepers do it all the time. Google "clean an aquarium with bleach"

Personally, I use vinegar. Or, if it's really nasty I use dish soap, rinse well, then clean again with vinegar to get rid of any residue that may be left. Just rinse until you don't smell vinegar anymore.

Yes, I've used it with fish many times, i just wanted to make sure there wasn't some reason it might be more dangerous to an arachnid. Thank you for your input.

 

[Mirandarachnid]

Oh, and hydrogen peroxide is another good one. It used to be my go to, but vinegar is cheaper and I also use it for everything.

Yes, I've used it with fish many times, i just wanted to make sure there wasn't some reason it might be more dangerous to an arachnid. Thank you for your input.

I think fish are more sensitive to chemicals (or at least it affects them more quickly than it does inverts), so I tend to use them as a standard of if a chemical is safe or not. (brands of silicone/cleaning solutions for example)

I may be wrong about that though, as I don't keep fish. I'd be pretty surprised if an aquarium sanitation method which was safe for fish turned out not to be safe for inverts

 

[Tim Benzedrine]

I may be wrong, but I think chlorine breaks down pretty quickly when exposed to air. Couple that with a very thorough rinse and dry and I would think that it would be safe enough. however, if there are safer alternatives, there's no harm in using those instead. And I will point out that I'm not certain of the composition of laundry bleach, but some of them have sent additives, I think. So in any case, reading the label would not be a bad idea before considering usage.

 

[Patherophis]

I may be wrong, but I think chlorine breaks down pretty quickly when exposed to air. Couple that with a very thorough rinse and dry and I would think that it would be safe enough. however, if there are safer alternatives, there's no harm in using those instead. And I will point out that I'm not certain of the composition of laundry bleach, but some of them have sent additives, I think. So in any case, reading the label would not be a bad idea before considering usage.

You are right. Common bleach is approwed e.g. for objects and surfaces comming in contact with food, child toys, pool and well water.

 

[Gogyeng]

Bleach is okay if you use a weak solution and rinse very thoroughly, fish keepers do it all the time. Google "clean an aquarium with bleach"

Personally, I use vinegar. Or, if it's really nasty I use dish soap, rinse well, then clean again with vinegar to get rid of any residue that may be left. Just rinse until you don't smell vinegar anymore.

Yes, vinegar is the safest

 

[Polenth]

The trick when chlorine bleach is used for fish tanks is you can break it down afterwards using dechlorinator. But it's not something I've ever felt a need to do, because I've never lost a whole tank of fish to an unstoppable infection. That's generally when the bleach would come out.

Pretty much every tank I've cleaned has only had a water wash. The few times I've needed something else is when dealing with oily residues. Biodegradable washing up liquid is my choice there, because it won't last long.

 

[Bluebird5591]

The trick when chlorine bleach is used for fish tanks is you can break it down afterwards using dechlorinator. But it's not something I've ever felt a need to do, because I've never lost a whole tank of fish to an unstoppable infection. That's generally when the bleach would come out.

Pretty much every tank I've cleaned has only had a water wash. The few times I've needed something else is when dealing with oily residues. Biodegradable washing up liquid is my choice there, because it won't last long.

I've mostly used it for ornaments to get stubborn algae off of them but always soaked it in dechlorinator after, fair point.

Ok now I'm being annoying but for the sake of conversation on the topic of vinegar, as i said my main concern with it in this situation is it being described as a "mild cleaning solution".. so if we're talking about potentially needing to get rid of something harmful and not just a simple cleaning, would you feel confident in it getting the job done? I mean "safest" almost seems synonymous with "least effective", no?

 

[Mirandarachnid]

Ok now I'm being annoying but for the sake of conversation on the topic of vinegar, as i said my main concern with it in this situation is it being described as a "mild cleaning solution".. so if we're talking about potentially needing to get rid of something harmful and not just a simple cleaning, would you feel confident in it getting the job done? I mean "safest" almost seems synonymous with "least effective", no?

https://www.mnn.com/health/healthy-...ctants-a-guide-to-killing-germs-the-right-way

You might give this a read, according to this I'd say H2O2 is your best bet if you're wanting to avoid bleach.

 

[Bluebird5591]

https://www.mnn.com/health/healthy-...ctants-a-guide-to-killing-germs-the-right-way

You might give this a read, according to this I'd say H2O2 is your best bet if you're wanting to avoid bleach.

Very informative, thank you.

 

[Gnarled Gnome]

Bleach is safe if used as Mirandarachnid described. But vinegar is effective and cheap. If you want something stronger, hydrogen peroxide breaks down into water, so it's a good disinfectant.

 

[cold blood]

Dawn

 

[Paul1126]

Well if you've used bleach on an aquarium for fish then I see no reason why you can't safely use it for Ts.
I am surprised though

 

[Thekla]

Well, people use bleach for cleaning plants before they go in a vivarium and they survive the treatment, too.

Thing is, I can't get bleach in the stores around here, so I never tried it.

 

[bulbophyllum]

I can not see any reason bleach would cause an issue. Just rinse it well. Whats to problem?