Cinnamon for Ts?

[dukegarda]

Is cinnamon okay for Ts to be around? Cinnamon the spice/cooking ingredient.

I'll explain when we find out if it is safe for Ts.

 

[scar is my t]

well it is natural. but i just wouldn't be using a lot around your t's cinnamon is a fine dust most of the time and could destroy the book lungs possibly.

 

[xhexdx]

I have no idea why you're asking that question or what you could possibly be doing with it around them.

I also have no idea if it's safe or not because I don't think anyone has ever had a reason to try it...

 

[dukegarda]

Reason. I have a soil fungus outbreak in my P. regalis tank. It's been an established live tank with live plants, and the works.

Just recently moved, and there was a change in air quality, so possibly that's where the fungus came from. Not only that, but I used shitty soil :wall: What a regret. It was garden center bought, with no extra chemicals pumped into it.


Anyways, it's going to be a pain to rip apart the tank, and buy new plants, etc etc.



After some research I found out that there are a few, very few actually, naturally occurring things that combat soil fungus (saprophytic soil fungus).

Here is the list,

* Tea tree oil
* Cinnamon
* Jojoba oil
* Rosemary oil
* Milk


Apparently, most gardening forums say to just sprinkle it around, and it'll do the job...

 

[Endagr8]

Your best option would be to dry the tank out for a while. Very few plants require soil that is constantly moist, especially on the surface of the soil, where you have seen mold growing.

Isopods are also a good option; they will eat uneaten prey that is often the cause of mold issues.

Spraying vinegar* on the fungus might work, and it should be safe for your T.

*a very, very light misting on the surface of the soil should suffice.

 

[dukegarda]

i've tried drying it out. It's very... very sucky soil. It'st arted growing on some of the sphagnum I have in there... and well... I'm running out to homedepot and getting new plants and redoing the tank... V_V

 

[IdahoBiteyThing]

repellant

Cinnamon is a natural insect repellant, and most find it very irritating. Good way to keep ants from coming around. Don't know how it specifically affects T's, but I'd guess it's pretty irritating to them.

 

[Sathane]

I wouldn't use cinnamon. Ts have very sensitive chemoreceptors that I believe may go haywire from the cinnamon. Try this experiment. Take a tablespoon of cinnamon and try to swallow it. Let us know your results.

Milk, on the other hand, is great. Give this thread on calcium supplementation a read for information on milk and Ts.

EDIT: Whoops! Might need the link.

http://www.arachnoboards.com/ab/showthread.php?t=152229

 

[xhexdx]

I have seen the tablespoon of cinnamon thing before. Not pretty.

 

[Sathane]

Yah, the person doing the experiment was pretty dog faced...
Oh, forgot to mention, when you do this experiment you should record it so you can share your results. If this isn't possible, that okay, but it would be great if you could.

Hey Joe... Psst... Down here... Lets see if he does it. MUAHAHAHAHA!

I have seen the tablespoon of cinnamon thing before. Not pretty.

 

[Marcink125]

physan 20 is really good for cleaning out mold and fungus from T tanks. Also, New era peat moss and New era vermiculite is actually sterile! So I suggest using a physan 20 solution( by that I mean a wet paper towel and a little physan 20 on the wet papertowl, or soak the whole tank in phsan 20 and water in a tub) to clean the p. regalis tank and then use the new era peat moss nad vermiculite. I use physan 20 for my orchids and T's that have mold in their tanks. It leaves no residue, so it doesn't hurt the T.


http://www.physan.com/

 

[Sathane]

That Physan 20 sounds like so very useful stuff.

I do have a slight annoyance though. In nearly every thread about mold someone mentions says something to the effect of sterilizing the substrate or baking the substrate to prevent mold. This doesn't work. Mold is an airborne spore so sterilizing the soil does nothing in the way of mold prevention. Monitoring humidity and ensuring proper ventiliation can inhibit mold growth but also will not prevent it entirely.

physan 20 is really good for cleaning out mold and fungus from T tanks. Also, New era peat moss and New era vermiculite is actually sterile! So I suggest using a physan 20 solution( by that I mean a wet paper towel and a little physan 20 on the wet papertowl, or soak the whole tank in phsan 20 and water in a tub) to clean the p. regalis tank and then use the new era peat moss nad vermiculite. I use physan 20 for my orchids and T's that have mold in their tanks. It leaves no residue, so it doesn't hurt the T.


http://www.physan.com/

 

[LirvA]

But you still need to bake it to kill parasites, right?

What are the best soils to use?

 

[BrynWilliams]

Although re-doing the tank is an arse pain for sure, it's probably the safest way to deal with the problem without putting your T at any risk at all.

A couple extra hours worth of work would definitely be worth a T still alive and healthy and not distressed by any added chemical whose effects we all can't be sure of.

Just my opinion.

 

[Sathane]

Agreed, however, I normally don't remove all of the substrate. I normally just remove the moldy areas and those areas around it although taking out everything is a more definite fix.

Although re-doing the tank is an arse pain for sure, it's probably the safest way to deal with the problem without putting your T at any risk at all.

A couple extra hours worth of work would definitely be worth a T still alive and healthy and not distressed by any added chemical whose effects we all can't be sure of.

Just my opinion.

 

[dukegarda]

Gonna redo the tank. lol. I will do the cinnamon thing though, just for kicks....

 

[Sathane]

Awesome! Don't forget to take video if at all possible...

Gonna redo the tank. lol. I will do the cinnamon thing though, just for kicks....

 

[BCscorp]

Thing with mold is that just cause you cant see it, doesnt mean its not there.
Removing just the moldy spots MAY leave undetected mold in the tank.
Hydrogen peroxide is also a way to treat small mold outbreak.
For example a moldy bolus, remove it and there is a small bit of mold left behind....spray with hydrogen peroxide and itll kill the mold.
I have not ever used this in a T enclosure, but peroxide evaporates very rapidly so I think it would probably be safe. Any opinions on peroxide?

Redo the tank completely and switch to fake SILK plants.

 

[Sathane]

Very true.

I've recently switched the type of wood I use in my enclosures too. I used to use corkbark and grape wood but the grape wood is very bad for molding. Now I use mopani and corkbark. It's a bit more expensive and harder to find but very cool looking and doesn't mold easily.

Thing with mold is that just cause you cant see it, doesnt mean its not there.
Removing just the moldy spots MAY leave undetected mold in the tank.
Hydrogen peroxide is also a way to treat small mold outbreak.
For example a moldy bolus, remove it and there is a small bit of mold left behind....spray with hydrogen peroxide and itll kill the mold.
I have not ever used this in a T enclosure, but peroxide evaporates very rapidly so I think it would probably be safe. Any opinions on peroxide?

Redo the tank completely and switch to fake SILK plants.