Heat matt causing condensation

[Cash4mould]

Hello im new here.
I have a g.rosea sling. I have not been using a heat natt just keeping the radiator on in my bedroom but i couldnt cope with it so i have a heat matt for her now. Ive set the thermostat to 23.
The heat matt is on the side of the tank i think i read somewhere its not good to out at the bottom because t wont be able to get away from the heat.
Since using, it the opposite side of her tank is completely covered in condensation (the side where her water is) and she spends all day sat on the wall where the matt is? What can i do about this?
I cant go back to just using the heating in my room since the electric prices hiking, i prefer to have the window open most times anyway.

 

[Smotzer]

That set up is going to likely kill the Grammastola rosea sling; it is obviously warn, looks wet, and humid, with little ventilation. It’s a death trap. Remove the heat mat it likely doesn’t need it, I’d replace some of the substrate with drier substrate, and id add way more ventilation. NW slings need slightly moist substrate in parts of the substrate, not totally moist substrate with condensation.

why were you supplementally heating? What are your temps.

 

[coolnweird]

When you say the thermostat is at 23, do you mean your home thermostat or the one on the heat mat? If your room temp is 23 C/73 F then you absolutely do NOT need a heat mat. My T's have dropped to 65 F for short amounts of time in the winter, and have suffered no ill effects. Overheating is objectively worse for tarantulas than underheating

 

[viper69]

This needs change before you kill it

 

[PhoenixFyre]

Get rid of the heat mat, it's dangerous to tarantulas.
You need ventilation holes - a lot of it! - you're suffocating it with stagnant air.
Your enclosure is much too wet. - there shouldn't be condensation.

Please please please please please read this site on how to care for a G. rosea since right now, you have it in a death trap.

 

[The Snark]

Condensation at 28c? That is normally referred to as a sauna. Just remove the spider and install a tropical amphibian.

 

[JonnyTorch]

Bone dry substrate, no heat mat. Water Dish. That's how you keep a G. porteri or G. rosea correctly.

For a sling, add some drops of water to a corner of the substrate and let a corner get moist so it can drink or sit next to that side if it wants.

That container may be way too big for a sling. What size is your spider?

 

[Cash4mould]

That set up is going to likely kill the Grammastola rosea sling; it is obviously warn, looks wet, and humid, with little ventilation. It’s a death trap. Remove the heat mat it likely doesn’t need it, I’d replace some of the substrate with drier substrate, and id add way more ventilation. NW slings need slightly moist substrate in parts of the substrate, not totally moist substrate with condensation.

why were you supplementally heating? What are your temps.

Im supplementing heating because i cant cope with having my bedroom very warm and as i said in the post electric prices have gone up alot recently so its difficult to afford. and her temps are supposed to be between like 19 and 26. I live in the uk and regularly have my window open so im very scared she'll get too cold with no heat matt.
In the process of adding more ventilation as i type this. Moved the heat matt away. Do u think it would be a good idea maybe just to have the heat matt on but set the thermostat to a much lower temp so it turns on if my room gets VERY cold. Sometimes i come back from a weekend away and its very cold in here and i get panicked that she will freeze to death. My teacher says they are very hardy but its the cold that confuses me. Thanks for 9ther help

Bone dry substrate, no heat mat. Water Dish. That's how you keep a G. porteri or G. rosea correctly.

For a sling, add some drops of water to a corner of the substrate and let a corner get moist so it can drink or sit next to that side if it wants.

That container may be way too big for a sling. What size is your spider?

It is too big for her you are right the only reason i moved her from the ither one is because i thought she needed a heat matt and it would be much too bug for the old container

When you say the thermostat is at 23, do you mean your home thermostat or the one on the heat mat? If your room temp is 23 C/73 F then you absolutely do NOT need a heat mat. My T's have dropped to 65 F for short amounts of time in the winter, and have suffered no ill effects. Overheating is objectively worse for tarantulas than underheating

I mean the thermostat on my heat matt. My heating in my bedroom is now off because i cant cope with the heat. I was wondering if that naybe the temperature difference in my room vs her tank was what was causing the condensation but apparently not according to the other replies on the thread. I have no way of telling you what the temperature in my bedroom is im afraid.

 

[HeartBum]

It was 19 degrees yesterday - she doesn’t need any additional heat, trust me. I’ve never used any and I’ve raised 28 slings and have 7 who are now Juveniles/Sub Adults. The others are slow-growing species like Brachys.

Get her in a smaller enclosure so she can be more easily monitored with lots of ventilation of an appropriate size; and keep the heat mat for if you decide to breed feeders in the future, as that’s all they’re useful for when keeping T’s.

 

[Cash4mould]

It was 19 degrees yesterday - she doesn’t need any additional heat, trust me. I’ve never used any and I’ve raised 28 slings and have 7 who are now Juveniles/Sub Adults. The others are slow-growing species like Brachys.

Get her in a smaller enclosure so she can be more easily monitored with lots of ventilation of an appropriate size; and keep the heat mat for if you decide to breed feeders in the future, as that’s all they’re useful for when keeping T’s.

Ok thank u that puts my mind at ease a bit. She was fine when i had no heat matt but i had my bedroom heater on quite high and i couldnt cope with it myself. Iev heard alot of people say "if youre confortable shes comfortable" but i deal with the cold a lot better. I will return her to her smaller container. I ordered a thermometer yesterday, i was going to use it as back up for the thermostat but i might just use it to keep an eye on my bedroom temperature now.

Ive removed the heat matt and moved her back into her orignal container. The original has air holes down the sides all the way. She's just climbing the walls atm as shes not used to it yet but im sure she'll settle back down in a bit. I made a big hole in the lid so i can still use the thermostat for my own peace of mind.
The fools gold is where her water ball usually is i just havent replaced it yet. (I dont have any cork or anything that fits this tank. I hope she likes the kinder egg) hope u all feel less anxious now and thank you for your help

 

[HeartBum]

I'd advise removing the rocks as if she falls on them she could injure herself. Also, the substrate looks very wet. This species needs to be kept dry. If she's kept in here, you'll rarely see her on the ground regardless of how long she's in here because she won't like how wet the sub is.

 

[Smotzer]

How big is the spider? Do you have a picture of it? If it’s a sling the new enclosure you posted may still be too big. Smalk 5oz deli cups may suffice.

 

[Cash4mould]

How big is the spider? Do you have a picture of it? If it’s a sling the new enclosure you posted may still be too big. Smalk 5oz deli cups may suffice.

This is the enclosure she came in and had been living comfortably in for 4 months before i relocated her to the larger one. Im not comfortable using a pot like that as i do not have a good steady hands and am likely to crush it.

I'd advise removing the rocks as if she falls on them she could injure herself. Also, the substrate looks very wet. This species needs to be kept dry. If she's kept in here, you'll rarely see her on the ground regardless of how long she's in here because she won't like how wet the sub is.

How can i make it less wet? It is coconut fibre. I do not dampened it or anything. It does have condensation slightly at the side now eveneithout the heat matt. At college with the fully grown g.roseas they spray the enclosures so i thought the slight dampness is ok. When i touch it it doesnt feel damp.

How big is the spider? Do you have a picture of it? If it’s a sling the new enclosure you posted may still be too big. Smalk 5oz deli cups may suffice.

Its hard to get a picture because of the way she sits herself next to things. I dont like to move the enclosure too much when she looks like shes chilling. If u look in the picture i put of the smaller tank you can see her abdomen poking out by the flower petals. She is a little fat i think, the crickets i bought her as micros are..not very micro anymore. Im sorry im not very good at judging sizes but id say her leg span is about the size of my thumb nail.

 

[jc55]

IMO i would downsize the enclosure a bit more as that still looks fairly large in comparison to your tarantula and dry it out and provide a small water dish like a bottle cap partially submerged in the substrate.

 

[kingshockey]

Ive removed the heat matt and moved her back into her orignal container. The original has air holes down the sides all the way. She's just climbing the walls atm as shes not used to it yet but im sure she'll settle back down in a bit. I made a big hole in the lid so i can still use the thermostat for my own peace of mind.
The fools gold is where her water ball usually is i just havent replaced it yet. (I dont have any cork or anything that fits this tank. I hope she likes the kinder egg) hope u all feel less anxious now and thank you for your help

you need a water bottle cap in there so your sling can drink from what do you man by water ball?also its but is quite chunky and dark will be in premolt soon if not already

 

[Cash4mould]

you need a water bottle cap in there so your sling can drink from what do you man by water ball?also its but is quite chunky and dark will be in premolt soon if not already

She is far too small for a cap so i use cotton wool made into a ball shape that i soak and then place on the fools gold so it doesnt get dirty but as as someone said the rocks might hurt her i may replace the rock woth a bottle cap. I have seen her drink from it and this is what the lady at the shop advised me to do, its worked since i got her in december so i think its fine untill she gets bigger.

 

[Cash4mould]

you need a water bottle cap in there so your sling can drink from what do you man by water ball?also its but is quite chunky and dark will be in premolt soon if not already

AND THANK YOU for saying this ive been wondering when she will molt.

 

[Cash4mould]

IMO i would downsize the enclosure a bit more as that still looks fairly large in comparison to your tarantula and dry it out and provide a small water dish like a bottle cap partially submerged in the substrate.

Ill try to dry it out a bit ive heard of people baking the substrate before use so maybe ill try doing that tomorrow. I dont currently have anything smaller to house her in and dont worry i promise i provide water for her it just wasnt in when i took the pic

 

[HeartBum]

You don’t need to put cotton wool in there, she won’t drown and can’t drink properly from it. Just give her a bottle cap with standing water. Also cotton wool will harbour bacteria. This is very outdated care information.

 

[kingshockey]

She is far too small for a cap so i use cotton wool made into a ball shape that i soak and then place on the fools gold so it doesnt get dirty but as as someone said the rocks might hurt her i may replace the rock woth a bottle cap. I have seen her drink from it and this is what the lady at the shop advised me to do, its worked since i got her in december so i think its fine untill she gets bigger.

no such thing as to smalll for a water bowl the sling wont sink and drown all the lil hairs cause them to float ontop of the water. highly suggest you use the search function on this forum and read up on some of the basics on sling care in general with an open mind without all the stuff you heard from the shop owner. just a suggestion only its your sling you do as you want with its care good luck