power outage

[IndianaSlim]

Hey all. I'm sitting here listening to the freezing rain hit my window and wondering if my power will go off...again. If I were to lose power for an extended period of time, would the best thing for me to do for my tarantulas be to put a blanket over the aquariums?

 

[cheetah13mo]

It all depends on the long term temperature, if any. For lots of T's, extended periods of temps below 55 would probably not be good. The time they can survive gets shorter the colder it gets. There are some T's that do a sort of hybertation so temps close to freezing can be coped with but most come from more tropical temps and these temps can do some damage. G rosea and A. hentzi are examples of T's that can handle cooler temps for extended periods. I'd look for other means of supplimental heat for the more tropical species in your collection until the power comes back on.

 

[midnight_maiden]

It all depends on the long term temperature, if any. For lots of T's, extended periods of temps below 55 would probably not be good. The time they can survive gets shorter the colder it gets. There are some T's that do a sort of hybertation so temps close to freezing can be coped with but most come from more tropical temps and these temps can do some damage. G rosea and A. hentzi are examples of T's that can handle cooler temps for extended periods. I'd look for other means of supplimental heat for the more tropical species in your collection until the power comes back on.

How long would be too long exactly? I just received a 1.5" a. geniculata today, and she is acting kinda strange. Slow moving and slightly curled (just in the front). Could this be from the cold temps during the shipping? I'm new to this so I get worried about them easily.

 

[Selenops]

If I were to lose power for an extended period of time, would the best thing for me to do for my tarantulas be to put a blanket over the aquariums?

That's not a bad idea, I put flannel shirts that are warm yet breathable over my terrariums before bed or while I have my room lit up bright. You're probably alot more colder maybe someone else can give you more input.

(And keep my Ts supervised frequently.)

 

[Mushroom Spore]

How long would be too long exactly? I just received a 1.5" a. geniculata today, and she is acting kinda strange. Slow moving and slightly curled (just in the front). Could this be from the cold temps during the shipping? I'm new to this so I get worried about them easily.

Might be dehydrated, make sure it has water, maybe moisten the substrate. Otherwise, it's probably just very stressed. Wouldn't YOU be scared if you were abducted by aliens and sent through a giant-sized postal system?

 

[ErikH]

A blanket might work for a short period of time. All it really would do is hold in some of the residual heat in the tank. If you were to lose power for an extended period of time, long enough for your house temps to go below 50 (yes, I know that might only be 4 hours in the Midwest in January or February), you might want to get some heat packs. I would think laying one of those 8 hour handwarmers you can get at WalMart or any sporting goods store on top of the container and covering it with a blanket ought to keep them toasty for a day.

For smaller enclosures and vials, I am not sure how you could use a pack without cooking the critters. I guess you would have to put them in a box with a heat pack, like they were being packed for shipping.

 

[green_bottle_04]

go to wal-mart or any sporting goods store and get some "HOT HANDS" and put them in a good size box. then put your T's in deli cups with a little bit of paper towel in the bottom. put the deli cups-o-T's in the box and close it. then cover it with a blanket. or if you have heat packs for shipping (almost the same thing but heat packs are usually cheaper) you can do the same with them. if you have alot of T's it might not be a bad idea to go out and get a small generator (if you have the cash). i have one for situations such as this for my reptiles and T's.


p.s. youll want to have a buffer of a good amount of paper towles between the heat packs and the deli cups...dont want the t's to get too hot.

 

[Merfolk]

I live in Montréal. Nowadays...looks like north pole.

If this ever happens, i'll warm up my van and put them all in, then drive them to a place with electricity.

 

[Scott C.]

Heat bricks, and then put them in a closet with your T's....
Use your head to prevent fire....

 

[Varden]

We have power outages fairly regularly where I live. So I keep an insulated duffel bag ($15 at walmart, I think) and plenty of ventilated deli cups on hand. When I lose power and the temps in the spider room start to drop to alarming degrees, I pack Ts up and put them in the insulated duffel bags with a heat pack. One heat pack per duffel keeps the Ts at 70 degrees for 24 hours and it takes about 4 hours to pack everyone up.

 

[Anastasia]

coupla yrs ago I had only 3 T's and one snake
power went out I didnt know what to do, but
cap T's in deli caps and stick under my shirt
and my snake end up on my neck as a necklace
I think he loved it, lol

hey, I had to think fast at dat point