Sterilization

Bjorgly

Arachnodemon
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Aug 7, 2002
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729
Hi, everyone....my big cage maitenence forceps have been through alot with crickets, substrates, spiders etc. and i wouldnt want anything in the past hurting my spiders. What is the best way for me to sterilize them without doing something to them what would hurt my spider? boil them? rubb them with rubbing alcohol? bleech?

any suggestions appreciated,

Mark
 

JacenBeers

Arachnoprince
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Sep 1, 2002
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Clean them well with really hot water and then take them to a local peircing place or tattoo shop and get them to put it through the autoclave.
 

sabre

Arachnosquire
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Aug 21, 2002
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boil them. simple, effective and no chemicals involved.
 

MrDeranged

He Who Rules
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Couple things you can do. Boil them or soak them in rubbing alcohol. If you don't need to get it quite that sterile, you can run them under really warm water or wipe them down with an alcohol wipe (which is what I do along with the really hot running water)

It's really up to you

Scott
 

galeogirl

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I like Hibiclens or Betadine surgical scrub. Rinse very, very well after using either product.
 

Code Monkey

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Hmm... what I'm really thinking is, "Why the hell would you care about sterilising your tools unless you've got a known infectious agent since these guys live on dirt in open cages?" It's not as though sterlisation is actually accomplishing anything, but if it makes you feel better:

Alcohol, betadine, etc. will kill most stuff, of course so won't soap and water.

Boiling is another option but doesn't really sterilise something like metal tongs any better than rubbing alcohol.

If you really want sterile, you either need to heat the instruments til they're red hot in a flame or pressure cook them at 15 psi for about 15-20 minutes.
 

Immortal_sin

Arachnotemptress
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Jul 17, 2002
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wow....I am impressed...since I don't clean, sterilize, or do ANYTHING to my instruments between spiders. I guess if I had an outbreak of mites, or mysterious deaths, etc...I would. But so far, I don't even sterilize containers between Ts. I just wash them really well. I wonder if I'm courting trouble at some point?
I know there are folks that sterilize their soil in the oven or microwave...but knowing me, I'd blow something up, or set the house on fire! (I'm not known for my culinary skills!)
Maybe I'm lucky, or maybe something really bad is going to happen one day...not sure which.
Hmmm....things to think upon.....
 

Wade

Arachnoking
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Aug 16, 2002
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I tend to agree with Code Monkey, I rarely choose to sterilize tools for the reasons he outlined. The occasional washing with soap and water is about it. Occasionally I do need to disinfect something, however. Here's a few thoughts on different chemicals...

Alcohol: Evaporates quickly, good for many surfaces. I use this for small things like tools.

Bleach: Good for plastic and glass, but can corrode metal. Fumes very toxic, especially combined with the amonia in some animal feces. I only use bleach when I'm cleaning an enclosure between animals.

Sterimine: A food-service disinfectant. I use this mostly in reptile cages. Much safer than bleach, it comes in tablets that are disolved in water. I use it for general cleaning.

Wade
 

kosh

Arachnobaron
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Sep 10, 2002
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not that anyone would do this but...DONT mix bleach with dishwashing liquid!!!!!......when i was younger and more stupid....i read on the bottle about this so i decided to try it to see what would happen.....mixed bleach and dishwashing liquid in a shot glass......the crap got real hot and started foaming...and gave off some kind of gas that made me have to leave the house for fresh air!!!......(looking back...boy was i stupid :rolleyes: )....just dont accidentally do this....
 

Bjorgly

Arachnodemon
Old Timer
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Aug 7, 2002
Messages
729
Thanks!

Thanks everyone for your input. I just like to always be on the cautious side =)

Mark
 
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