Suitable substrate for malaysian black trapdoor?

BishopiMaster

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Jul 12, 2007
Messages
356
and also if theres a little something i should know about them, feel free to give your 2 cents
 

BishopiMaster

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Jul 12, 2007
Messages
356
Where can i find some i googled it and found coconut bark chips but as far as i know all chip substrate is bad for tarantulas and reptiles alike
 

Iggy

Arachnopeon
Joined
Oct 31, 2006
Messages
40
I keep mine with an equal 3 part mix of peat moss, coarse vermiculite, and coconut fiber. As far as things to know, they like to burrow on slopes so angle your substrate, and be sure to give them a good amount of depth so that they can dig down. They do not like direct contact with water so be careful when misting or they will go ballistic! I try to keep my substrate semi-damp from what I have read and seen they do not like it dry, but not too wet either. I put a piece of 1/2 inch pvc pipe in the back of the enclosure that goes all the way to the bottom at the deepest part of the substrate, where I put a layer of aquarium gravel about an inch deep prior to the substrate mix. This way I can just pour water in and the gravel allows it to spread out evenly over the entire bottom of the enclosure and absorb up into the substrate as it evaporates out the top. Just keep a cover or stopper in the pvc to keep feeders out. I have found that I add water about every 2 weeks or so.(using a clear container helps so that you can see how much water you have added and also keep an eye on how dry it is getting) That is my 2 cents, hope it helps these are my favorite spiders!
 

beetleman

Arachnoking
Old Timer
Joined
Jan 5, 2005
Messages
2,874
i keep all of my true spiders/traps on moist eco earth, works great.
 

BishopiMaster

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Jul 12, 2007
Messages
356
Thanks man I love all myglamorphs and true spiders but i really admire are the latrodectus and trapdoors, specifically i like liphistius the most is there any sites i can find more about them on?
 

Bastian Drolshagen

Arachnobaron
Old Timer
Joined
Apr 14, 2005
Messages
488
hi,
to me coconutfibers are much too steril to use it in my tanks. I usually take soil from outside an mix it with sand or clay.
Take a look at pictures from the original habitats of that spider...you´ll never find coconutfibers or something like that...it´s always ordinary soil (for Liphistius I would use a lot of clay).
 

luna

Arachnoknight
Old Timer
Joined
Nov 5, 2005
Messages
178
I put a piece of 1/2 inch pvc pipe in the back of the enclosure that goes all the way to the bottom at the deepest part of the substrate, where I put a layer of aquarium gravel about an inch deep prior to the substrate mix. This way I can just pour water in and the gravel allows it to spread out evenly over the entire bottom of the enclosure and absorb up into the substrate as it evaporates out the top.
I did pretty much the exact same thing for my red trap door but she decided to move half the rocks!

I keep her in a Rubbermaid screw-lid canister; the tall one –probably 16 cups. I had about 1” of gravel on the bottom but she carried it to the top of her burrow and threw it out the trap. I could hear the stone hit the sides for days as she was going through construction.

I think it is a great idea for keping substrate moist but some spiders have other plans!
 
Top