Temperature Requirements/Effects

[SpiderFriend14]

Hey everyone, in my quest to getting my first tarantula I’ve realized I may have a problem - temperature. I live in the American northeast, meaning that temperature changes all the time. Normally I can keep my home at room temperature, although it can often vary by 5-10 degrees Fahrenheit. I’m planning on picking up a grammostola-pulchripes, so I believe they live at room temperature normally. My main question is this: should I be worried about temperature and should I invest in something to moderate it. Thanks - SpiderFriend14

 

[viper69]

Hey everyone, in my quest to getting my first tarantula I’ve realized I may have a problem - temperature. I live in the American northeast, meaning that temperature changes all the time. Normally I can keep my home at room temperature, although it can often vary by 5-10 degrees Fahrenheit. I’m planning on picking up a grammostola-pulchripes, so I believe they live at room temperature normally. My main question is this: should I be worried about temperature and should I invest in something to moderate it. Thanks - SpiderFriend14

No one has a damn clue what room temp in YOUR home is. We aren’t damn mindreaders.

 

[DomGom TheFather]

Anywhere between 70 and 85 is fine.
Down to the low 60's or up to the mid 90's isn't going to hurt anything but try not to let things go there for long. Just try to keep things stable.

 

[Caemoxie]

I am not sure what room tempature is for you, but in my experience most Ts are comfortable between 60-85 degrees F. They can handle about 10 degrees in either direction pretty alright, as long as its not for an extended duration. Anything outside of that range, I would worry about long term health.

 

[Stormsinger]

65-85F is fine. Its best to control the temperature in the room and not the enclosure itself. People have built temperature controlled cabinets and stuff to put enclosures in, but it is largely unnecessary if you can keep the room in the 65-85 range.

 

[korg]

I'm sure it'll be fine. Plenty of folks in the PNW keep them at room temperature without issues!

 

[DomGom TheFather]

65-85

60-85

You're killin' me, bro's. Lol

 

[cold blood]

65-85F is fine. Its best to control the temperature in the room and not the enclosure itself. People have built temperature controlled cabinets and stuff to put enclosures in, but it is largely unnecessary if you can keep the room in the 65-85 range.

Even greater than that...adults will do fine in the high 50's at night....and mid 90's as well.

Temp is of zero concern.

Don't read care sheets, they're garbage.

 

[Stormsinger]

Even greater than that...adults will do fine in the high 50's at night....and mid 90's as well.

Temp is of zero concern.

Don't read care sheets, they're garbage.

Maybe I should have chosen my words more carefully since I can certainly see why they would be taken the wrong way. When I made that post, I did not consider that I keep a gecko in the same room and so I keep a more restricted temperature range. Both are kept at 'room temperature' but room temperature for me ends at the upper limit my gecko can live at and I forgot to consider that. Sorry for the confusion, I will retire to my tree house now .

 

[The Grym Reaper]

The vast majority of species are fine kept anywhere between 18°C - 32°C and several are able to tolerate daytime highs/overnight lows outside of this range.

 

[Smotzer]

You're killin' me, bro's. Lol

What? Temps into the 60’s are perfectly fine!

 

[DomGom TheFather]

What? Temps into the 60’s are perfectly fine!

I know.
We all stopped at 85.
They were undercutting. Lol
I started at 70 because i think between 70 and 85 is optimal.

 

[Smotzer]

I know.
We all stopped at 85.
They were undercutting. Lol
I started at 70 because i think between 70 and 85 is optimal.

Ohhh gotcha!! wasnt sure if you were saying that the 60's are too cool. I am a cooler side keeper. I have never kept my tarantulas on anywhere towards the higher end of the spectrum or even in the mid 70's, way too warm for me in my own home hahah

 

[DomGom TheFather]

Ohhh gotcha!! wasnt sure if you were saying that the 60's are too cool. I am a cooler side keeper. I have never kept my tarantulas on anywhere towards the higher end of the spectrum or even in the mid 70's, way too warm for me in my own home hahah

To each their own.
As long as the spider thrives.

I keep slings and juvies in a closet where the temperature never dips below 70 and is usually edging 80. The adults get the house temp. which is usually a bit cooler.

 

[Smotzer]

To each their own.
As long as the spider thrives.

I keep slings and juvies in a closet where the temperature never dips below 70 and is usually edging 80. The adults get the house temp. which is usually a bit cooler.

I May not get as fast of growth rates, but I’ve never noticed anything particularly slow per species normal rate, and either or I don’t care I get to keep them around ans enjoy them longer if it does.

 

[AphonopelmaTX]

I started at 70 because i think between 70 and 85 is optimal.

I reached the same conclusion using wild Texas tarantulas as a control group of sorts. Every year, the start of tarantula season in Texas is marked when the weather report shows low temperatures at 70-80 degrees F (give or take a few degrees). In Texas, that usually corresponds to high temperatures of about 90-100+ degrees F. The end of the Texas tarantula season usually occurs when the low temperatures fall below 70 degrees F.

By comparison to my captive tarantulas, I notice that the higher above 80 F it gets in my spider room, the more pacing and climbing I see as if the heat is bothersome; the lower below 70 degrees, the more dormant they are as if they don't have the energy to do much of anything. If one is going to try for a "one temperature fits all" approach to captive tarantulas, then 70-80 degrees appears to be what to shoot for.

 

[YungRasputin]

if you’re worried about them getting cold you could always use a heat pad on the side of the enclosure - they make arachnid specific pads and you can easily install a dimmer switch to toggle the temp further - this is how I keep my desert scorps kosher

plus, given how arachnid blood works, i agree with others that say for the vast majority of specimens the 70-80F range is optimal