white mold on my substrate

[yveskevin]

Hello fellow hobyist,

i recently purchased "coco peat" to be used as my substrate for my Ts. i've rehoused my 7" LP and my 6" GBB using that substrate. after rehousing, i've been away for 3 days (vacation) and when i got back home, there are white mold in my enclosures!

how do i get rid of this? would pouring in vinegar do the trick? would vinegar be harmfull to my Ts?
or if i need to replace all the substrate and do thorough cleaning of the enclosure, would the mold transfer to the new substrate? (knowing my Ts already came in contact with the mold). and also, since my Ts came in contact with the mold, would these be harmful to them? how can i remove mold spores from a T? i'm sorry for asking alot of questions, i'm just freaking out right now. dont want to lose any of my Ts.

need help badly

 

[Beary Strange]

Do not pour vinegar in with your Ts. I'm not even sure why that would occur to you. Just remove the molded substrate and think about how it could have happened and fix it so it doesn't crop up again. Too much moisture, combined with not enough ventilation will cause it; combined with leftover bits of food seems to almost guarantee it. Just remove it...and calm down, they'll be fine.

 

[fyic]

ya what bellefury said.......moisture & not enough ventilation......I would just get what you can out and again keep it dry with good ventilation....hope that works for you

 

[viper69]

Dump all mold sub, put in new sub. That's the safest thing to do- mold invites MITES!

 

[Wadew]

Molds has nothing to do with mites! Sterile substrate will encourage mold.

-Wade

 

[kean]

if you can transfer them to a new enclosure please do.. but make sure they have enough ventilation and keep the substrate dry.. it's probably the moisture inside that made the mold grow in the tank given we have hotter conditions here and at times can get very humid..

and in my experience coco peat usually grows mold faster than potting soil in our country if you don't keep conditions dry.. so i use grower's mix soil bought in 5kg bags @ garden shops.. and it's cheaper than coco peat..

 

[viper69]

Molds has nothing to do with mites!

-Wade

That's not true at all. There is a mite that feeds on mold, common name, Mold Mite. If you don't believe me I'll supply the name of an acarologist!

 

[LordWaffle]

As has been said, the mold comes from too much moisture and poor ventilation. LPs and GBBs should be kept dry with a water dish anyway.

 

[Wadew]

A mold mite will not feed on your tarantula.


-Wade