cleaning questions

[lucky8926]

How often should I change the substrate in my enclosure (i'm using aspen) How often should I clean the inside of the tank itself? Does anyone use/recommend Virosan?

[JDouglas]

We spot clean our aspen everyday and remove wet spots or stools. We replace it when it starts to get an odor. We also use virosan and it works great and is very safe for all reptiles. We dilute it to 3-4 ounces per gallon of water and spray it from a mist bottle and wipe the tubs clean with paper towels.

[lucky8926]

Do you know of any good places to get Virosan? The cheapest I have been able to find is $27.69 for a 1 gal jug. What mixture do you use?

[Derrick]

Well that doesn't seem too bad a price. Its just a bit over 2$ a gal once you dilute it. It should last you a long time

[Ptindy]

Lucky, I use hydrogen peroxide and vinegar in spray bottles. I have a spray bottle for each and just spray the enclosure let it sit, wipe it down or run it under water if it's a light rubbermaid. I got this idea from Linds I believe and it is cheap. It's about a buck for the peroxide and a buck for vinegar and I still have half of what I bought 2 months ago.

Mike

[nita]

Hey Mike what is your ratio on the peroxide vinigar solution? I currently just use a biodegradable antibacterial soap and rinse very thoroughly. I like your solution I think better. I use all rubber maids pretty much and the 4 tanks I use will be transfered out soon.

[Ptindy]

Nita, I don't do any ratio. I spray the peroxide or vinegar, whichever I get in my hand first, then the next and let it sit, then wipe it away or wipe off the poop with a paper towl. Thne wipe it all up or rinse it off. I just spray till the whole enclosure is misted somewhat. Just don't accidently use it as water spray, I have different bottles so there is no confusion and they are labelled so people don't get mixed up if I have people taking care of my herps while I'm outta town.

Mike

[nita]

Thanks mike, I'm going to go pick up some different colored spray bottles and some sticker labels!

[RepTylE]

I use vinegar because besides being a decent disinfectant, it also takes off mineral buildup from spritzing. If I think that further disinfection is needed, I use rubbing alcohol.
My ex who is a med lab tech told me that vingegar is so acidic that not many bacteria can survive it. I let it sit for at least a half hour. Not only is vinegar easy to get it is also cheap.

[nita]

Well tried out the vinigar and peroxide last night! I'm so loving this, takes urates off with no scrubbing!! Whoo Hoo. I was a little concerned about the strong smell but in 10 min there was no trace of it, I just left the empty enclosure sitting open to air out and all was good!

[vanderkm]

Just a note that you need to keep peroxide in a sealed, dark container. With exposure to light or air it degrades to water and has virtually no disinfectant properties.

Peroxide is powerful in killing bacteria and is even effective against fungal spores, but only when stored correctly - so transparent or translucent spray bottles are a problem. I would even be concerned that they cannot be closed tightly and some deterioration would occur over time - likely best to put it into a container just before it is used.

mary v.

[nita]

Thanks mary, I have it in a solid red spray bottle in my bathroom medicine cabinet, along with the reg peroxide bottle, hopefully it will be ok.

[paulsreef]

After using the vinegar and peroxide; do you rinse with water?
Thanks, paul.

[Ptindy]

Paul, if it is easy to do so yes, otherwise I just wipe it away with papertowls, a lot of papertowls.