Mold in enclosure

MelissaNicole

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Jul 13, 2015
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Eastern Pennsylvania
I keep getting mold under my sulcatas water/food dish and under the edges of her hide where it meets the substrate obviously. I literally changed out the whole enclosure with new fresh coco coir as I do periodically and there was already mold under the water dish when I went to give fresh water the next day.

Is this harmful? I've never had this in any of my other set ups. And is there any way to prevent this?
 

ZEROPILOT

REDFOOT WRANGLER
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My substrate of choice is 50% orchid bark and 50% compost or plain potting soil. The orchid bark absorbs the water and the soil stays dry.
Do you have an open top or closed chamber? (An open topped chamber would need to stay soggy wet to keep up the humidity.)
also, is it the substrate that is getting moldy or is it a wooden structure that needs to be sealed against water damage?
I'm just guessing here.
 

MelissaNicole

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ugh it sure is a balancing act! all my others are outside 24/7 I haven't had to deal with an indoor humid enclosure for a long time..

do you suggest I mix the coco coir with another substrate??
 

ZEROPILOT

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No. Not because of me.
Be patient.
There are several other members that use the totes as permanent pens. One of them can tell you exactly what they use and do.
That'll remove 99% of the guess work for you.
 

WillTort2

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I've had to move my water dish every few days to prevent the splash effect from making the substrate too wet and causing mold.

Try getting a glass that hold the correct amount of water for your water dish. By using that glass to fill your water dish you can avoid overfilling. You can also make the substrate deeper under the water dish. More depth of substrate should mean the substrate can absorb the overflow from when your tort tramples through the water dish.

Good luck.
 

Yelloweyed

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ImageUploadedByTortoise Forum1437157554.257549.jpg

This is what I did after I found mold in the enclosure. The excess water drains into the rocks around the water dish and I can clean it out easily. I use peat moss, orchid bark and coco coir.
 
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