Reptile & Amphibian Forums

The driftwood in my milksnake's cage has been getting mold spots on it every night. I've been just washing it off when I see it, but it just reappears overnight.

Every morning I change the water, clean the driftwood, check for poos, then mist lightly for a morning dew. Then again that night I glance over the tank for anything out of the ordinary, and mist again lightly (neither time do I douse the cage, I squirt twice on my water bottle) for a nightly dew.

what do I use to safely clean the wood? Something that won't soak into it.

You could remove the wood and replace with something the snake can hide under that doesn't mold, like a clay pot, or a plastic hide, or even a silk plant. I find that milks really like inverted fake rock water bowls and food dishes.

Otherwise, you will need to dry out the wood each week. Baking it for a few minutes at 300 deg ought to do it. Also, the mold or fungus or whatever it is will not hurt the snake in all likelyhood, but I agree to take care of it.

I used to place wood pieces in snake cages. Then I found that kings and milks and most colubrids would much rather be hidden under things. So now, if there is a decoration in one of my cages, it serves as a hide. Otherwise, no decorations. Much easier for me and better for the snake and you in terms of maintenance.

The tight hides shown are used in cages that have housed kings, milks, corns, gophersnakes, house snake, sandboa - all of those species love to cram under these low-height hides.

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Mark

thanks! i'll start looking for something. in the meantime i'll just keep cleaning like usual.

my campbell's actually likes the branches. he goes over them, under them, through them. lots of time i find him curled up beneath them.

Oh, well your driftwood is a hide (I thought you just had a piece of wood in the middle of the cage).

Slap a heat pad on the side of the tank , push the wood up against it - now you have a heated area with hide. The heat will help keep the wood dry. May keep the mold down. Can eliminate your other source of heat if you want.

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Mark

misting causes the wood to stay damp, hence the mold growth. your snake will do fine without misting the cage...

Is there a reason why you're constantly misting the tank/cage? Just curious. I have a Hondo and don't mist it unless she's ready to shed, which is when I put in a humidity box for her. Other than that, there's not really a need to mist all the time.

I also have a huge piece of wood in Lola's tank, and I clean it every month when I do the thorough tank cleaning. I just use diluted bleach (1:5 (bleach:water) let it sit while I'm cleaning the tank, then do a thorough water rinse. You could also use the Clorox Anywhere spray. That works well, and it doesn't harm animals/kids. Or cleaner specifically made for reptile/amphibian enclosures. I would still rinse it though. Let it air dry before you put it back in the tank too. Just some ideas as to what you can use.

Good luck!