Reptile & Amphibian Forums

What does everybody out there use to clean their tanks? I am currently using Fluker's tank cleaner as per instructions on the bottle, but I wonder about long term health risks to my snakes. I air the tanks out really good after a cleaning and they don't smell like anything when I put the snakes back in, but my Suriname acts weird when I put him back in. He rises his head almost to the top of the tank and stays there for a long time. I don't know if he's trying to escape fumes I can't smell, or if he likes the smell. The same snake is kinda weird-he likes the potpurri leaves that my wife has in little dishes in the house-always stretching for a sniff.

We use diluted Virosan to clean the water bowls weekly. Every few weeks we will scrub the water bowls with dish soap first and then use the Virosan. You must be sure to VERY thoroughly rinse out the soap with hot water because anti-bacterial soaps can be harmful to snakes. Wipe the Virosan into all cracks and crevices. It is best to leave the Virosan soaking on the item to ensure it has time to do its job. Ten minutes should do the trick. Then rinse.

For cages we usually use only Virosan. Again we wipe down the cages then let them soak then just wipe them out. No need to rinse away the Virosan, just dry the cage out.

In rare occasions we use a one to ten bleach solution to clean up feces, blood, or other organic matter. This is a good option for ill animals and often we use it in conjunction with Virosan. Virosan is not as effective in the presence of a lot of organic matter so we use the bleach mix to wipe out the majority of the mess. Use CAUTION when using bleach. It is toxic and has toxic fumes. The cage must be thoroughly rinsed out and free of fumes before the aniumal returns to the cage.

The good thing about Virosan is that it can be sprayed directly on an animal. For instance if an animal has feces on its body you can spray the animal and wipe it down with Virosan with no ill effect to the animal. You can also use it to rinse out minor wounds. Veterinarians often use it as an oral wash so it is considered by most to be comletely harmless. Some people go as far as putting it directly in the animals drinking water but I do not reccomend this at all because long term exposure test results are not available that I am aware of.
-----
Jared Douglas

Virosan, Vesphene, Lphse, and many others are excellent for bacteria control. The only problem that does arise and could be serious, is that the bacteria developes an amunity to the one type used, over time. I work in a Pharmaceutical plant and we have to switch every month from Vesphene/Lphse, for this reason. Because I have enough to think about rather than switching every month, I opt for the diluted bleach. 1/10 dilution kills bacteria and nothing survives it! Just ensure a good rinse at the end. Andy

I've used Fluker's, Virosan, and Quat Plus(from Big Apple Herp). Never had problems with any of them. One of my rat snakes acts strange after I clean his enclosure(like your boa). However, I think he's just being tentative because his home "smells" different than it did minutes earlier. After a few minutes he's back to normal. I can't stand the fumes from bleach solutions. Yikes, I see that I'm rambling now. I prefer Virosan or the Quat Plus. Some people(myself included) clean the enclosures with a mild soap, then disinfect with one of the above mentioned products. Others just use the products by themselves. If you follow the cleaning instructions for each product you shouldn't worry about harming your snakes. It sounds like you're overly cautious about taking care of your snakes(which is a good thing). Another thing some people take into account is how "fresh" things smell when you're done (Flukers has a pleasant smell after your done, whereas Quat Plus doesn't leave much of an odor at all)

I still use a mild bleach and water solution. Since I completely disinfect and clean the cage after every soiling, it works well for me. I simply use a spray bottle with the bleach & water solution, then wipe it out with a few wet paper towels and either let it dry or dry it with towels before putting the snake back in. I've never had any problem and the cages don't smell - of bleach or waste. I'm hesitant to use any other cleaners because the one time I did years ago, my boa acted as if he had neurological damage (used a household cleaner someone else had recommended). Even though I'd rinsed the cage well, there was still a slight odor of the cleaner and it evidently caused a reaction in the snake (appeared drunk is the easiest way to describe it). Since then, I've basically stuck with my bleach and water solution and not had a single problem. On the odd occassion I'm out of bleach and need to clean a cage, I use antibacterial dish detergent and rinse thoroughly.

Raven

A