Mold !?

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theelectraco

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Today, I noticed mold beginning to grow on the walls of my torts enclosure (zoo med tortoise house). The wood isnt really sealed, so I dont want to use any chemicals that may absorb into the wood. It has a plastic liner on the bottom, and the mold is out of reach for the tort. I made it a closed chamber to keep the humidity up, but does wood normally mold like that? o_O what should I clean it with, and what should I use to seal the wood also?
 

GBtortoises

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Yes, bare wood is very prone to mold growth in high humdity conditions. The best solution at this point would be to move the tortoise(s) to another enclosure, scrub the mold growth and surrounding area with a bleach solution, allow it to thoroughly dry and seal the wood with a good qualitly enamel paint or urethane finish like any other wood product. For the time being if you cannot do that the mold can be "subdued" with a vinegar solution or even straight vinegar. This usually will not completely kill the mold growth, for one because it is in the wood pores, but it will kill mold on the surface and the vinegar is not toxic to tortoises.
 

stinax182

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I'm not sure if you can get ALL the mold off of wood. any cleaning product would be absorbed and i wouldn't want my torts house to smell like bleach forever. maybe someone knows of a solution that can do this. but personally i throw any molded wood away. but i guess it depends on how much mold there is.

to prevent this in the future, thompsons water seal will work :) let dry for a day and apply multiple coats.
 

theelectraco

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I removed eveything from the cage, and scrubbed with a 50/50 vingar water solution. Ill have to seal the wood this weekend. I am going to line the rest of the enclosure in the meantime. Thank you! Will he be okay with low humidity for a day while Iet the cage dry out?
 

GBtortoises

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theelectraco said:
I removed eveything from the cage, and scrubbed with a 50/50 vingar water solution. Ill have to seal the wood this weekend. I am going to line the rest of the enclosure in the meantime. Thank you! Will he be okay with low humidity for a day while Iet the cage dry out?
Yes, just don't let the soil get too dry. Spray it a couple of times a day, keep water available as well as a humid hide area and your tortoise will be fine for several days and longer.
 

stinax182

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the discoloration will always be there but either extreme heat, cold or chemicals will kill the mold and the spores that are harmful to your tortoise to breathe in.
 

theelectraco

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Just one, and its only temporary. Im about to start building his outdoor enclosure so it should be done by the time it warms up again (SoCal) and I am also adding on to his current enclosure.
 
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