can i use "wild" wood in my cages? - Page 2

havenbounce · 03-16-05, 05:59 PM

Depending on where you find the wood I would be more worried about the pesticides that some people use. If the wood is found in someone's yard or new a park than the odds that it might have been around some type of pesticide would be high and that is why I would use some bleach than rinsing.
Ginnette

C.ADAMANTEUS · 03-16-05, 06:22 PM

The Polyurethane is the best Idea in my oppinion.
A good couple coats to make sure it is completely sealed, and no worries. Its sealed, and its easy to clean after that, and you dont have to worry about moisture and creating mold after that either.
Rick

latazyo · 03-16-05, 10:57 PM

I guess I would think that our regions would make a difference too

for me, I have never thought of mold being a problem because where I live (North Dakota) my ambient relative humidity (indoors) is usually 20-50%

I can see how that may play a role farther south for some users from Florida or other more moist reasons

I am sure that the woodland fauna vary tremendously, too

I guess my thinkings on paranoia may have been a little strong, but I still maintain that there is no need to back or freeze or bleach or sandblast wood (unless of course, for looks)

Kyle Barker · 03-20-05, 03:59 PM

i would think type of animal would make a diff as well...i certainly would not be using teh chemicals mentioned if i were to be putting it into a frog tank. i usually wash and let sit in direct sun for a few days. aint too much to worry about where i live though, as far as parasites are concerned. mold is always happening here due to humidity, but as mentioned sealign will stop that in its tracks.

Aug · 03-21-05, 12:30 AM

Just heat the wood beyond 180 degress celcius for around 3 hours sounds good. I dont remember what the half life for bacteria survival is, but i think at 1 hours at 180 degress will kill 99.999%, the curve goes asymptotic. So even at infinity, you'll still have bacteria.

Baking the wood, would be very similar to an autoclave. Autoclaves are essentially used to sterizle lab tools. Though they use high pressure. The pressure really does nothing to kill bacteria, but is used to increase temperature.

In addition, i've read a lot of confusion concerning chlorine. Chlorine in water is not reactive. Much of what you eat has chlorine. NaCl, is everyday stuff. Also, using salt to kill bacteria will NOT work. Salts attempt to dehydrate bacteria. However, bacteria have a defence mechanism known as sporulation. Essentially, the bacteria goes dorment and retains only about 10% water.

Anyways, if you are using wood from forests etc, bake it. Autoclaves are the best way for sterilizing anything. That goes for both bacteria and viruses.

Then again, if you breath... your breathing in bacteria, and viruses... 80% of us have herpes simplex 1. Though, 90% of us have CMV. We all have E. coli in our gut.

i could go on...

dannyc · 03-22-05, 03:40 PM

Well I guess I did it all wrong. I just walked to the back yard which is covered in woods and thick with young hickorys. Found one about 3" dia and cut it down. Cut it in the lengths I wanted. Used dowl rod to hold it in the shape I want and put it in the enclosure. I later read you're supposed to bake at 300 degrees for a couple of hours. Oh well. So for no bugs and the snakes are happy and healthy.

Kyle Barker · 03-23-05, 01:46 AM

well if you cut it live then there shoudltnt be too much worry. although i personally dotn agree with cutting it live. but i wont preach.

id say baking fresh wood is not needed if you are in a colder climate. to be honest i have no clue what virginia climate is like.

eddiezahra · 03-27-05, 10:17 PM

ya i soak mine in vinegar over night, let it dry, then boiling water, then a little scrub then bake for about an hour at 350-375

galad · 04-01-05, 01:38 AM

Umm maybe this is me not thinking straight.
But don't these animals live in the woods in the wild? It's not treated with anything. As long as there is no pesticides used in the area as mentioned before everything should be all good.

peace

striko_69 · 04-08-05, 04:17 AM

Yes but in the wild snakes and lizards still get diseases and die. In captivity we as human beings know how these can be avoided.

What do we do to the wood if it does not fit in the oven?

There is a pic of this piece of wood I found in my gallery, its too big to fit in my oven.

ccarr1 · 04-08-05, 05:35 AM

I got a piece of wood that was dead froma tree.I didn't wash or put it in oven and my snake is perfectly fine.

striko_69 · 04-08-05, 05:52 AM

So some people think that we could just put it in the tank after rinsing it. Others say that a good bake will do. So would a good bake do any harm? no... so I think that the best thing would be to bake the thing.

It has woodworm, i dont want woodworm everywhere... So I guess baking will kill them? Then is the bacteria that is left over a problem?

All i did with my beardies was soak it in hot miltons dilute solution and then soaked it in plain water to get rid of most of the solution, it did not smell when it was dried out so i put it in, they were fine.

ccarr1 · 04-08-05, 06:43 AM

To each his own!!!!!!!

K1LOS · 04-24-05, 10:45 AM

striko is right. When you see these huge logs in varanid and giant snake enclosures, how were they sanitized? they likely weren't.splashing bleach on it wouldn't be penetrating enough, you'd just be adding harsh chemica;s. water will do nothing but take off dirt, unless you are soaking in boiling water, but who has a pot that big? nobody. the fact is, most likely you will be alright, as long as you choose your wood wisely. But, dont forget that something could happen and be mindful of that.

does anybody know of any incidents of wc wood causing problems? ivenever heard any.

(wow its tuff typing while holdin a snake. one handed typing sux)

Geoff

striko_69 · 04-24-05, 11:57 AM

lol!! Yeah i havent ever heard anything but then again most people use logs of size that can be "cleaned". I know i have put logs in that have just been found dry and bug free (i guess as there were no holes or such). To be honest they do have immune systems, and like our they stop many infections of all sorts from occuring. So i dont think that putting wood from the wild is gonna be a problem however their immune systems are not developed to be resistant to local bacteria. So I guess im contradicting myself now. Saying that they have been bred and colonised in america/europe for a while now and have probably been exposed to all sorts, and so probably have come in contact with these different bacteria before. This means im contradicting myself again.

Anyone with a degree in microbiology and veterinary science around? I only do A level biology!