Preventing mold on cardboard?
- Thread starter MantisMan
- Start date
Not sure, I have a question about mold myself...So I am setting up a blaberus cage and I'm going to put cardboard structures in for the nymphs to climb and hide under
But there is moist substrate and I'm worried the cardboard will for mold
Can I spray paint it or something to keep it dry and mold free??
Thanx
But my dubias eat my toilet paper rolls... So, if spray paint is usually toxic. Wouldn't that kill em?
If not your roaches, are you feeding your roaches to anything that the paint would make sick?
vfox
Blatta
Honestly, in a moist container you'll rarely be able to stop cardboard or paper items from growing mold. Just make sure they are easily replaced and cheap like egg flats. With those you can certainly replace them every few weeks once the mold gets deep into them. Otherwise, use cork bark or cork boards, they work well and rarely mold up.
hippiehisser
First Instar
Wow, I managed to get mold on bark... The humidity has been around 80% and there's a little coconut fibre as substrate. Cardboard items have started to get mold and now i just noticed some unwanted growth on bark as well. I think I need to get rid of the coconut and try sand instead.
MrCrackerpants
Parcoblatta
Cork bark is good. I don't have mold growing on it at high humidity. Styrofoam also seems to be pretty good.
I've just starting testing with mixing a little cinnamon(natural mold inhibitor) in the food to stop mold there. For some reason, I only get moldy food in my mini bins that I use for selective breeding dubia, but its to much of a pain to switch out moldy food every day. Its going 3 days strong now without mold and the roaches seem ok, so it seems to be working well so far. As far as cardboard/eggflats goes, I've thought about trying some tests with diluted vinegar and or baking soda because they are both also supposedly mold inhibitors. I'm not sure if either will end up hurting the roaches, although I'm not sure why it would. I would probably start with a very weak mix in water and spray it on the egg flats then let it dry and put them back in. If anyone tries it before I get around to it, do so at your own risk, and with a bin you don't really care about, then let us know if it works.