So I have a yearling tegu, King, set up in a sort of bioactive grow tent. He has 5x6 feet of floor space and is thriving. It has springtails and powder blue isopods in it and they have done a pretty good job of cleaning up after him.
Recently I have noticed some gnats appearing in there and they have multiplied. I tried a vinegar and dawn trap but he managed to get to it and knock it over (as he does with most things). I tried drying out the enclosure but all that did was stop the clean up crew from being able to eat the poop.
Anybody got any tips on what to do? The enclosure has about 200 pounds of substrate in it so i’d like to make replacing it a last resort. I’ve heard hydrogen peroxide can kill larvae in the soil but would that be safe for him? I can replace the clean up crew if need be.
One last note, he is incredibly agile and can get to pretty much any spot in that tent even though he is missing a foot.
They sell an apple at Walmart that has a lid with holes in it. That might be a better option for a little apple cider vinegar or your dawn method. You could even half bury it. He might be attracted to the apple cider if you go that route. I worked in a gym that had a drain fly problem and this kept the numbers down. Also in my wetter environments airflow is key and finding the best balance of moisture over saturated. Useing other methods of humidifying the tent can help. Water falls, water drippers. Focusing a small area to saturate. Eliminateing the larva from the substrate. I wouldn’t want to give any bad advice other than change it out or catch them as they come out until you have them under control. Or dry it out and sacrifice your clean up crew it’s wise to keep spares for the worst cases.
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Alright. I’ve got to run to town tomorrow so i’ll see if Walmart has anything like that. Thanks for the advice. The vinegar trap usually catches a few gnats before he gets to it so hopefully that will help it last longer.
The grow tent has vents on it too so I may try attaching a fan to one of them and setting it to run for a little while each day.
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Honestly just a deli cup or something similar with big enough holes in the lid would work the same. Also If you could find a way to suspend it or a baggy with some above him out of his reach too. Cheers
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