What Do You Use To Clean Your Snake Cages?

[alexOATH]

During the tank cleaning, I soak the cage items in hot water. With the larger enclosures (40 gallon) I cannot move it since it's very heavy

LOL, You think 40 Gallons is heavy, you should lift a 125 Gallon with just one other person, I was lifting my own body weight, upstairs nonetheless =P.

I just take out the poo when I see it and make sure the glass is clean wherever I found it and throw away the soiled pieces of bark.

Is there anything I could use to clean the glass (to get rid of any smudges)? Or just soap and water?

[Kristian]

Keep in mind there is no reason or need to "sterilize" your tanks or tubs every time you wash them unless you are dealing with a sick animal or a quarantined animal. If you try to sterilize every time you wash, you are doing more harm than good.

Why does it do more harm than good to sterilize?

I clean all of my occupied tubs in my racks with chlorhexidine once a week and every time they pee or poo. Water crocks go through the dishwasher once a week also.

[panthercz]

Why does it do more harm than good to sterilize?

I clean all of my occupied tubs in my racks with chlorhexidine once a week and every time they pee or poo. Water crocks go through the dishwasher once a week also.

Most bacteria are not harmful and are critical for proper functioning of immune systems and other bodily needs such as digestion. Also there are some bacteria that fight against bad bacteria. Wiping those out don't do you any good.
Also, constantly trying to sterilize and kill all the bacteria will create stronger and stronger bacteria that will become resistant to the chlorhexidine. It's the same principal of antibiotic resistant bacteria that have risen and become a real problem due to the unnecessary overuse of prescribed antibiotics.
Asthma has been linked to using antibiotics early in life because it wiped out necessary bacteria.
Meat processing plants have to switch every other day what they use to sterilize because of bacteria evolving and becoming resistant to cleaners and sterilizers.

It seems the big "IN" thing are all these cleaners from Lysol, Swiffer and other manufactures that kill 99.9% of germs. They are all wrong and you should not use those products around your house.
Now does this mean you shouldn't clean? No. But always trying to produce a sterile environment is not a good idea. Just clean with soap and water (not antibacterial soap) and call it good.

Like I said already though, do use chlorhexidine when dealing with a sick snake or for cleaning out quarantine tubs/tanks.

[Darkice]

I do checks every day in all my cages for poo. If its there i remove it and all the substrate around it. Usually just a big handfull. (Aspen Bedding)
After a month or so i do a complete cleaning of every tub with chlorhexidine and replace all the substrate. If you dont replace the substrate at least once a month you will get a nice stink building up in your house. At least mine does. I have 24 snakes and 4 breeding quads of african soft furred rats.

[Carzy Driver]

I only use B-T-F Iodophor Sanitizer. Similar to the stuff that doctors use to prep for surgeries. It's commomly used to clean and sanitize homebrewing equipment but also I use it for anything animal related aswell. From hide boxes to large fish tanks, wood to glass, this is the only thing I will use. It's cheap and goes a long way, a 32oz bottle will last me close to 2 years and only costs me about $15.

[MikeyDubz]

I purchased a larger (used) tank for my ball as she is getting a bit bigger... after reading through here it seems that a good solution for cleaning it is chlorhexidine. Here is what I'm looking at getting: Link

Should I dilute this with some warm water and scrub away? I've already given the tank a good wipe out but but I want to give it another once over before moving my snake in.

[martin82531]

http://www.reptilebasics.com/F10SC-200ml


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[sissysnakes]

For a full cleaning in my tubs I use a diluted F10 in a spray bottle and hot water.
Usually for glass tanks I clean them with a very diluted bleach mix (if needed), and then rinse with Very hot water.

For fish if I have to clean the tank I use dish soap, or diluted bleach and then after rinsing let it sit in the sun for a while before rinsing (again :p ) with boiling water.

Im paranoid about rinsing...
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[Sarin]

I spot clean until the cage needs a whole cleaning. In that case, I take out all the bedding and steam clean the entire surface, then finish it off with f10.

[Zombie]

F10 here as well. Love my f10