# How's my house..?



## meaganelise9 (Oct 17, 2011)

Ok, I'm in the process of working on an idolo house. Let me know how I'm doing. Heheh. Disregard the area rug. It is only there to give me chuckles for now. I'll put down some shagnum moss, I swear. :lol:


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## Scizor_ (Oct 18, 2011)

I like the decor. Looks like an idolo might outgrow the enclosure though. What're the measurements?


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## lunarstorm (Oct 18, 2011)

That looks awesome to me! Idolos eh? Are you planing to breed 'em? I've heard they're really tricky but several forum members seem to have success lately!

I haven't raised any idolos yet but here are a couple of thoughts on your nice lookin setup:

What are the dimensions? And it looks like that housing is solid on all four sides? If so, I'm curious if you have made any modifications to allow for increased ventilation/circulation? Might not be necessary, I'm not sure how important it is for 'em.

I've heard that species is fairly "clumsy" for a mantis and can fall, can mismolt fairly often, etc. I think Precarious? suggests a modified safety net to help with their molts - as you probably noticed in the awesome Idolomantis Consolidated thread.


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## sporeworld (Oct 18, 2011)

Yeah - take the time to read the Idolomantis Consolidated thread (lookes like you did).

If you don't put your climbing mesh on the sides, you'll see them struggle quite a bit (they can't climb the glass). You'd THINK they'd move on, but nooooooooo... they keep trying to climb the same spot for days!

Also, the small gap between the flat part of the lid and the angled part, might be a problem for L1-L4. You might need to put some gripping material in there as well.

i can't see the top very well, but I'm assuming it's ventilated. If not (or even so), you might want to cut a few holes in the back (where the screen already is in place). More ventilation is better.


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## sporeworld (Oct 18, 2011)

Also: You want to experiment by turning the whole thing upside down. Cleaning the cage can be tricky if you have a lot of nymphs. It's much easier if everything pops off a bottom "lid" that can be cleaned and replaced, without disturbing them while they're hanging.

Also, you'll need a feeding "port" of some sort to get flies in, and keep others from getting out.


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## Psychobunny (Oct 18, 2011)

Looks nice, but I see too much slippery surface.

You can glue fake leaves or vines on the walls, screen or mesh.

You can also use a piece of very coarse sandpaper and sand all the smooth

areas inside.

This does not look as nice as fake plants, but it works very well, and gives them

a rough surface to climb on (you can not see threw it however!!).

Remember, the more stuff you glue in there, the harder it will be to clean.

Mantids dont require much, put they do love to hang upside down in the highest spot.

Nothing is more pathetic looking then a poor mantis continualy clawing away at the clear

plastic, or struggling to climb, only to loose it's grip on a slippery spot and fall!!  

P.S. what brand of container is that?

it does not look like a Lee's Kritter Keeper!! No little clear door on the lid!!

I like yours better, where did you get it?


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## meaganelise9 (Oct 18, 2011)

Sporeworld said:


> Yeah - take the time to read the Idolomantis Consolidated thread (lookes like you did).
> 
> If you don't put your climbing mesh on the sides, you'll see them struggle quite a bit (they can't climb the glass). You'd THINK they'd move on, but nooooooooo... they keep trying to climb the same spot for days!
> 
> ...


Hahaha the same spot for days?

Yeah, offhand, I think it's about 9 by 12. It could probably use more ventilation I think (and the port would be helpful). What's a good way to get through hard plastic? A drill or dremel?

And yes, that thread was super helpful. I have it bookmarked. I found the mesh in the cross stitching section at the craft store but haven't tried it out yet.


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## rs4guy (Oct 18, 2011)

Looks good, but as others have pointed out, try roughing the plain plastic sides with a sand-paper. I think your golden after that. Might be too small for an adult Idolo though, they do get quite big.


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## meaganelise9 (Oct 18, 2011)

Yeah, I will likely come up with a bigger one before he/she gets bigger. Thanks for the feedback, folks.


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## angelofdeathzz (Oct 18, 2011)

What a small world, I have the same exact flowers for my Orchids(Michael's?) they look and feel so real. I'm not sure if you've seen my enclosure set-ups but I'm guessing you have since I see the sticks on top? But you don't need to sand and IMPAIR your view if you don't want, you can simply add more vertical sticks, I like to use ones that have many sub branches like lilac or any type that spread out all over, and my Idolo's NEVER get stuck on the bottom for more than a few moments then climb right up to the top.

Looks good, your on the right track, once your mantis is in there you'll see whatever adjustments you need to make.


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## meaganelise9 (Oct 18, 2011)

Weird! I was trying to find flowers that have similar colors to the bugs. They do look pretty real. I love orchids..

Excellent. I would rather do more sticks I think.


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## meaganelise9 (Oct 18, 2011)

Psychobunny said:


> Looks nice, but I see too much slippery surface.
> 
> You can glue fake leaves or vines on the walls, screen or mesh.
> 
> ...


I got it at a local pet store called Pet Supermarket. I can't remember the brand. It's actually a pretty crappy store all in all, but sometimes I find something.

I hadn't thought of sandpaper. That'd be grippy.


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## sporeworld (Oct 19, 2011)

I sometimes use an old soldering iron to melt "ribs" on the inside of the plastic, so they can climb, but I can still see inside.


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## lancaster1313 (Oct 19, 2011)

meaganelise9 said:


> I got it at a local pet store called Pet Supermarket. I can't remember the brand. It's actually a pretty crappy store all in all, but sometimes I find something.
> 
> I hadn't thought of sandpaper. That'd be grippy.


I think I have a container like that. Does it only have a few slits on each side of the top?

I keep millipedes in it cause it has very bad ventilation and things go moldy within hours if I am not careful(my millies don't need alot of ventilation).

If it is one of the containers with minimal ventilation, be very carefulnot to crack it with your hole making tools, you will need some skill, and alot of good luck.


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## meaganelise9 (Oct 19, 2011)

yeah, that's what I don't like about it. I might try to dremel it.


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## Mr.Mantid (Oct 20, 2011)

Nice setup! Madison, WI!? I live close to La Crosse! How do you plan on heating the mantids enclosure once Winter hits? I purchased a zoo med heat pad, but I don't think that is going to heat it up enough.

Cheers,

Mr.Mantid


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## angelofdeathzz (Oct 20, 2011)

Only use the heat pads on glass, plastic may melt and/or give off nasty fumes.


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## meaganelise9 (Oct 20, 2011)

Mr.Mantid said:


> Nice setup! Madison, WI!? I live close to La Crosse! How do you plan on heating the mantids enclosure once Winter hits? I purchased a zoo med heat pad, but I don't think that is going to heat it up enough.
> 
> Cheers,
> 
> Mr.Mantid


Nice! I've been wishing there were more folks on here nearby.

I'm using heat lamps. The general impression I've gotten from people on here is that the heat pads underneath don't heat the place up enough (and also should only be used with glass). Going to start with a 60 watt and a thermometer and see how it goes.


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## rs4guy (Oct 20, 2011)

I just keep the heat set to 70F, and have heat lamps (swing arms with CFL's) running 14 hours a day from 8AM-10PM. Everything seems just fine with this setup. The more heat critical species gets placed closer to the lamp.


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## meaganelise9 (Oct 20, 2011)

Yeah, I wish I had a normal thermometer in my apartment. We have a boiler system and dial numbered 1 through 10.. It's pretty wonky trying to keep it a steady temperature.


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## gripen (Oct 20, 2011)

i use a 100 watt for tropicals. i don't think 60 watt will cut it for idolos.


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## angelofdeathzz (Oct 20, 2011)

If you want to save some electricity, use 23 watt curly floros, one or two will produce quite a bit of heat, it's all I use anymore with a cheap shop light chrome clamp type.


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## meaganelise9 (Oct 20, 2011)

right now, it's staying around 86/87


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## angelofdeathzz (Oct 20, 2011)

Mid 80's low 90's is perfect for Idolo till they are ready to mate! So you should be good there. Don't go to high with the temp as it will shorten the life span a bit.


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## Termite48 (Oct 24, 2011)

There are some pretty cheap digital thermometers from China offered on eBay. Mine only took a few days to get here. Another source is Petco has the stick on type. The best is to have the combination hydrometer and thermometer.


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## sporeworld (Oct 25, 2011)

I've used the Caliber 3, with good results (thanks Phil). It's very small, but it doesn't like getting soaked. If you drench your tank, try the bulkier Taylor 1523 Indoor/Outdoor Thermometer

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001F0RBI8/ref=asc_df_B001F0RBI81754388/?tag=shopzilla_rev_274-20&amp;creative=394997&amp;creativeASIN=B001F0RBI8&amp;linkCode=asn

I really like it, and I think I'm going on 7 months now, and haven't changed a battery yet. It has a probe on a long cable, if you want to leave it outside your enclosure, but that's only for the temp - not humidity. So I just toss the whole thing in there. It does, however, allow you to easily sample the temp at different heights in the enclosure. Just record a temp, reel it up an inch, and test again.


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## meaganelise9 (Nov 9, 2011)

That sounds nice. That's the crappy thing about cheaper stick-on ones. Once you stick 'em, they're stuck..


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## Mantiskid (Jan 19, 2012)

I would use some kind of exo terra terrarium.I have a nanocube and it's great.You probably would have to get a bigger size though.


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## Mantiskid (Jan 19, 2012)

Rich S said:


> There are some pretty cheap digital thermometers from China offered on eBay. Mine only took a few days to get here. Another source is Petco has the stick on type. The best is to have the combination hydrometer and thermometer.


I had one of those self stick thermometers once!But when I pulled it off the side of the terrarium, part of it stayed on and it looks really crappy.


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## Termite48 (Jan 19, 2012)

I agree that the sticky ones are a cheap substitute for a real one. The one that I referred to as having come off an ebay deal is really the ticket if you do not need an instant reading, nor a probe. Mine does many functions and operated very nicely. It does temp, R/H, time, month and date, plus an alarm. All for $7 delivered.


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