Tap water

[LilGreenPuffer]

I've been using distilled water for my mantids, since I wasn't sure whether or not I could use water with chlorine and chloramine. But would it be safe to use tap water?

I tried to do a forum search on the topic, but "tap" has less than three letters and I couldn't use it to search.

 

[angelofdeathzz]

I would stick to purified(filtered) water or bottled, tap water will stain your tanks with water marks and can change every day as far as what's in it.

 

[gripen]

i personally use distilled, but some of the other forum members use rain water. hope this helps.

 

[Rick]

It is fine. The only advantage to using distilled is that you don't get the scale on the glass/plastic of your cages. I used tap for many years.

 

[PhilinYuma]

It is fine. The only advantage to using distilled is that you don't get the scale on the glass/plastic of your cages. I used tap for many years.

+1

Dragonfly larvae live in murky ponds, butterflies (particularly swallowtails in the US) love a nice slurp of muddy urine, mosquitoes love the taste of salty sweat, and bluebottles, well we know what they like, so why this concern about mantises drinking water that is fit for humans?

 

[jrh3]

ok does the water from tap kill you? I doesnt me so i see it ok, but if it does you then dont use it.

 

[gripen]

i don't use my tap because the water is a little hard.

 

[mantiscraze]

Mantis requires very little water, they are not fish, so tap water is perfectly fine for normal use.

 

[Psychobunny]

ok does the water from tap kill you? I doesnt me so i see it ok, but if it does you then dont use it.

Your a human being, that's why. It still may not be good for you if it contains a high amount of TDS

(total desolved solids).

Most people are not lucky enough to have good clean tap water, but some are.

You would need to test your water for TDS to know.

Chlorine can be boiled off, but TDS can not. So if your tap water is very low in TDS then you can

simply boil it and it will be fine.

My water is not all that good, so everthing gets distilled (NOT distilled AND de-ionized!!) or rain water

which I collect in big buckets and filter.

Bottled distlled water is cheap enough at the grocery store, just buy it!!

 

[brown]

My tap water is hard and stains so I use filtered water.

 

[mantisboy]

I use tap water.....but I also let it sit out in a large glass for 24 hours to out-gas, then pourit into a misting bottle. I can't speak on other species but M. Religiosa or Euros males do need water daily. Unlike their female counterparts who get most of theirs from feeding, males of this species simply are not great hunters. They certainly don't need to be doused with water, just a simple light misting targeting their Coxae will do the trick. After a couple of minutes they will start cleaning themselves and take in the water.

I concentrate on lightly misting my females twice daily when they stop eating before laying their Ooth which can last 4-7 days. I also mist them a couple hours after laying their Ooth.

Outside of that I gut load my crickets with wet lettuce and crushed cereals to keep them as hydrated as possible.

 

[Psychobunny]

I use tap water.....but I also let it sit out in a large glass for 24 hours to out-gas, then pourit into a misting bottle. I can't speak on other species but M. Religiosa or Euros males do need water daily. Unlike their female counterparts who get most of theirs from feeding, males of this species simply are not great hunters. They certainly don't need to be doused with water, just a simple light misting targeting their Coxae will do the trick. After a couple of minutes they will start cleaning themselves and take in the water.

I concentrate on lightly misting my females twice daily when they stop eating before laying their Ooth which can last 4-7 days. I also mist them a couple hours after laying their Ooth.

Outside of that I gut load my crickets with wet lettuce and crushed cereals to keep them as hydrated as possible.

I feed my cricks lettuce too, but dont forget to wash it first to remove any water soluble pesticides trace residue.

I have read somewhere that you should avoid feeding cricks carrots. Something in the carrot can make

mantids sick, or even kill them.

I dont know if it's true or not, but I dont feed carrots, just in case!!

 

[LilGreenPuffer]

Thanks, I'll probably stick to distilled.