Goosemoose Pet Portal

I found a great website a few days ago and now I can't find it anymore  ???. I did print it out though and that's what they wrote (this is just what I read):

Phenols (Lysol & pine cleansers): Absolute NO NO. Dangerous to rodents and E.coli and other enteric bacteria can actually grow in phenols.

Chlorine Bleach: cheapest and is very effective if you are careful to rinse it well then air dry everything that has been soaked in it. Bleach is corrosive to metals! It is also inactivated by organic material, that means you must clear away any body fluids first and then use bleach. Chlorine does kill spores and Mycoplasma, something that most disinfectants are not capable of doing.

Quaternary ammonium compounds: These aren't bad but are inactivated in the presence of soap, never mix them with detergents or soaps. The household cleansers with "scrubbing bubbles" fall into this group and work very well at removing stuck on urine. They do not kill spores.

Chlorhexidine (i.e. Nolvasan): This is the best choice except for the fact that it doesn't kill spores. It is not corrosive to metals and it's non-toxic. It is not inactivated by anything, it has residual effects and best of all if mixed correctly with water it can be used as non-stinging, non-tissue damaging antiseptic.

Antibacterial Soap: These are a very poor choice because they only kill bacteria. The are not strong enough to kill Mycoplasma. Basically useless.

Alcohol: Is not effective against certain types of virus, it is inactivated by soap and does not kill spores. Alcohol must be in contact with the object it is to disinfect for several minutes. Not effective because it evaporates too quickly.

Vinegar and Hydrogen Peroxide as Disinfectants: pairing the two mists killed virtually all Salmonella, Shigella, E.coli. The best results came from using one mist right after the other - it is 10 times more effective than using either spray by itself and more effective than mixing the vinegar and hydrogen peroxide in one sprayer.

Thanks for sharing!  Good information  :)

I love the vinegar and hydrogen peroxide combo.  It takes all the funk off the bottom trays and makes things look new again along with all the funky rat smell.  It also works great on my rabbit litter boxes.

I used to use white vinegar, but the smell was getting to me so I switched to a bleach/water solution. I hose the cage, spray with bleach, let it sit a few minutes, and then hose off again really well. It does great for killing odors and germs, but I would like to switch to something as effective but less harsh to the skin/nose once I can find something like that. But bleach is cheap which is a good advantage as well as how effective it is.

I bought a gallon bottle of "Nolvasan" that I mentioned in the e-mail (we also use it at the Humane Society where I volunteer). It is safe and not harsh. I ordered it from "www.allivet.com". I also ordered a laundry additive disinfectant that you mix in with a regular laundry detergent to wash the hammocks (since I can't wash my hammocks in hot water).
I think if you use the vinegar/hydrogene peroxide combo the vinegar smell is not as harsh.

Hmm, last time I cleaned I used a product from work called Urine-Off that's an enzymatic cleaner. I wasn't really impressed. Although it did wonders for my carpet in pee-soaked spots, it left white crusty spots on the cage that I had to go back and scrub off.

I think I'll start using the vinegar/peroxide combo.

I use vinegar and Peroxide myself I use it on the martins cage.  But I have to say that when I have to clean the quarantine tank (a 20 gallon aquarium) I use bleach and water rinse well let dry and then I use the vinegar and  peroxide on it.  It takes the smell out of the aquarium.  I also use vinegar and peroxide on by rabbit litter plans as well it works wonders.

Sand

yup I swear by the vinegar and peroxide as well.  Works well for cleaning and smell and I can feel completely relaxed using it, knowing they are safe.

I clean house according to Home Comforts: The Art and Science of Keeping House by Cheryl Mendelson  (SPELLING??) anyway...it's my cleaning bible.

According to it, a good disenfectant is And this measurement is not exact cause I can't find the book right now, but you get the picture and it can be found in libraries and bookstore.  Take pen and paper.

1 tbsp Dish Soap (Dawn is good)
1/4 c of bleach
1 gallon of HOT water

Scrub, Rinse, CLEAn!!!!

I use for the cages   HOT WATER and DAWN.  But ya really need the scrubbing power of bubbles so use make sure you got bubbles.  I scrub like pots, then rinse, and dry.

Check the book out.  It goes into the chemistry of WHY and HOW of detergents, and cleaning products, and how soap works and why to do it a certain way.

I'm going to "sticky" this topic, as this is a VERY common question, and the information in here is really great!    :)

I've always just scrubbed with dish soap and hot water and rinsed well as I knew a lot of products are a no no for use around animals.  I am going to give the vinegar and hydrogen peroxide a try and see how goes.  Thanks for sharing.

When I got my first boys in Feb 2003, I used Dawn and hot water. Then last year I started using quatricide. I was never ecstatic with either but was worried about safety.

The vinegar and hydrogen peroxide method really intrigued me.
I filled a spray bottle with vinegar and bought a bottle of hydrogen peroxide.
I spray the vinegar on everything and scrub it down and dry it, then I literally pour a small amount of hydrogen peroxide into the cage pan and do the same making sure to use vinegar and hydrogen peroxide wet paper towels on the cage wire. Am I doing this right? Any suggestions? I have done it this way twice so far and have been happy with the results.

I don't know if there really is a right way to do it but the way that I do it and I believe others as well is to have peroxide in one spray bottle and vinegar in another.  Spray one and then another on top of the other and let them sit for a couple of seconds and then scrub off.  I believe it is the two of them mixing that creates the stronger disinfectant.  Doesn't really matter which you spray first, although some people like the way it bubbles when you spray the peroxide first  ;)  :cheeky:  Personally I spray the vinegar first and then the peroxide simply because my SO hates the smell of vinegar and I find the smell goes away faster this way.

Thank you Tamera. Guess I need another spray bottle. Feel like a dummy now :)

Your welcome  ;)

I was once told to use tang mixed with some water..  it did work, is safe, but MAN the stuff stains like mad!  it's good at getting hardwater stains out, though..

TANG?
Tang as in the drink?

Now I'm kind of glad I never drank it.

Where would i be able to buy hydrogen peroxide?

Walgreens, pharmacy section of any grocery store etc. (a lot of times they come in a brown bottle). This is what you usually use to disinfect a wound (it kind of fizzes and it hurts on an open wound).

Excellent. I will try the chemist on monday!

i like the diluted bleach solution, however i didn't realize it was corrosive.
the wires of the cage are powder coated, so i'm not having a problem with it.
after i clean with diluted bleach, i'll spray it with a superpet cleaning spray to get rid of the bleach smell, and wipe off all moisture with paper towels.

I'm a Teacher's aide for 8th grade. We're doing chemistry in Science now and I learned a surprising fact. Hydrogen peroxide turns to water when exposed to light. That is why is always come in dark bottles. (at least I THINK that's what the teacher said.) So if you're going to use the spray bottle method you should either only use the amount you need and pour it back in to the original bottle or find a spayer that fits the original bottle.

Hope I'm right about this.

Kim

Regarding peroxide... you just put it in a spray bottle and spray it on the cage, then wipe off?  Or do you dilute it with water like bleach and vinegar?

EDIT:  Apparently I like to skim since my question's answered a couple replies above!  :P

You don't dilute either the peroxide or the vinegar.

Regarding the peroxide and vinegar, could someone explain to me the process.. such as: spray peroxide, then spray vinegar, let sit and then rinse? Could someone tell me the correct time frame or process? Thanks in advance

:BlueDumboSmile: Thanks for all of those they are great

I heard an interesting fact about the product "Nolvasan" (Chlorhexidine): If you use it in deluded form you have to use it up very quickly since it will loose it's effectiveness after a while. So only prepare as much as you need.

I was using bleach water to clean my cages, but decided to try the vinegar/peroxide combo today and was very impressed.  It cleans well, and eliminates odors well, and is easy on the breating apparatus and skin.

I use antibacterial dishsoap to scrub and clean, then I rinse.  Then I spray or soak in bleach/water mix...let stand and then rinse off until there is no longer the bleach smell.  This has worked very well:)

I use Scrubbing Bubbles to get urine off, then rinse, then use a bleach/water mixture and spray it on, then rinse it off again and dry.

hmm, this thread is perfect for what I was looking for!

 I think I'm going to stick to anti-bacterial soap for now, as a lot of those options are way too strong smelling.

 the hydrogen peroxide - vinegar mix: how strong of a smell does it have? I cannot, cannot use bleach unless there is no other choice...because of the smell. as strange as it is (I love perfume!), the smell makes me dizzy, sick, and sneezy.

actually the vinegar/peroxide combo does wonderfully and the smell isnt that bad for long.  i generally spray on the vinegar and then spray the peroxide.  the peroxide really dulls the vinegar smell.  i hate the smell of vinegar and it makes my son sick to his stomach, but we both clean our cages with this combo and it does just perfect.

After some careful thought and with my thoughts also about the environment I think that I am gonna switch to the vinegar/peroxide method for cleaning...seems less harsh for my ratties, me and the earth.  Thanks you guys for opening my eyes! :bow:

Am I the only one that thinks the vinegar/peroxide combo, when it meets urine, smells really strongly like rotten eggs? For an hour or so after I cleaned using that method, the smell that lingered was worse than before I cleaned. I've used diluted bleach ever since.

I've always used plain white vinegar in a spray bottle to clean all of my cages.  It totally cleans up all the urine crystals - and the cages always look brand new.  I learned that years ago with my guinea pig cages.  It's a disinfectent too.

I've tried clorox, and it doesn't work with the crystals - you still have stains. 

When one of my guinea pigs had mites and seizures, Dr Quesenberry from the AMC suggested plain white paper towels for bedding, and the clorox.  The towels were great, but I explained the differences to her with the cleaning up urine crystals - an she said stick to vinegar. 

I've been using an enzymatic cleaner, but I am going to try the peroxide and vinegar combo next time.  Of course I finished cleaning my cage about an hour before reading this!   ::)

I use a similar technique with rescue cages...I am paranoid about spreading disease, germs, etc from one rescue animal to another, so in between animals I wipe out all soiled stuff from the cages by dumping out as much as I can and then blasting the cage with water (outside in my back yard).  Then I let everything soak in a strong vinegar/water solution in a huge rubbermaid tube (about 1/10 vinegar to water).  I let stuff soak for about 10-30 minutes depending on how bad gunk is build up.  Next I wipe down the cages and rinse off with water...usually there isn't much scrubbing involved because the vinegar usually loosens EVERTHING!!  Now that all gook is off the cages I soak everthing for about 5 mins in a 1/10 or 1/20 bleach/water solution.  After the 5 min soak I rinse thoroughly with water and let the stuff sit in the sun to dry...

Sounds like a long horrid process, but I have it down to a science like a little assembly line and I can get about 10 cages completely cleaned and ready for new critters in about 1 hour!

I love using vinegar because it gets all gook of cages and makes then look like new.  I love using bleach because it kills everthing except bacterial spores which really isn't a huge issue unless your doing surgery  :D.  If worried about the possibility about not killing bacterial spores, then Nolvasan is a great way to go.  I use bleach because it's less expensive for me and its more "natural" which is kinda important to me since everthing is being done in my back yard.

  Has anyone ever used Clean Cage by Superpet, or know anything about it?  I bought a bottle from Petsmart, and was wondering if it is safe and effective.  Does anyone know?

I used Clean Cage when I had 5 hamster cages. I didn't have bar cages, so I'm not sure how it does on that, but for glass (I used tanks), it was wonderful. I stopped using it only because of the cost. I use vinegar and water now.

Hope I don't get flamed.  I have an arthritic like condition in my chest called costochondritis, so scrubbing hard is painful for me.

I use Greased Lightning on all of the removeable stuff from the cage like wheels, igloos, ledges, etc.
I thow them in the tub, spray on Greased Lightning and watch the stuff melt off.  It almost eliminates scrubbing (I go over it with a brush, but there is no elbow grease).

On the cages, I do the same thing-spray and watch.  Around the bottom where the pee can build up in the hidden spots- The lightning just carries it away in a slow moving river of clean.  Poetic, right?  I laugh a slow, evil chuckle as i watch the rivulets of the hated pee, the despised pee, now dissolved, running away from my cage, never to be seen again.  Until next week, right  :yelcutelaugh: 

The only disadvantage to this is that G/L can be hard to rinse off.  I think that I may follow up with the vinegar at least, to ensure that everything is really rinsed.

I recently bought a big jug of "Simple Solution" that I use for general cleaning and for washing stinky laundry.  (That goes for my son's socks too!)  When I clean the cages I take them outside and use plain old dish soap, a bbq brush and a hose.  I dry them off a bit and then spray them with Tammy Taylor Disinfect, Disinfect, Disinfect, which smells like peaches, and let them air dry.  I have a lot of rats and a small house - that DDD has made a HUGE difference as far as odour goes.
Some people have said that anything with a scent is bad for ratties but since I started using it I haven't had a single case of myco or resp. infection.

Okay, I've read all the posts in this thread but still don't have this completely clear... I'd like to use the vinegar and peroxide method.  I understand that I should spray on vinegar and then peroxide right after and scrub off, but do I need to rinse the cage components afterwards?  And since I live in a dorm room and the ratties would be in there with me playing on the bed or whatever, do I need to worry about the smell being bad for the rats?  I have pet birds and they are hyper sensitive to smells and I'm used to not using anything that has a smell around them.  Are rats the same?  Thanks!  Oh and I could bring the rats to my boyfriend's when I clean the cage but it would be easier not to.  It's 45 below zero in Fairbanks right now and I don't relish tromping through the snow to his apartment any more than I have to!

I think I'm going to start using the vinegar/hydrogen peroxide. Is any vinegar good? I think we have only have balsamic vinegar at home.  Is there any possibility that this or the bleach/water mix is bad for the rat sinuses?

 :BlueDumboSmile:
Amanda

Buy a small bottle of regular white vinegar. Don't use balsamic.
If you use bleach you should keep the rats away and make sure that the bleach is rinsed off completely and there is no more bleach smell.

Thanks, that is very helpful!

Has anyone tried the product 'Poop-Off?' It does great on bird cages- dissolves birdie poo instantly- and I was thinking of getting some of the wipes for my guys' icky wheel. I have a boy who feels he simply must get right on TOP of the wheel to pee.  :doh: I know birds have very fragile respiratory systems and that one must always be super-careful with them, so I'm sure it's safe for rats, but does it work?

Seeing as I've been here a few months now and tried various methods I thought I should contribute. A couple of things I should mention: an allergic asthmatic (luckily not allergic to the rats!) and since moving out of home (meaning I have to clean eeek) I've become prone to skin sensitivities. I also wear contacts and am paranoid about eye infections. So my choice of cleaner is based on this.

I love the straight vinegar solution. I have a huge cage so peroxide got too expensive. So my latest and favourite method is to do the cage one half each night, with one to two nights of rest and lots of spot cleaning. I clear all the bedding/mess off the shelves, spray with vinegar, let sit, then spray with water and wipe off with a damp cloth. I clean the bars with something that looks like a hand held mop. Then I towel dry and redecorate.

I used to use food safe vanilla fridge wipe but it started giving me contact dermatitis... I probably should have been using gloves but whatta ya know rubber makes me itch too... plus hey this is my rats permanent home and they dont get to use gloves. Vinegar on the other hand is good for the skin and totally natural.

Everything comes up sparkling and smells fresh. Toys and igloos get washed with my antibacterial hand soap or wiped with  a cloth dampened by a weak vinegar solution.

Bleach gives me asthma... does it affect anyone else? I'm afraid I can't bare the thought of using it anywhere in my home except the toilets.

Here's some great sites about the power of vinegar:

http://www.selfhealingexpressions.com/vinegar_cleaning_products.shtml (http://www.selfhealingexpressions.com/vinegar_cleaning_products.shtml)

http://frugalliving.about.com/library/blvinegararch.htm (http://frugalliving.about.com/library/blvinegararch.htm) I especially love the bit about killing dust mites, fungus and moulds. These are my biggest enemy and before I had my rats (and visited these boards) I had no idea vinegar was a cleaner. So I owe a big thankyou to the ratty world.

Last night before it rained ants invaded my cage. After a search on here I sprayed all access points to the room with vinegar and havent seen an ant since. Thought this might be of use to some people too when browsing this thread for the first time.

OK I'll shut up now, but one more time... I LOVE VINEGAR (just not the first whiff...) and it's CHEAP!

Gemma

Ta for the hint on spraying vinigar to keep ants away.

My girls cage is having a slight ant invasion (what happens when it rains three weeks straight)

cass

I live in New York City in an area called the "Meat Market."  Now the butchers are all boutiques, but for 23 years I lived with a plague of mice; they chewed electrical cords and started a fire, and crawled into bed with the kids.  I read that rodents hate the smell of bleach, and it made a noticable difference.  So I plan to use the v/hp combo for our rat's cage, because I would hate to be stuck in a place where I hated the air freshener.

PS-After my daughter was bitten by a wild mouse I had to break down an get a cat.

I also use the Greased Lightening as Phalaeo  mentioned below. She's right, you can see the yuckiness just streaming right off. I think i'm also going to follow it with the vinegar & peroxide method as well  :BlueDumboSmile: it can't hurt to have an extra clean cage! If anyone knows any reason why i shouldn't be using GL, please let me know  :thumbsup2: Thanks


Care  :BlueDumboSmileTongue:

this is regarding Nolvasan" (Chlorhexidine)..you also will find it called Hibiclens and can be found at walgreens in a small bottle for about $10.  I dilute and use to clean our cages but that is becuz I got a 32 os bottle from my employer. I work in the operating room and it had outdated.  I am quite satisfied that it still has disinfecting qualities but could no longer be used in a human hospital.  It has a nice pleasant smell that does not linger in the room or cage.

We really don't use it in the OR anymore so it really isn't available to me anymore so I will either order from ALLivet as Wonderrodents mentioned or switch over and try the peroxide/hydrogen peroxide method.

Toni

oops..i meant vinegar/hydrogen peroxide method

katkimmers  mentioned that peroxide changes to waterif exposed to light.  I am not sure that it turns to water but I do know for a fact that hydrogen peroxide do in fact need to be protected from light or it may break down or become ineffective (so probably does turn to water).  For those of you that put it into a spray bottle use a dark one so that it is protected from light.  Thanks for that info katkimmers !

Toni

I use OdoBan for my guinea pig cage and rat cages, along with hot soapy water to clean of the levels, and in the laundry I use bleach, all, and oxyclean.  I am not using natures Miricle for wood toys.  For other toys I use Odoban if they are really smelly(like ferret tubes) or just hot soapy water.
:)
Sasha
www.freewebs.com/heavenly_rats

my boyfriend and I were wondering if you could use baby wipes for spot cleaning in between full cage cleaning...

thanks for the suggestions on cleaning

we love this site!

This is a great thread.  I will be cleaning my rats cage for the first time this week, and want to use the vinegar/peroxide method.  I have one question though...do you just wipe the cage after it soaks or do you rinse it thoroughly with water and then wipe it dry?

Thanks

Yep, lots of people do that!  It is probably best to purchase the unscented kind though.


Rinse it thoroughly and wipe it dry.  (I usually just use a big towel and try to get most of the excess moisture off.  Tiny bits left won't hurt.) :)

Thanks a bunch!

Awe, I use regular anti-bacterial soap.  I also use a disinfectant called OdoBan for their actual cage, and Nature Miricle for their wooden toys.  I hope I don't use anything bad that can get them sick!

I just wanted to let people know that i picked up a bottle of vinegar, and peroxide and two spray bottles, one white for vingar and one blue for the peroxide all at the Dollar store, for under $5 canadian.

And it works wonderfully!

I thought when I first read about the vinegar and peroxide it was stated that you dilute the vinegar with water like 1/2 and 1/2?  Is this not the correct way.

Some posts are saying that you can see the gunk wash away?  I clean mine every week and they never look that dirty so I guess I don't understand what is washing away. 

What can you use to kill the myco germs?  My rats are always fighting the respiratory thing.  Is washing their hammocks once in the machine with detergent not enough?  SHall it be done with something other than laundry deteregent?

I am so happy!  I am finally convinced my parents to buy me some white vinegar and peroxcide to clean the ratties cages since all 4 of my boys have URI, along with their sister...and I think by using only soap it was aggrivating the URI's and making htem worss because their cages and toys, food bowls, and water bottles weren't properly cleaned.

Does anyone know why you shouldn't mix hydrogen peroxide and vinegar in the same bottle? I can't see why it would make a difference, unless the peroxide was exposed to light.

Also, I've seen in a few places that the hydrogen peroxide/vinegar blend produces "fizzing." In my own experience this has never happened... particularly because both vinegar (acetic acid) and H2O2 are acids, and therefore would show no visible reaction. (To get the fizzing effect I've been adding baking soda, which is alkaline, because the vinegar smell makes me ill  :-X) This is also why I'm wondering why you can't mix the two together, since they wouldn't react with each other.

I don't know, any chemistry buffs?  ;D

Just a side note...Vinegar and hydrogen proxide will also clean your salads,(in light of all the e. coli and salmonella on salad these days) its non toxic but of course you rinse it off before eating it.
I never thought about using for my rat cages though, I might start having to buy by the gallons.

I found a group posting when looking up about washing my produce with h.peroxide/vinegar about how it is supposed to make peracetic acid. The answer from a chemist was that when you are mixing the two in your home, with household strength vinegar & hydrogen peroxide it will not form any detectable levels of peracetic acid. You are supposed to keep them in two seperate spray bottles though, and spray one on top of the other. He said that premixing will lose the peroxide activity. Here's the link:

http://www.usenet.com/newsgroups/sci.chem/msg01820.html
*This is the link to the final post but you can use the links on the page to go back to the original question. If you google peracetic acid, you will get answers to what it is, but keep in mind that this acid is formed by very concentrated chemicals, supposedly not what you can mix in your kitchen.

Hope this helps!
--Michaela

Bleach 1:10 solution 10-15mins, ammonia 1:10 solution 30mins., and Phenols (Lysol, Environ, O-Syl) kill Myco, but phenols are very toxic to animals & are hard to rinse off. I wouldn't use them around animals. Ammonia needs a lot of ventilation & toxic fumes are formed when mixed with bleach. For Myco, I would stick to a bleach/HOT water solution 1:10.

Chlorhexidine (active ingredient in Nolvasan) or hydrogen peroxide do not kill myco. Neither does vinegar, but I couldn't find any references to mycobacteria & h.peroxide/vinegar combined. Nolvasan does, however, prevent it from growing.

I found a site called Clinical Microbiology Reviews which basically tells you which antiseptics & disinfectants kill what. According to this site Mycobacteria are "highly resistant" to chlorhexidine. The second link is about cleaners and reptiles and is in lamens terms.

http://cmr.asm.org/cgi/content/full/12/1/147#T4 (http://cmr.asm.org/cgi/content/full/12/1/147#T4) rather involved reading.

http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.com/Disinfectants.html (http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.com/Disinfectants.html) Easier reading, with brand names listed

Hope this helps!

I have a question.. (first post whee)

I'm going to be getting a FN soon, and would love to use the vinegar/HP combo. My only problem is that I live on the second floor of an apartment complex(no elevator, only stairs)...So obviously, rinsing with a hose is going to be really hard/impossible.

What would be a good way to clean without nearly killing myself everytime to get it downstairs to wash?

Also, is there a good brush to use, or are paper towels/regular towels sufficient?

Thanks!

You don't have to drag it anywhere to wash it! Just do the peroxide thing and wipe it down with water paper towels. It does the job without wasteing water,

Really? Well, that makes it a whole lot easier!  ;D
Thanks!

All my rats are healthy, so I just use antibacterial dish soap on toys and furniture. I wipe down and rinse the exterior of the cage with Clorox Anywhere Spray.

Rayne, 20 babies? My girl had a litter of 16, (it was an oops litter), but20 is out of this world!

I have figured out my secret to a non-stinky cage. Critter Fresh! I recently ran out, and PetsMart doesn't carry it anymore, which forced us to buy another product. It's horrible. I want my CritterFresh!

I just bought some off Amazon yesterday... I bought 3 bottles at once, because the shipping was $8.99 no matter if I bought 1 or 3. I'm not pleased with that shipping charge, but I NEED my Critter Fresh!

Critter Fresh on Amazon (Goose-supporting Link) (http://www.amazon.com/Mardel-Critter-Fresh-Cleaner-Deodorizer/dp/B0002565J8/ref=sr_1_1/104-6505270-6068706?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1192112834&sr=1-1)

I used a product called Method 'Go Naked surface cleaner' for the first time tonight and I have to say I am quite pleased. IT neutralized my boys cage and I could just spray it, wait a few second to do its work, and then scrub with paper towel. No perfumes, no dyes, no animal testing and all natural products.

Kind of expensive at $4.99 a bottle (CDN) and I used half the bottle, but I also cleaned stinky igloos, wood, baskets and all the clips I use. It doesn't disinfect but it cuts the buck butter and the pee off the bars.


I think I'll use it in rotation with vinegar and water. I like the idea that I can spray the Method with the rats in the cage to clean up any day-to-day messes. I'm also quite sure that I'll make the switch to full fleece this week if cleaning becomes this easy.


wish me luck on potty training :\

Check out Pet Focus! I love this stuff and it is super safe!! It works unbelievably well and worth every penny!!!  http://www.avitec.com/Pet-Focus-Disinfectant-Cleaner-p/epf.htm

Wow, this thread is so helpful! I have been using vinegar, peroxide and then plain water to wipe my cages, but I have always wanted to know what the chemistry was. Thanks, PhoenixMoon, for posting the answer!

And I am going to check out the Clinical Microbiology reviews. There is probably no way to kill Myco on the blankets and hammocks, but I am  grateful to be able to get out the pee smell! I have started adding vinegar to the pre-wash cycle, and it really helps. I have a front-loader, which uses very little water, and I used to have to wash their stuff using the Sanitary Cycle (super-hot water).

When using the vinegar/hydrogen peroxide mix, is it a weekly thing or every day? Would it keep smell down if shelves/bars were wiped down with baby wipes every other day and then the cage was stuck in the shower, sprayed with vinegar/HP and rinsed with hot water or can I just spray the cages down in my room and wipe off the vinegar/HP and that's it?

For those of you who use cage liners/have cages full of toys and hammocks, are you taking everything out every day or every few days in order to spray the cage down?

Our cages get done weekly, but I don't have anything huge.  We currently have one Martins H-600 (vacant at the moment), two R-660, two R-670, an H-600HR, and a 10 gal tank.  We have topper for the 10 gallon but it's not currently in use.  I do wipe down as necessary.
 
I've been using diluted bleach but I'm switching to the vinegar mix...

Here's a question and since there's so many posts to skim through let me just throw it out there.

Are baby wipes safe to use if I want to wipe down my Magic Mats in between washes?  I really have no idea about this but I'm wondering if it's nontoxic?  Any thoughts?

I've used baby wipes all natural and unscented I even use it on the rattys themselves. The cage stays clean (great for the hard to reach areas) and I have a question... this thread's kind of all over the place does the vinegar solution kill all the germs like the bleach? I also have asthma and I figure if it bothers my lungs it bothers theirs. (I've seriously rewashed cages after bleach with dish soap and have still not been able to breathe by them because the bleach residue is so hard to get rid of)

I use a mix of mostly vinegar and then about a half a cup of antibacterial dawn dishwashing detergent.  It breaks up any dried on poo and gets everything super clean. I just spray the stuff on and then wait a few minutes and run a scrub brush over it really quick and it looks brand new again!!

For the entire cage, the vinegar and peroxide spray works wonders.  For the inside...I have a Martin's 690 that I have put linoleum on the levels of...every day, twice a day, I do the baby wipe thing on them.  I use the unscented all natural ones that don't have alcohol or anything harsh.  I dry them with a paper towel too.  On the bottom they have towels.  I have a bunch of ones that have minor tears, so I cut them in half and use it on the bottom of the cage.  Usually two towels at a time so it's more absorbent, and I change that every other day and pick up the "raisins" every day.  My rat cage is always cleaner than my house.   :yelcutelaugh:

Is Vinegar and methelated spirits safe for rats?
We use it on everything. :yelcutelaugh:

It is a good idea to rinse very carefully if you do this since mixing ammonia and bleach is harmful.

I had a question about the vinegar and hydrogen peroxide cage cleaning method- Are you suppose to spray the whole cage with vinegar and wipe it down, and then spray on the hydrogen peroxide then wipe that down? Or are you suppose to spray the vinegar and then the hydrogen peroxide and wipe them both off? Lol sorry for the technical question... Everyone else seems to get it just fine, i guess i just read too much into it. Thanks so much!