[AngelDoGG]

I was wondering if I could clean my corn snake's tank, with detergents, cause I baught it full grown with the tank and it doesent smell of look like he ever cleaned the tank.. or in a very long time...
And I'm using normal carpets ontop of my heat pads... can I putt it in the washing machine and oviously once it dries put it back in or not? Please help lol, internet gives me nothing... From Angelo

[RickJ]

Yes you can use detergents to clean the tank and the carpet... BUT RINSE WELL.

I use bleach to clean my Python's tank, and regular dishwashing soap to clean the "rug" that's in the bottom of the tank.

I recommend indoor out door carpet (or better yet, a door mat) for the bottom rather than "normal carpet".

[theredbaron]

I have a lot of snakes and so do my herper friends who have literally hundreds of snakes... None of us use carpets, simply because of the cleaning involved. Try using newspaper, I buy two a month and that's plenty (plus you're repurposing something that is usually thrown out, which is good). I put about 3 layers of newspaper and replace it once it gets soiled. I choose not to use any detergents when cleaning, I simply remove everything, pour a capfull of hydrogen peroxide in the tank and wipe it down with a paper towel, and for the "furniture" like hide boxes I spray them with hydrogen peroxide and rinse them off. The hydrogen peroxide will kill all of the smell creating bacteria and then be neutralized by light (that's why it comes in a brown bottle) and that way you can rest assured that the tank is clean and your little buddy won't get into anything that will hurt him.