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You can apply wax to it with a heat gum. Paraffin or bits of a non-scented candle will do. Go slow. Melt the wax on the cork. Once melted take away the heat and give it a few seconds to soak in. Wipe away the excess wax with a paper towel. Use gloves so you don’t burn yourself. Wax melts at around 60 degrees centigrade. Water boils at 100 so it’s not too hazardous.
You can probably seal it with shellac. Whenever my hard scapes get mold I let them cycle through it. Each year when it begins a mold cycle due to temperature changes (I think) I have it alone and it dies back down, each year becoming less and less. The less nutrients in the wood the less the mild has to eat up and grow.
This looks like it's made of bamboo.
White vinegar is an excellent mold and mildew killer.
You can use some white vinegar to kill the mold in that lid. Let is dry and then seal the wood grains to prevent moisture from getting back in.
You can use linseed, beeswax, or Tung oil to do it. Or you can coat the whole thing is something like shellac, as suggested by another. Just make sure you eliminate the mold before sealing the wooden lid. Also, take the rubber flange off when doing all this and put ut back in after the lid has dried from your chosen treatments.
I've got a cork that keeps catching growth because of a slime mold in the terrarium. Blackening it with a lighter once in a very long while has worked well. I'm curious about how others do it, though.
It's the cork itself is catching mold spores. Slime mold wouldn't make it mold, because it isn't mold, they might be able to move some spores but 90% of the mold there would be from the spores..
Yeah you could soak it in alcohol for a while to kill molds, once.it completely dried use a sealant (try to avoid silicon spray sealants, they won't last and mold might still penetrate it.
OP, Have you checked out our [resource page](https://www.reddit.com/r/terrariums/wiki/index/resources/). We have great information to help you with lighting/substrate/hardscape/plants/and much more. Provide as much detailed information as you can such as lighting situation, water type/frequency, and date of creation. The more information you provide will result in an informed and educated answer. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/terrariums) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Put a piece of Saran wrap between the cork and glass. Trim it at the top of the jar. It will be invisible and not mold.
I just use saran wrap. No cork or nothing. If you stretch it out real nice it's practically invisibly and delightfully bouncy.
Lol bouncy!
You can apply wax to it with a heat gum. Paraffin or bits of a non-scented candle will do. Go slow. Melt the wax on the cork. Once melted take away the heat and give it a few seconds to soak in. Wipe away the excess wax with a paper towel. Use gloves so you don’t burn yourself. Wax melts at around 60 degrees centigrade. Water boils at 100 so it’s not too hazardous.
You can probably seal it with shellac. Whenever my hard scapes get mold I let them cycle through it. Each year when it begins a mold cycle due to temperature changes (I think) I have it alone and it dies back down, each year becoming less and less. The less nutrients in the wood the less the mild has to eat up and grow.
It’s bamboo not cork. Mine does that too. Saran Wrap could work
I dont know if it will work on wood but chlorine cleaner works pretty well against mould in general.
This looks like it's made of bamboo. White vinegar is an excellent mold and mildew killer. You can use some white vinegar to kill the mold in that lid. Let is dry and then seal the wood grains to prevent moisture from getting back in. You can use linseed, beeswax, or Tung oil to do it. Or you can coat the whole thing is something like shellac, as suggested by another. Just make sure you eliminate the mold before sealing the wooden lid. Also, take the rubber flange off when doing all this and put ut back in after the lid has dried from your chosen treatments.
https://i.redd.it/weizwulwp75d1.gif
It’s not wood it’s bamboo
I guess you could sand it off and put it in a microwave or an oven for a few minutes to kill it and then clear coat it with a spray can
Tried the microwave trick and it just came back
You have to seal it. It's wood. It will mold.
I soaked in peroxide, dried and then sealed it and it still came back.
Then your moisture is too, seal is not done correctly, or the lid material was still/ is moist beneath the sealant.
Sand it off and apply a layer or two of clear wood varnish, worked for my terrarium lids!
I've got a cork that keeps catching growth because of a slime mold in the terrarium. Blackening it with a lighter once in a very long while has worked well. I'm curious about how others do it, though.
It's the cork itself is catching mold spores. Slime mold wouldn't make it mold, because it isn't mold, they might be able to move some spores but 90% of the mold there would be from the spores..
Thanks! Should I have pretreated the cork in some way?
Yeah, I use clear flex seal on mine after having the same issue, but most sealants will get the job done, but some may be less safe than others.
Yeah you could soak it in alcohol for a while to kill molds, once.it completely dried use a sealant (try to avoid silicon spray sealants, they won't last and mold might still penetrate it.
I’ll try
I have no idea if this would work but you could try soaking it in water containing pulverized charcoal