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I always used tap water for my closed terrariums and they kept failing
For about a year, every sealed jar I made would get moldy or the moss would turn brown after a month or two. I was using filtered tap water from my kitchen in Atlanta. Then I saw a video where someone mentioned chlorine in city water can kill the good microbes. I switched to distilled water from the grocery store, and my last three builds have been thriving for over six months now. So, is using distilled or rainwater really that big of a deal, or was I just unlucky before? What do you all use?
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grant.anthony26d ago
Feel your pain, my first few terrariums looked like science experiments gone wrong. I was using tap water too and just assumed I had a black thumb. Switched to collecting rainwater in a bucket during storms, total game changer. That chlorine in city water really does a number on the tiny ecosystem you're trying to build. Distilled is the safe bet if you don't want to mess with collecting rain.
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joseph_hart25d ago
So you just leave a bucket outside, @grant.anthony?
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marymorgan8d ago
My first terrarium looked like a swamp someone forgot in a locker. I was using tap water and wondering why everything turned to slime. Rainwater made a huge difference, but my bucket collection method just attracts mosquitos now. I guess I'm running a bug hotel instead of a tiny garden.
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