tub ventilation - high vs low

[Steve-J]

I've been reading a lot of past threads and I'm trying to get my tubs configured properly for my environment. Sorry to dredge this up again but I can't find one of the threads where a few of you veterans out there were hashing out the details of ventilating the tub regarding low holes and high holes. (if someone finds it and post a link then thanks!) I've seen it posted both ways and just wanted to hear from some of you to try to get the best configuration. My temps are right on, but the humidity matches the room at this point (can go as low as 35%), I've experimented on a few tubs and ended up with too many holes and am now about to start over. I was under the impression that to make the best use of the convective airflow there should be low holes on one side and high holes on the other side. If the high holes are in the back (hot side) and low in the front then wouldn't the ambients suffer, with heat flowing up and out? My thinking (which may be completely wrong) was that if the low holes are in the back (hot side) with high in the front then as the warmer air rises it spreads through the tub before exiting, in the process pulling fresh air in through the back. Am I on the right track here? Any input is appreciated!

[benwallage9]

This is what i do and I'm not a veteran by any means but I drill 6 holes on the top of each side. This keeps my tubs at the right temps, and humidity at around 60% which is what I like too. My thought on this is hot air raises and cool air sinks, thus letting the hot air escape out the top and bringing cool air down in. I also open my tubs on a daily basis to check for poop, water spills, snakes in shed, etc. I think this also helps cycle the air which i feel is important. This is what works best for me I'm sure you'll get alot of different opinions from people lol. Good luck in finding what works best for you

[kitedemon]

Hi/low holes tend to generate very good air flow. Air enters low (I use them on the hot side) and warms up and rises and exits the higher holes. Some of it will cool across the top and drop and return and complete the circle.

There is compelling evidence that poor air flow combined with high humidity creates conditions that are good grounds to promote RI.

http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...27#post1641327

Personally I use a humidifier to increase the humidity to the room, ultra sonic ons or vaporizer ones the passive type tank temps as they add larger drops into the air. This just increases the humidity and I can promote strong air flow. (I can feel the air moving with a damp finger out of the tubs)

Others use a humid hide to generate local humid conditions. There is a trend of cutting off most of the air flow and using the exhaled breath to increase humidity. Some of the biggest names in herpetological veterinary medicine warn of this practise. Generally speaking it is better to err of too much air flow than too little especially if you can keep the ambient air temp correct and humidify the inflowing air rather than try to increase the humidity by stagnation.

[Steve-J]

ok thanks! I'm definitely not aiming for that exhaled breath scenario, but that info on low holes on the hot side plus high holes on the cool side is exactly what I was looking for. I think the only way my humidity would get too high is if there were no holes at all and that's just not an option here. I'll make a test tub on an empty shelf and monitor it to see what the results are, thanks again!