Humidity suddenly dropping?

My ball python has been in a tub since he was born. His humidity has always been perfect (60-70%). However, now it's averaging 30-40%. I think my thermometer/hygrometer broke because even though I'm putting a damp piece of paper towel in the tub it's reading 44%. However, when I put my other thermometers/hygrometers in the tub it also reads 30-40%. I don't really trust those though because the probes are used to the humidity of a hognose which is 30-40%. Please help!

Setup:
32qt tub with 2 RBI medium hides with a water bowl
Heat pad controlled by herpstat 1
Temps:
76-80 ambient
hot spot: 88-90

It sounds like your meter is broken.

You'll find that most of them aren't accurate to begin with....and many times they aren't even close. The "Accurite" brand?....I've used them for years, but I don't really trust them either. They just give me a very rough ballpark figure. However, Hygrometers (especially cheap ones) take quite a while to read accurately in any environment....AT LEAST a few hours I leave mine in, if not a full day for a somewhat accurate measurement.

Have your sheds been in one piece recently? Any respiratory problems?

If you answered "Yes" and "No" respectively, I wouldn't worry too much.

His sheds have always been in one piece and he's been perfectly healthy since I got him.

- - - Updated - - -

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Tinyballs

It sounds like your meter is broken.

You'll find that most of them aren't accurate to begin with....and many times they aren't even close. The "Accurite" brand?....I've used them for years, but I don't really trust them either. They just give me a very rough ballpark figure. However, Hygrometers (especially cheap ones) take quite a while to read accurately in any environment....AT LEAST a few hours I leave mine in, if not a full day for a somewhat accurate measurement.

Have your sheds been in one piece recently? Any respiratory problems?

If you answered "Yes" and "No" respectively, I wouldn't worry too much.

---

These are also meters with probes, should I replace them?

All digital thermometers and hygrometers are going to take time to normalize their readings. Does not matter if you have a $10 or $10,000 device.

Now if you want to calibrate your hygrometer to make sure it is not defective, look online for people who keep cigar humidors.

Here is a quick guide on how to test the validity of your hygrometer. Note you might not be able to calibrate yours but you can at least verify it is close to accurate so don't worry about adjusting, simply use this method to make sure it is working.

https://www.neptunecigar.com/tips/ho...our-hygrometer

Here is a video doing the same thing

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2MmCRZ4cD0