Reptile Prime + Water

So I have been recording all my readings in my homemade enclosures for about 2 weeks now and I have a question or two. I have 2 weeks to go before the expo and purchase of 2 BP's. I am currently using about 1" - 1.5" thick layer of Reptile Prime in each cage over an area of approx 36" X 24". I am in the middle of winter in CT so there is no humidity in my house. I think we were at like 22% when I checked 2 weeks ago. I find myself adding 1 - 1.5 cups (yes I've been using a measuring cup) of water every day or 2 to the substrate and then mixing the wet stuff around to spread it out. This generally bring the humidity up to around 70% within a few hours then over the next day or 2 it falls to around 50%. I know that this is in the except able range. I do have a large water bowl directly under the RHP in each cage. Also ambient temps are holding steady at 86F +/- 2F reading from an accurite thermometer, with the hottest spot on the hot side being 91F and the coldest spot being 78F as checked with temp gun. At the moment I do not have any hides or clutter in the cages. Trying to get basic readings and settings down so I know how to react to changes.

So my questions are:
1. Any suggestions to do things differently? no adding a humidifier to the room is not an option.
2. Is it ok to have swings in humidity like that as long as it stays in that range or do I need to figure something else out to make it hold better?
3. Should I just Relax it's good as it is?

Are you using a tank with a screen lid?


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Here is my build thread. https://ball-pythons.net/forums/show...nclosure-build
They are sealed ply wood and acrylic

Humidity swings in that range are fine. If you think about a natural environment, it's not normal for humidity to remain constant.

I also use Reptile Prime, and while I don't know exactly how much water I add at a time, I know it's a lot more than 1.5 cups. :) I just dump a bunch in and it never feels truly wet. Humid may spike high for a couple of days, but then I tend to get a nice 60% for a while. With my PVC I rarely have to add water. With my glass tanks I mist every couple of days and dump water every week if needed. Winter is harder to maintain than summer.

So long story short, I think your parameters are fine. :)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by WhompingWillow

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I also use Reptile Prime, and while I don't know exactly how much water I add at a time, I know it's a lot more than 1.5 cups. :) I just dump a bunch in and it never feels truly wet. Humid may spike high for a couple of days, but then I tend to get a nice 60% for a while. With my PVC I rarely have to add water. With my glass tanks I mist every couple of days and dump water every week if needed. Winter is harder to maintain than summer.

So long story short, I think your parameters are fine. :)

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So letting it spike higher then 70 for a day or two once a week would be ok? I've been making sure to only spike as high as 70 which is requiring much more frequent watering. I figured having it swing a bit wouldn't be too big of a deal but I don't want to chance any RI's either.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by gunkle

So letting it spike higher then 70 for a day or two once a week would be ok? I've been making sure to only spike as high as 70 which is requiring much more frequent watering. I figured having it swing a bit wouldn't be too big of a deal but I don't want to chance any RI's either.

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I usually get somewhere around 80% for that first couple of days, but then it starts leveling off. My AP tends to hang onto humidity better than my BoaMaster, so I adjust my very precise dumping water method accordingly, lol. I haven't had any issues with RI whatsoever. My RHPs keep a nice gradient of 80-90 degrees.

The only time I've ever been nervous about a substrate is Reptichip because humidity would be 90%+ for days on end and it felt wet to the touch. When I was using it I figured out fast not to put it in my PVC cages, only glass tanks, because of that.

I realize this is an old thread but am noticing people say they add water to their Reptile Prime Substrate?? I wasn't aware that I was supposed to do that. I usually keep a large bowl with wet spaghum moss in their cage but it tends to be pain in the butt.

Should I be moistening the reptile prime instead??

Thanks

I wouldn't say it's required, depends on how it's going. If humidity/shed issues - add water, if all is fine, don't worry about it.
For my corns and king on reptile prime, I don't add any water. For my ATBs, some have moss filled hides as well. When I change out their water I dump the old water into the cage/reptile prime (unless they soiled in the water) to give that boost. I'm in a fairly dry area and also mist the higher humidity species, like ATBs, in addition and have a humidifier in the house for the winter time.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by L.West

I realize this is an old thread but am noticing people say they add water to their Reptile Prime Substrate?? I wasn't aware that I was supposed to do that. I usually keep a large bowl with wet spaghum moss in their cage but it tends to be pain in the butt.

Should I be moistening the reptile prime instead??

Thanks

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So I have since changed my method. Now I've learned that if I dump a small amount of water randomly on the reptile prime every few days during water bowl change I'm easily maintaining 55%+. I also only provided humid hides once each during shed and they did use it but It's so easy to bump up the humidity for a week to 70 that I don't bother anymore. Every shed so far has been a nice full one piece rolled up sock.