humidity

whats up everyone. i have a little problem with keeping humidity in my tank. i built my own tank out of wood and just the front part is glass. i have 2 medium size water bowls and ive recently planted 3 plans and put moss around the plants and i cnt seem to keep the humidity level above 50%. i have to spray the tank with water all the time and only then it jumps up to 55% but only stays that way for a short time. the tank is made out of wood its about a 40, 50 gallon tank and the side walls as well as the top lid have air holes in them for good air flow. i donno what im doin wrong, maybe i bought the wrong plants, maybe the wrong kind of moss or maybe its cuz the tank is made out of wood.... any help any suggestions would be great. thank u

Too much ventilation/air flow!

Welcome to the site!
Try covering some of your vents.

thanks a lot jason and thanks for the welcome to the site. like this site already

Are you using a heat lamp? That will significantly reduce your humidity.

I had exactly the same problems with exactly the same setup. And as Kaorte mentioned, I DO also use a heating bulb (as well as an UTH), but I have to as it's cold here.

I tried the coconut substrate once, but that caused the opposite problem. Humidity went through the roof and everything was dripping with condensation, particularly the glass front doors!

If you've minimised the airflow, then, in my humble opinion, the 3 options are..

a) Resign yourself to the fact you'll be constantly misting the enclosure;
b) experiment with the substrate you're using;
c) Switch to tubs - at which point humidity is no longer an issue! :)

thanks u guys. i do use a heat lamp, 150w heat bulbs, one for the day time and one for the night time. im goin to cover a lot of the air holes i have cuz i do have lot of them in the tank and hopefully that helps. i dont want to go with tubs because i like having the tank in my room and seeing it and being able to see the snake so if minimizing the air flow doesnt help then ill have to keep trying till i get it right. thank u guys a bunch for the advice, uve been real helpful :)

Have you thought about using UTHs instead of high wattage heat bulbs? You could switch to a UTH and your humidity would shoot up. You might need to use a low wattage heat bulb, but at least your humidity would have a little boost.

Wow, I can't believe nobody caught this yet? If I'm wrong I apologize, but you said your enclosure is wood but you didn't say if and with what you sealed the wood with??

Your biggest problem could very well be the enclosure itself not your husbandry. The wood will literally suck any and all moisture from the tank unless sealed properly.
You need to use a good acrylic wood sealer and let it set and dry for at least 48rs. After 48 hrs let it air out for another day or 2 to make sure it's set and dried properly. Once dry and set it will pose no harm to your pet.

Hope this helps.
Gavin

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Originally Posted by Gavin Cooper

Wow, I can't believe nobody caught this yet? If I'm wrong I apologize, but you said your enclosure is wood but you didn't say if and with what you sealed the wood with??

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Exactly what I was thinking...

Raw wood is a moisture sponge. It soaks it up and then starts to rot.


If your wood cage is not properly treated, you will want to thoroughly dry it out before applying a sealer. If not you will simply trap the moisture in the wood allowing it to rot from the inside out.


There is a huge variety of sealers you can consider. Latex Dry Lock is a personal favorit eof mine. I've used it on Reptile Enclosures, Fish tanks/ponds, as well as it's intended use for sealing concrete.


Dry Lock can be tinted with standard latex paint color additives. I've added up to 6 ounces of coloration and the result was still water tight.


There are also many other sealers that can be used... Standard polyurethane is an option but you will want many coats... Acrylic sealers are an option but they tend to be pricey and I'm not sure they will stand up to a warm bulb shining on them...Rubber sealers should work but can get pricey... You could smear brown silicone on the inside and texture it to look like bark (I have made fake trees like this for a vivarium)...


There are a lot of things that will work... but not sealing the wood will not work for very long...

thank u all for the advice. im starting to think im better off just getting a nice size fish tank and save me a lot of trouble and future fix ups on the one i have now. thanks a lot for the good advice guys :gj:

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Originally Posted by akaprincesssophia

thank u all for the advice. im starting to think im better off just getting a nice size fish tank and save me a lot of trouble and future fix ups on the one i have now. thanks a lot for the good advice guys :gj:

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It might be worth looking into a reptile enclosure. Glass tanks will give you the same issue with low humidity, especially if you need a lamp. With reptile enclosures, you generally don't need a lamp and if you do, there is no big screen to let all the humidity out.

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Originally Posted by severe_bomber

c) Switch to tubs - at which point humidity is no longer an issue! :)

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I am using a tub right now and the humidity stays within the range of 50-60. It's my first time taking care of ball pythons.

Question is, what is it about tubs that keeps the humidity at the correct range? Will it always be at around 50-60 all year round or will I still need to modify the amount of water and air ventilation in the tub?

i have a visionarium terrarium from creativepet.com. they're also on LLLreptile.com. only downside is they only come in 1 size- 30"L x 12" W x 12" H. from what i hear thats slightly smaller then a 20 gal tank.

the advice is working guys. i replaced the side walls on the tank with solid pieces of board and before i went to bed i put a watered down towel over the lid to cover up about 60% of the lid (the lid has a lot of big holes) and i woke up this morning and the humidity was at 53%, its never been that high the next morning before :). today im gonna make a new lid and i think i should be okay :D

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Originally Posted by CeLLLLL

I am using a tub right now and the humidity stays within the range of 50-60. It's my first time taking care of ball pythons.

Question is, what is it about tubs that keeps the humidity at the correct range? Will it always be at around 50-60 all year round or will I still need to modify the amount of water and air ventilation in the tub?

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The material of the tub is what holds in heat and humidity. Plastic! The screen tops on glass tanks allow for too much air flow and all the humidity escapes quickly.

well it looks like im goin with a new store bought tank. the humidity held for just a short period of time probably only because i redid the moss and sprayed the tank but now its back to being low. petco has a 20 long glass tank for 80$ and i think im gonna go with that. i might just keep this tank and work on it over time and make it right so i can use it when my snake gets bigger. any suggestions on what else i should buy for the new tank......? i nnow it comes with a screen top so i might have to modify that a little bit so more air stays in.
thanks

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Originally Posted by Gavin Cooper

Wow, I can't believe nobody caught this yet? If I'm wrong I apologize, but you said your enclosure is wood but you didn't say if and with what you sealed the wood with??

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Oops...

Yep - had assumed it was sealed. Good breeding ground for bacteria if not, particularly when damp!

Glass tank may be a better bet...

plug some of those holes with damp rags. :gj:

A good way to hold in humidity (in a screen-top enclosure) is to cover some of the lid with saran wrap. Not the whole lid; you do want some ventilation! But I did this when I kept snakes in tanks with metal screen lids, and it worked like a charm.

Rubbermaid tubs (actually Sterilite tubs) are my choice now; but for those who won't or can't use them.. the saran wrap works. And after the shed, you can decrease it and replace it as needed (for bumping humidity up during shed times) and it will not harbor bacteria in the same manner as towels or rags, which can mildew.

thanks everyone :banana: