40 gallon breeder tank

Okay so next week will be a month, since I've had my super pastel ivory bp and now I want to do something on my tank to keep the heat and humidity in. So what I was thinking was using lexan on top of the screen lid of my tank but I'm wondering how well the lexan hold up with the heat lamp if I should cut holes where I'd place my day lamp and night lamp. Or if anyone has any better ideas instead of using lexan I did also consider glass.

Well, you don't need a day and night lamp. You could just use a ceramic heat emitter (che) since bps prefer no light. The top of mine is covered with heavy duty aluminum foil, except for a ring cut out for the che to sit on it.

Substrate can make a difference with humidity.

The other questions....what are you going to measure heat and humidity with?

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I have a thermometer on my hot side which is around 80/85when I have it on the 75w basking light above the tank and when I have it sitting on the top it is 90 and at night when I use the blue heat light I have it sitting above the tank as well and it's around the same 80/85.

then my cool side I have a combo thermometer hydrometer and the temp is around 72-75 and I try to keep the humidity around the 50-60% but I've been asking people and some tell me the cool side temp is kind of low and then I talked to that kid Alex Green that does Go Herping and he told me it is okay that the cool side is around that temperature.


But it before I used the towel on the top of my tank I'd have to mist it to keep up the humidity so I'm glad the towel is working keeping the humidity in since the screen top let's the temperature and humidity escape.


When i first got her it was a setup so the reptile store gave me the Tank, substrate, water bowl and the plastic hide and the basking light with the lamp for $120 and from there I had added the blue light and some kind of wood hide and the silk ferns I added. To the hot side which she climbs on almost all of the time.

Are you using a digital thermometer?

A wet towel on top can eventually rust the screen.

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It's an analog one and, it's not fully wet I just spray it with a mister i bought for $10 and the towel is pretty thick. Thick enough to keep the towel moist to keep the humidity around 50%/55% 12 hours for the day.


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Originally Posted by imhumpty

It's an analog one and, it's not fully wet I just spray it with a mister i bought for $10 and the towel is pretty thick. Thick enough to keep the towel moist to keep the humidity around 50%/55% 12 hours for the day.


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You NEED to get a digital one. This one is quite popular:

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00...84FK69UW1&vs=1

I always go by the humidity on my cooler side - the side under the heat will always be super dry.

Wet is still wet - moisture eventually rusts metal.

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Originally Posted by melcvt00

You NEED to get a digital one. This one is quite popular:

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00...84FK69UW1&vs=1

I always go by the humidity on my cooler side - the side under the heat will always be super dry.

Wet is still wet - moisture eventually rusts metal.

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Yes I know I need to get a digital one, I was just using what I had and getting better add-ons but I'm not going to lie I thought I'd be able to use a analog but I knew eventually I'd have to get one, but now I know I need to get one now I'm going to post a picture how my tank is setup. If you have anymore helpful advice it would be greatful and I'm actually looking to get a humidifier instead of using the mister that I have and the towel that I started using a few days ago https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...7f03cc21b9.jpg

This is an older picture, now I have all of the silk fern on the right side and I have a background on the back now.


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If that is aspen, I would switch to something different. Aspen is murder for keeping humidity up. Coconut husk and cypress mulch are ones that I have tried and liked. The coconut bricks take some prep work with soaking and drying time. There are others, too.

I have foil on the top of mine, and 3 sides are covered with Reflectix (the shiny bubblewrap stuff) for insulation. I have a LOT less trouble with heat loss, and my humidity drops much more slowly. I only mist every couple days. I have avoided a humidifier because I don't want it to fail or be off and end up with 100% humidity.

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Can you post a picture of how yours looks like, and yeah the Aspen is annoying I did try using moss and spraying the moss with water. But I've been reading and I've heard good stuff about coconut husk and cypress mulch. I wanted to use a humidifier because when I first started out I sprayed my mister and it got on the glass and those annoying water marks were there but the Reflectix sounds interesting I'm going to look and see where I can buy that and when I clean the tank out next week I will make the switch.


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If you use distilled water, the marks come off more easily because there are no minerals to leave behind.

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https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...e4827bec02.jpg

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...89691a0dcf.jpg

I wish I could keep reflection out!

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If you are in the US, you can get the Reflectix in the office/shipping section at Walmart.

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I'm about to head to the store and get the AcuRite and the Reflectix and new substrate and mouse since today is feeding day.


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Does the Che blub put out a lot of light?


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Originally Posted by imhumpty

Does the Che blub put out a lot of light?


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A CHE bulb doesn't produce light at all, just heat :)

Sold me on that lol


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Sorry if I'm a noob I'm still learning but I enjoy all of the feedback I'm getting


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Originally Posted by imhumpty

Sorry if I'm a noob I'm still learning but I enjoy all of the feedback I'm getting


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Don't ever apologize for wanting to learn! It's great that you're taking the right step to make sure everything is right for your noodle. It's a learning process for sure. [emoji16]

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Originally Posted by jbzapanda

Don't ever apologize for wanting to learn! It's great that you're taking the right step to make sure everything is right for your noodle. It's a learning process for sure. [emoji16]

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So then what are your thoughts on using a humidifier?


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I personally don't use a humidifier since it's pretty humid where I am. I use cypress mulch and my humidity stays around 60-64 with no misting whatsoever. To give you an idea of my setup, I have a 20G long tank with tin foil on top and I leave like a very small space for ventilation. I don't use heat lamps because I found that it absolutely killed my humidity [emoji28] so I just use a mini space heater to heat the general area of where my enclosure is. It stays around 77-81 in the tank and a hot spot of 90-92 :)

Okay I have an idea now, so from what I had envisioned was to have a humidifier, it would turn on if the humidity went to low. I'm not sure if something like that is real but pretty much it would have a sensor of some sort.


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Hmm, I don't think they have one like that but that would be convenient lol!

Maybe I'm just thinking too advanced, lol since I plan on moving her from my 40 to a 75 or maybe 90 I know PetSmart has those $1 per gallon deals from time to time and that's when I want to fully sit down and do something crazy in there. Something like that won't happen for a while though I want to say 8+ months from now


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Females won't necessarily need that much space. And a glass tank that large would be difficult to keep constant temps and humidity in. If you wanted something that was big and efficient, consider a pvc cage. Animal Plastics is a popular choice here and you'll find lots of threads on setup and everything else on the forum. They're a little pricier but it's a forever home and a good investment. I'm looking to get one in a couple of months since my boy is getting big!

I shall look in to that then


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I love all what I see on their site, you are right they are pricey but one of those would be a forever home thank you for the advice


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Absolutely!

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Originally Posted by jbzapanda

Absolutely!

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So then at that point, I'm looking to get this background made for me from my sister in law I want to use a jungle theme and I was considering surface of a moon from the planet endor from star wars but now I'm not sure if it would keep the heat and humidity in. Or what kind of material I would need to use for that because she's a painter so I'm not sure how to go about this now.


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Any thoughts of using half Aspen substrate (warm side) and then half Cyprus mulch (cool side) since the Cyprus keeps in the humidity a lot better then the Aspen ?


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Originally Posted by imhumpty

Any thoughts of using half Aspen substrate (warm side) and then half Cyprus mulch (cool side) since the Cyprus keeps in the humidity a lot better then the Aspen ?


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With fighting humidity so much, I would not use aspen at all.

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Okay so I bought some stuff when I have it all setup I'll take pictures


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For humidity and ability to repel mold, pure cypress mulch is the best. However, I find it pretty hard to locate anywhere near me at wholesale price (most is mixed with pine and other woods) and the stuff they sell at pet stores and from online pet suppliers is overpriced.

I go with Eco-Earth coconut fiber substrate, it's a bit more effort to prepare but it's pretty dang cheap and holds humidity well. Plus+ it's eco friendly, so that's always nice.

Using a UTH (regulated by thermostat, of course) instead of high wattage heat bulbs should help with your humidity issues as well. Lamps tend to really dry out enclosures, especially when they're cranked all the way up. I have a screen top cage with timed day and night lamps, but these lamps (with built in dimmer switches) are only to maintain ambients and are rarely ever operated anywhere near full power. I use 75w bulbs as well btw, and the rest of the screen top besides where the lamps are is covered by heavy duty aluminum foil.

I have 75w lights but I just got a che 60w do I still need to keep it 12 on 12 off? Because before I was using a basking 75w for 12 hours then a blue 75w for 12 also.


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I have set up a 40 breeder that will be the future home of one of our BP's once it outgrows the 20 long. for now, our baby red foot tortoise lives in the 40. what I've done is rather involved and I'm not sure what your goal is but if you'd like I can post some pictures. I added insulation to all the sides, turned the tank on it's side, mounted plexiglass to the front with a sliding door. the tank is covered on all sides, top and bottom with the lid facing forward instead of up. the rim of the tank makes a nice groove for the sliding door if you are willing to go through the trouble to cut out a window in a larger piece that mounts to the front. I mounted it with a small stainless bolt in each corner of the plastic rim. I also used a hole cutter to cut a hole in the plexi for all the wires to go through and I mounted a cover for the hole. I rely entirely on two UTH's mounted on glass with T-stats because I don't like heat lamps, they dry everything out and create a headache if you want to seal the tank up, without catching something on fire, the bulbs burn out and that get$ annoying, especially if you put them on a thermostat.

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Originally Posted by Slither Seeker

I have set up a 40 breeder that will be the future home of one of our BP's once it outgrows the 20 long. what I've done is rather involved and I'm not sure what your goal is but if you'd like I can post some pictures. I added insulation to all the sides, turned the tank on it's side, mounted plexiglass to the front with a sliding door. the rim of the tank makes a nice groove for the sliding door if you are willing to go through the trouble to cut out a window in a larger piece that mounts to the front. I mounted it with a small stainless bolt in each corner of the plastic rim. I also used a hole cutter to cut a hole in the plexi for all the wires to go through and I mounted a cover for the hole. I rely entirely on two UTH's mounted on glass with T-stats because I don't like heat lamps, they dry everything out and create a headache if you want to seal the tank up, without catching something on fire, the bulbs burn out and that get$ annoying, especially if you put them on a thermostat.

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Yes I'd like too see this, this sounds super amazing. I'm not sure what my goal was either but I ended up doing something different


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So this is just experimental still I know I need to cover the top back of the tank but I'm getting something else done to that, but I have covered the sides with the insulated tape and the top I'm using lexan which where I had the light sitting on top it warped which I had a feeling it would of done. But it keeps the heat and the humidity in which I wanted and there sides and the back are just pictues of myself and my girlfriend I had blown up about a year ago on mounting boards


https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...72af9fbd81.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...e05e16d761.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...3370f5d227.jpghttps://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...b6e6301c0a.jpg


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ok, so I'm not suggesting you have to go to all this trouble, but I can say that if you do you will have a rather nice stable environment for a BP, at least this type of design has worked well for me on several enclosures. you can mix and match ideas to your own liking. I use insulation, mostly seal up the tank and rely on low wattage heat sources and t-stats. Also, I think that because the BP's are surrounded in more of a cave like environment with this approach, being more buffered from vibration and movement around them, it seems they are more willing to come out at night and lounge about. If you really get into it, you can see more photos in my gallery and I'm happy to answer detailed questions on the design. in the long run you save on electricity, bulbs and you have less of a wrestle with the "keep it open enough for heat lamps vs want to close it up to conserve humidity" tug of war. with this approach it is much easier to nail the heat and humidity to the point where you can actually go on a vacation without having to leave a manual behind for your house sitter.

in the first shot you can see the "curb" that I placed to hold back substrate/keep it away from the sliding door (otherwise it fowls up the sliding of the door) and you can see the sliding door that I cut out, just a little bit smaller than the width/heidth of the inner groove of the fish tank rim. the rim becomes the slider once a large peace of plexi is added to the outside. I went with a high curb, because I want to have room for a false bottom for planted/bioactive set up.
https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil...2/img_8122.jpg

In the next photo I show how I drilled holes in the four corners. this photo is of a 20 gallon long, but you get the idea. you'll have to pre drill the hole in the rim, curb and outer piece and get a long enough bolt to go through all the pieces. doing it this way makes for a very secure lid.
https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil...2/img_8123.jpg

in the next photo you can see how I cut out a window in a piece of plexiglass smaller than the sliding door and mounted it to the tank. it takes quite a while, like 4-6 days for the silicone to finish off gassing enough to be safe, at least by my estimates. ideallly you give a day per MM of sealent. sorry, I don't have a lot of photos of the steps leading up to this.
https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil...2/img_8345.jpg

In the next photo you can see more closely how I created the secure port for the wires. https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil...2/img_8346.jpg

In the last photo I show how I mount a UTH to a piece of glass. this is placed inside the tank, taking advantage of holding in all the heat that a UTH can produce. there is less waste this way, but it needs, like with all heat sources, to be regulated with a thermostat. it's also important to realize that this is not how the manufacturer intended for a UTH to be used, so you are on your own as far as risk/warranty etc. I did consult zoo med over the phone a bit on this, they can't recommend it but I feel that I have addressed the potentials for problems, at least enough to satisfy me. I have been using variations of these for 5 years width no problems. Zoo meds UTH's are pretty well sealed up and durable, in my experience but it's a shame that they don't have a built in thermostat. https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil...2/img_8200.jpg

in the final photo, I show how I secure the sliding door. I used industrial strength double sided tape and modified some pieces of plastic that will suffice for a door handle. for my 5 year old son, I decided to add two locks to lesson the chance that my son would forget to secure at least one of them.https://ball-pythons.net/gallery/fil...2/img_8223.jpg

It looks good!!!!

So now In my setup now the humidity is good! But it's getting a little too high now it is at 76%


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if there is condensation collecting, you can wipe it with a paper towel and if you do that a few times the humidity will drop. then again, I don't think of 76% as bad, it's a bit on the high side but I just wouldn't keep adding more moisture, it's a good time to hold back. if it lingers there longer than you'd like, peel back some of the foil over the top and let more of it out.

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Originally Posted by imhumpty

It looks good!!!!

So now In my setup now the humidity is good! But it's getting a little too high now it is at 76%


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Quote:

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Originally Posted by Slither Seeker

if there is condensation collecting, you can wipe it with a paper towel and if you do that a few times the humidity will drop. then again, I don't think of 76% as bad, it's a bit on the high side but I just wouldn't keep adding more moisture, it's a good time to hold back. if it lingers there longer than you'd like, peel back some of the foil over the top and let more of it out.

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I didn't add any moisture [emoji23] I got home and it was at 86 so I opened the lip wiped the condensation down and left the top up. Now it's at 66% I'm going to leave the middle part open that has lexan on top and I added the water dish back in. Now I'm going to wait and see where it is at


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I have to play with it to get it the right % now it's at 67% having it like this. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...e1fd900694.jpg


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just remember, some fluctuations are fine. I think 66% is pretty good, that leaves a little buffer. it's a bit like sailing, keep tacking!

I believe I have it the way I want it now https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...71c9c5370b.jpg


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