Ambient Temps - Need Suggestions

New BP owner of 3 weeks and counting......

Housed in a PVC enclosure w/ two UTHs controlled by a Herpstat2. One UTH has a warm surface temp in the low 90s and the other UTH in the low 80s. Humidity has always been on the hide side. One unit will read in the 90s and the other will read in the 80s even though they are sitting in the same spot. I've tried to reduce this by changing the substrate from Reptichip to unprinted paper and reduced the amount of water in the exterra water bowl.

The ambients seem to be dropping in the last 3 weeks probably due to the drop in weather temps. Gone from the high 70s to mid 70s. It's sitting at 75 now whereas the room temp is 70 and the weather is damp and 60 outside.

Since it's a PVC enclosure, I don't think I have many options to boost the ambients other then the following:

1. Turn on the LED light in the enclosure which has shown to boost the ambients into the low 80s.

2. The pvc enclosure is in a small finished basement (600 sq ft) heated/cooled by a mini split type air conditioner (which we never use because there was never a need). I'm wondering if it's more efficient to finally start using this unit and if so, what room temp should I set it to to achieve the ambients I need inside the cage?

Any suggestions?? Appreciate the advice.

P.S. I'm also thinking when it's time to upgrade the enclosure, I'll look into another PVC w/ a UTH and a RHP.

with a PVC enclosure you have two options to raise ambient temps: 1. heating the room, or 2. RHP.

i used to heat my room to 77° F and that kept my T8 at a steady 79-80° F. if you're going to go that route, you'll need to just let the heat run and spend some time monitoring temps to get the enclosure dialed in; what works for me might not work for you.

what enclosure do you have? sorry if you've posted pics or explained this before. RBI makes many different size RHP that you might be able to use with your current set-up; have you looked into that? if you're already thinking about upgrading, this might not be the most economical option, so i understand if you don't want to do this.

EDIT: regarding humidity, you might need to let the enclosure "air out" a bit; open the enclosure up and let some air pull that moisture out.

also, where are you located? i'm dealing with the same issues as you: high humidity all of a sudden and i have NO clue why, and dropping temps outside causing me to make adjustments to my tub and 20gal.

yea, I figured my options were limited w/ a pvc enclosure. Since it came w/ track LED lighting, I'm guessing a RHP wouldn't even work so I think I'll just focus on using the mini split type air conditioner to heat the room. Just wasn't sure how economical it would be to always have it running. :tears:

The enclosure was purchased at the Atlanta Repticon from a dealer on the east coast. In hindsight, I rushed into buying something and should of done more research. The depth is only 10 inches which makes it hard for me to maneuver around when I'm trying to feed and handle him.

As for humidity, opening the door does help a lot but it builds back up in several hours. I'm still not convinced that humidity in the 80s is a bad thing; especially if there is no moisture building up on the cage walls, etc....

I'm located just outside the Atlanta area.

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Originally Posted by ckuhn003

yea, I figured my options were limited w/ a pvc enclosure. Since it came w/ track LED lighting, I'm guessing a RHP wouldn't even work so I think I'll just focus on using the mini split type air conditioner to heat the room. Just wasn't sure how economical it would be to always have it running. :tears:

The enclosure was purchased at the Atlanta Repticon from a dealer on the east coast. In hindsight, I rushed into buying something and should of done more research. The depth is only 10 inches which makes it hard for me to maneuver around when I'm trying to feed and handle him.

As for humidity, opening the door does help a lot but it builds back up in several hours. I'm still not convinced that humidity in the 80s is a bad thing; especially if there is no moisture building up on the cage walls, etc....

I'm located just outside the Atlanta area.

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have you looked into RBI RHPs? i think you can make your enclosure work with one. the RHP will help lower the humidity and you won't need to use two UTHs.

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Originally Posted by tttaylorrr

have you looked into RBI RHPs? i think you can make your enclosure work with one. the RHP will help lower the humidity and you won't need to use two UTHs.

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Pardon my ignorance, but don't they attach to the underside of the roof of the enclosure? If so, I have a LED light installed so I don't think that would work.

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Originally Posted by ckuhn003

Pardon my ignorance, but don't they attach to the underside of the roof of the enclosure? If so, I have a LED light installed so I don't think that would work.

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yeah they do. my bad. :oops: with only a 10in. depth to work with, less due to the lights, i don't think it's going to work.

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Originally Posted by tttaylorrr

yeah they do. my bad. :oops: with only a 10in. depth to work with, less due to the lights, i don't think it's going to work.

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Shucks! I do appreciate the response(s)...........

It won't help with the humidity but have you tried putting a blanket over the top and sides of the enclosure? I usually throw one over my racks that aren't in the snake room in the winter, especially overnight since the <censored> heat pump for the house can't keep up if it's super cold outside, and the blanket will bump the ambient in the tubs up by a few degrees. My main snake room stays warm because of the heat exhaust from the chest freezer for the rats.

High humidity isn't an issue as long as the temperature is correct and the enclosure is clean.

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Originally Posted by bcr229

It won't help with the humidity but have you tried putting a blanket over the top and sides of the enclosure? I usually throw one over my racks that aren't in the snake room in the winter, especially overnight since the <censored> heat pump for the house can't keep up if it's super cold outside, and the blanket will bump the ambient in the tubs up by a few degrees. My main snake room stays warm because of the heat exhaust from the chest freezer for the rats.

High humidity isn't an issue as long as the temperature is correct and the enclosure is clean.

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yes, I did this last night and my humidity reading was pegged at 99%. It may have bumped up my ambient up a degree or two but probably not where it needs to be. Good to know about the "High humidity isn't an issue as long as the temperature is correct and the enclosure is clean". I'll try to keep it reduced but I don't want to totally stress out if it seems higher then most on this board.

What are you using for substrate?

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Originally Posted by bcr229

What are you using for substrate?

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I switched from reptichip to unprinted newspaper

What size is your PVC enclosure? They offer multiple size RHP that might work around your LED.

Thanks,
-Steve

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Originally Posted by Stearns84

What size is your PVC enclosure? They offer multiple size RHP that might work around your LED.

Thanks,
-Steve

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It's a 20L (36x12x12) although the livable area is really 10 inches deep. There is a LED light fixture attached to the underside of the enclosure so not sure if a RHP would fit. Or would it??

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...c3d3d7ecec.jpg


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At the temps you're describing if you really had 99% humidity in there it would have been raining down the walls. I keep BRB's at 75-80% humidity and the enclosure sides and doors are fogged up very heavily.

Also while your hygrometer probe should be in the enclosure the actual unit should not me, most electronic devices don't last in high humidity environments and that could be the reason for the high readings.

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Originally Posted by bcr229

At the temps you're describing if you really had 99% humidity in there it would have been raining down the walls. I keep BRB's at 75-80% humidity and the enclosure sides and doors are fogged up very heavily.

Also while your hygrometer probe should be in the enclosure the actual unit should not me, most electronic devices don't last in high humidity environments and that could be the reason for the high readings.

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I will definitely look to remove the actual unit out of the cage. It's interesting because I bought another Accurite (probeless) unit and the humidity was reading 10% points less and that was sitting in the same spot as the enclosure.

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Originally Posted by ckuhn003

It's a 20L (36x12x12) although the livable area is really 10 inches deep. There is a LED light fixture attached to the underside of the enclosure so not sure if a RHP would fit. Or would it??

https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...c3d3d7ecec.jpg


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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Contact Bob at Pro-Heat (http://pro-products.com/pro-heat/) his number is 845.628.8960. He is extremely helpful and will give you every option he has available to work around your current situation. Measure and provide him with the largest ceiling space you have available and he will get you something that will work.

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Originally Posted by Stearns84

Contact Bob at Pro-Heat (http://pro-products.com/pro-heat/) his number is 845.628.8960. He is extremely helpful and will give you every option he has available to work around your current situation. Measure and provide him with the largest ceiling space you have available and he will get you something that will work.

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So I spoke w/ Bob at Pro-Heat and he's recommending a RHP (50watt) which should fit in my enclosure and allow me to keep the existing LED track lights. Since I currently have a UTH on each side, will the RHP allow me to get rid of the cool side UTH? I believe the surface temps were hovering around 74-75 before I installed the UTH.

Also, where does the Herpstat Probe attach for a RHP?

Right now, I have my A/C unit jacked up to 77 degrees in the basement (it's HOT) to achieve the ambients (80). I'm also hoping an RHP will help reduce humidity if I can get rid of the 2nd UTH.

I'm going to bet the size RHP he suggested for the size enclosure you are using will allow you to do away with both under tank heaters. The way I have my thermostat probe mounted for RHPs is drilled through the back and hanging several inches below the surface of the heat panel. Then I have the thermostat set to 86, and it provides a hot spot of 89-90. you will of course want to tinker a bit with your personal setup to get it dialed in how you want it.

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Originally Posted by Randall L Turner Jr

I'm going to bet the size RHP he suggested for the size enclosure you are using will allow you to do away with both under tank heaters. The way I have my thermostat probe mounted for RHPs is drilled through the back and hanging several inches below the surface of the heat panel. Then I have the thermostat set to 86, and it provides a hot spot of 89-90. you will of course want to tinker a bit with your personal setup to get it dialed in how you want it.

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Obviously I've got a lot to learn. So an RHP can control surface temps? If it's hanging from the ceiling, I don't understand how it can keep an ambient temp in the low 80s but a hotter temp below in the 90s (surface temp) and how is the temp gradient created (shifting the RHP to one side??) You mentioned your thermostat is set to a lower temp then what is actual measured?? Appreciate the response. I'm def curious about this one.

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Originally Posted by ckuhn003

Obviously I've got a lot to learn. So an RHP can control surface temps? If it's hanging from the ceiling, I don't understand how it can keep an ambient temp in the low 80s but a hotter temp below in the 90s (surface temp) and how is the temp gradient created (shifting the RHP to one side??) You mentioned your thermostat is set to a lower temp then what is actual measured?? Appreciate the response. I'm def curious about this one.

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IIRC it's because it's IR like a CHE. It'll bounce, so the main point heated is directly below it (your hot spot) then it "bounces" toward other surfaces in your enclosure. Unlike CHE, they don't become burning-hot to the touch due to their wider surface area.

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Originally Posted by ckuhn003

Obviously I've got a lot to learn. So an RHP can control surface temps? If it's hanging from the ceiling, I don't understand how it can keep an ambient temp in the low 80s but a hotter temp below in the 90s (surface temp) and how is the temp gradient created (shifting the RHP to one side??) You mentioned your thermostat is set to a lower temp then what is actual measured?? Appreciate the response. I'm def curious about this one.

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Think of a Radiant Heat Panel like the sun. As the sun beats down on the sidewalk it absorbs the heat and builds up, sometimes to the point of frying an egg, obviously the air temp and other surfaces that don't absorb the heat as well don't get as hot as the sidewalk does.