Controlling humidity before the frost when things get tough?

[thefifthdentist]

In the winter time I have a lot of issues with keeping my humidity manageable while the furnace is pulling out all of the moisture and replacing it with dry heat.

Unfortunately there is nowhere else for me to keep the herps other then the basement which is very close to the furnace although they are technically in different rooms even though there is no solid door.

I am asking for any suggestions on how to control the humidity? I have several humidifiers which will put 3 litres of water into the air whilst I am at work and still wont help the tubs much. I have tried moss, which works well but I cannot leave it for more then a work shift without drying it out.

Is there anyone else whom has to house their reptiles near their furnace room and lives where the furnace runs from October to April (I.e. Canada) ?

I appreciate all suggestions

Thank you, Merci

[ChuckSM]

There are humidifiers that go into the tank, living in arizona I am tempted to try it.

other options are seal off 90% of your screen so that moisure is retained or try putting them in tubs.

[ericzerka24]

If you are using glass tanks I've heard that a piece of plexiglass for the top works great. Just drill a few holes in it. I live here in Michigan and winters were always such a pain in the butt when it came to humidity. Now that I've switched over to racks, humidity isn't an issue.

Also remember that heat lamps are humidity's worst nitemare. Some sort of under the tank heater works much better. Hope that helps

[don15681]

if you have a furance and not a boiler you can put a humidifier on the furance. use a hide box which is also known as a humidity chamber. it's nice to keep the humidity level up in the whole tank, but most balls will spend most of their time in a hide. raise the humidity in there, just don't have your snake laying in water.

[bsash]

If you are using glass tanks I've heard that a piece of plexiglass for the top works great. Just drill a few holes in it. I live here in Michigan and winters were always such a pain in the butt when it came to humidity. Now that I've switched over to racks, humidity isn't an issue.

Also remember that heat lamps are humidity's worst nitemare. Some sort of under the tank heater works much better. Hope that helps

If you are using tanks, I second the plexi glass over the screen tops. This is what I do for my Savannah monitor's cage and it works great, I don't have any issues with my ball pythons though. I also second the under the tank heat mats, just make sure you have a thermostat to make sure they do not get too hot.

[BPelizabeth]

No furnace but I do live in AZ and it is very dry typically. During shedding time I take a wet wash cloth and put it over their hide on the warm side of the tub. This usually does the trick to add a little extra humidity during the shedding time. Maybe try that out.