Wetbox vs Misting?

[cattleya0507]

I have been misting my bp's pressed wood terrarium like crazy to get the humidity up to optimum (3-4 times/day). But as you see it lasts for only a few hours and I have to mist his home again.
So I got a wetbox for him a couple of months ago.
The wetbox is on the cold side, but the point is he spends most of the time on the warm side. It seems he doesn't know at all what a wetbox is (I got him when he was already 9 and his previous owner didn't provide him a wetbox). At first I had the box on the warm side, he used it quite often though but the moss dried out too fast.
My question is: is it ok not to mist the terrarium because of the available wetbox inside? My worry is he wouldn't use the box during in shed or when he needs more humidity. Should I continue misting his home to keep him away from RI?

Since I got the box and had it on the warm side, he shed once, but it was his worst so far (it stucked). He stayed in it during his shed, but why bad shed? Could this fast drying out moss have been the cause?

[Cheesenugget]

What substrate are you using? That should help your overall humidity without a humid hide.

Humid hides are supplemental hides meant for temporarily use for shedding. Placing it on the warm side works what it is intended for: creating a mini sauna for the snake during shed. It does the same on the cold side but it takes longer for the water to evaporate and not as effective.

The moss can be reused several times. Add water to the moss and squeeze out the excess water before reusing.

[cattleya0507]

I either use reptile wood or chips. I unfortunately can't use any damp substrate even if I want to because of the wood terrarium.
Do you mean I should put the humid hide in only when he's in shed?

[gunkle]

I either use reptile wood or chips. I unfortunately can't use any damp substrate even if I want to because of the wood terrarium.
Do you mean I should put the humid hide in only when he's in shed?

Are you saying that you terrarium is not properly sealed? Constant misting will cause mold, mildew and rot to untreated wood just like a moisture rich substrate. I highly recommend sealing the wood with pond shield or some kind of waterproofing stain. Unfortunately this will take a week or so to do and properly air out. If you don't the terrarium will not last long and become a health hazard to you and your snake.

[cattleya0507]

Are you saying that you terrarium is not properly sealed? Constant misting will cause mold, mildew and rot to untreated wood just like a moisture rich substrate. I highly recommend sealing the wood with pond shield or some kind of waterproofing stain. Unfortunately this will take a week or so to do and properly air out. If you don't the terrarium will not last long and become a health hazard to you and your snake.

Yes, it isn't sealed. Stefan Broghammer, a famous reptile expert in Germany, suggested me that I shouldn't do anything to the terrarium since most of the waterproofing materials are toxic to reptiles, so I left the terrarium like that for about 2 years, but as you said the ground was partially molded and there crawled some wood mites.

A couple weeks ago I then decided not to follow his advice and painted the ground and the walls with a toy-quality water-repellant indoor glaze but not all the way to the top just about 7 cm high (I chose it because it dries up very fast and is very low-odor, the smell disappeared after the paint dried). Or should I seal all the interior?

[gunkle]

I would seal the entire interior since it's all exposed to the high humidity levels. I would also be concerned with the bottom since it already seems to be ruined. Painting bad it rotten wood doesn't stop it from getting worse and may need replacing.

[distaff]

There are epoxy paint products you can buy to seal wood aquariums. With proper curing times, if it is safe for fish, I'd call it safe for reptiles.

However, ...sounds like you need a new terrarium. That paint won't really seal, and you can't scrub interior paint. Paint over damaged (probably moldy) wood won't last long anyway. Never heard of that reptile guy, but I can't think of any animal I'd keep in a non-sealed enclosure - maybe something was lost in translation??

[cattleya0507]

@gunkle: I understand your point, but the humidity in the terrarium falls down really fast due to the heatpanel and the material so there isn't enough time for the entire terrarium to become constantly humid. The only problem is the ground either because I accidentally mist too much or Kahlua spills his water dish.

@distaff: do you maybe have a link to this product? Well, it WASN'T and ISN'T as bad as it sounds. I ofcourse did something to the mold before I started the painting project. I killed the mold and let it dry for weeks after that I used sandpaper and scratched all the parts that didn't look brown off. So, I'm quite sure that there're no mold on the bottom anymore.
I don't know I can give you a link of his video if you want to, but it's in German 😅.

But I won't worry much about the terrarium doesn't last long anyway, fortunately, we're planning to build him a better terrarium sooner or later. Thank you guys for all the helps though. )

[gunkle]

Anytime. Hope it all works out for you. I personally love handmade wood enclosures. About to start yet another one for some crested geckos