116qt Sterilite - Can‘t get humidity below 80%

[Fasfer]

I have always used Glass/acrylic Terrariums but I made an unplanned purchase and put the BP in a Sterilite Bin, 116qt. I have drilled 10 holes at the top, (around the edge) and two holes at the bottom. But for some reason, I can‘t get the humidity to an appropriate place. It won’t stay below 80%, unless I leave the lid off. But I can‘t just leave the lid off with a BP. Any ideas on how to fix?

I started off by using paper towels at substrate, and moving the water dish further away from the heat mat - no change.

Now, I put my usual substrate:

• eco earth
• cypress mulch

I have used 3 Hydrometer‘s to compare to the new one I have in there and they are all reading the same within 1-2% of each other. The brand is Acurite.

My heat mat is set to 87 F.

[wnateg]

I have the same problem with tubs; I have to make them look like swiss cheese to get the humidity down.

One thing that does work for me is putting a small fan near the enclosure, doesn't even need to be pointed at it, and it'll lower the humidity by a lot.

[wnateg]

My heat mat is set to 87 F.

Do you have a heat gun to measure the inside because, assuming your thermostat probe is between the tub and the heat mat, there's no way the inside is warm enough. Depending on the tub, you can lose 10+ degrees going through the plastic.

[Fasfer]

Do you have a heat gun to measure the inside because, assuming your thermostat probe is between the tub and the heat mat, there's no way the inside is warm enough. Depending on the tub, you can lose 10+ degrees going through the plastic.

Yes, I use a heat gun. The heat gun reads 87-88 (I have my Thermostate set to 90F for the mat, sorry!)

[WhompingWillow]

Add more holes to the bin, 10 isn't very many. You could also try a smaller water dish.

[Fasfer]

Add more holes to the bin, 10 isn't very many. You could also try a smaller water dish.

I added many more holes at this point. I also have decided to just remove the cypress mulch I put in there and have put it in a separate bin to dry it out a little more as I saw that the mulch can make the humidity crazy high for a while.

[Luvyna]

Cypress mulch always drives the humidity up to 85% in my BP's tub when it's fresh. Usually after a few days the humidity drops down to appropriate levels. I think having a BP in 80% humidity for a couple days won't do any harm as they would probably experience similar conditions in the wild after a rainfall or if they seek out a damp place to shed. I know some people also lay out the cypress mulch to lose some of its moisture or even bake it before using it.

[Cheesenugget]

I use aspen to even out the humidity. This lowers my tub's humidity down to about 50-70% plus drilling extra holes on the lid as well as the sides. Use a smaller water bowl. Mold is a concern for aspen but I only had 1 instance where this happened. Just make sure you dump everything out weekly when you do your cleaning.