Humidity in hot hide

[EthanMG]

Hey everyone, this is my first post on the forum and first day being a member. Getting my first snake (a BP) in a few days and I’m having some trouble with the humidity inside the hot hide. I’m using a mixture of repti bark and Forrest floor cypress mulch as my substrate. I have a UTH connected to a thermostat set at 80° surface temp, and the glass at the bottom is 92° (using a IR heat gun). This is my first question… is that normal for it to be 92 at the bottom of the enclosure and as far off as 78-80° at the top of the substrate. Is this ok for the hot side? I’m afraid to make it any hotter because if he burrows he could burn himself. Continuing, My humidity inside the tank is 60-65°, but for some reason when I put my hygrometer inside the hot hide for a few minutes, it read 95-100% humidity. And I can tell, when I stick my finger in the hide it feels like a Sona lol. There’s also water droplets coating the inside. Is this normal and how do I fix this? One other thing, my cool side currently is at 72° and my ambient temp is at 71° (my house temp). This is because I have such a big enclosure. I was thinking on getting a ceramic heat emitter bulb and putting it on the cool side with a dimmer to get the 80°. Will this work and would this raise the air temp to around 80° in the enclosure. My enclosure is the 36x18x18 exo tera with a screen top. I’m in the south so my room already has the right humidity. I will also be adding more fake plants for cover, they haven’t shipped yet. Any help would be appreciated, and glad to be a part of this amazing community!





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[KMG]

If that is Forest Floor it is very damp out of the bag but will dry out. To help it dry you can stir it every once and awhile. I use the same mixture. I have a large tub I pour it in to mix and then dish it out from there. I have holes in the tub to allow it to dry out.

That will do the humidity inside that hide.


As for the temps the substrate over the uth should be no deeper than a 1/4 inch. Having deep substrate insulates the heat and can create a dangerous situation. I have no hotspots higher than 88 and usually shoot for 85. Under my hot side hide you can see mostly glass as I have very little substrate there at all.

[Bogertophis]

Your thoughts for your snake's safety if he were to burrow & touch the hot glass is correct- As already suggested, keep the substrate shallow* over the UTH so the heat can properly rise (instead of possibly overheating the UTH due to excessive "insulation" above it), & lower the UTH temperature to keep the "warm hide" about 88* instead.

*This will also help lower the humidity (as will time ) since the reason for all the condensation is that it takes time for all the moisture to evaporate when the substrate is too deep.

You want the cool side to be more like 78*, so if your home/room is chilly (due to A/C or winter) yes, you need to add a heat source to maintain the proper temperature range- otherwise your snake may perceive it's winter & refuse to eat. We cannot tell you specifically if what you suggest "will work" because you need to test it out & make adjustments. You mentioned you plan to get your snake soon...so making these adjustments NOW is critical- your snake should not be a "guinea pig" while you keep adjusting, that will stress them something fierce.

Also- your enclosure is too big & "open" for a new snake (BP) to feel safe. Fix that BEFORE he (or she) arrives, not after, to help prevent feeding problems & reduce his/her stress. This is important- especially if you're getting a "baby" BP, the space & open floor plan will overwhelm them with fear, especially because it's all new to them- in the wild, they depend on hiding to survive other predators that hunt them​. Even adult BPs can be expected to hide most of the time- they're "ambush predators", meaning they don't hunt & pursue prey out in the open- they lie in wait for clueless prey to get too close to where they're hiding. Your success with a BP will depend on how well you can re-create that.

Many BP keepers prefer to use "tubs" for baby BPs- you might want to consider doing that- & you could actually put it inside the enclosure you have, to make use of the UTH at one end.

[EthanMG]

If that is Forest Floor it is very damp out of the bag but will dry out. To help it dry you can stir it every once and awhile. I use the same mixture. I have a large tub I pour it in to mix and then dish it out from there. I have holes in the tub to allow it to dry out.

That will do the humidity inside that hide.


As for the temps the substrate over the uth should be no deeper than a 1/4 inch. Having deep substrate insulates the heat and can create a dangerous situation. I have no hotspots higher than 88 and usually shoot for 85. Under my hot side hide you can see mostly glass as I have very little substrate there at all.

Ok thanks for the help! My substrate is almost 2 inches deep throughout. Do I need to thin that out or just where the hot side is? Should it be 1/4 inch just where the hide is or over tje entire hot side to where the substrate makes a dip there? I actually put a fan over the substrate for a few hours and that dried it out quite a bit, but the hides were still 95% humidity, even the cold side hide. I will take out some of the substrate and see if that helps, thanks!


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[Bogertophis]

... My substrate is almost 2 inches deep throughout. Do I need to thin that out or just where the hot side is? ...

Just under the warm hide.

[KMG]

Ok thanks for the help! My substrate is almost 2 inches deep throughout. Do I need to thin that out or just where the hot side is? Should it be 1/4 inch just where the hide is or over tje entire hot side to where the substrate makes a dip there? I actually put a fan over the substrate for a few hours and that dried it out quite a bit, but the hides were still 95% humidity, even the cold side hide. I will take out some of the substrate and see if that helps, thanks!


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I like deep substrate too. I keep it deep everywhere except the warm hide.

[EthanMG]

Just under the warm hide.

Ok thanks I just took out the extra substrate. Would something simple like this work if I put it in the enclosure and used that heat mat through the enclosure? Do I need anything more other than a small water dish in the middle and drill some air holes?


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[KMG]

Ok thanks I just took out the extra substrate. Would something simple like this work if I put it in the enclosure and used that heat mat through the enclosure? Do I need anything more other than a small water dish in the middle and drill some air holes?


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Sure. You could do that, but why?

[EthanMG]

Sure. You could do that, but why?

Bogertophis said to, I wasn’t sure if it was necessary, I just trust you guys who are more experienced… they suggested it because they said my enclosure was too big for a baby snake.


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[KMG]

Bogertophis said to, I wasn’t sure if it was necessary, I just trust you guys who are more experienced… they suggested it because they said my enclosure was too big for a baby snake.


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It is fairly large but certainly doable. My Ball has been in the same 40gal tank her entire life. When she was young I had good hides, plants, logs, moss, etc. She did great and as she got bigger I reduced what I had in the tank. If you want to use the tank you are getting ready do it. Just make sure you give the snake plenty of cover and concealment. Plenty of people have done just fine like that.