humidity help!

[kgfernan]

Ever since I got my ball python over a year ago I had been using repti-bark, recently he got some splinters on his nose from it (while I was on vacation), I came back to find that he had rubbed a nice scab on his face. I tossed the bark and have been using newspaper for the last week. The humidity in my glass tank (screen top) dropped from the upper 60s to the mid 30s with the newspaper and I can't seem to get it back up. For now I can't use any other sort of substrate (I don't think at least) since I'm applying neosporin to his nose and don't want anything to stick to it. I added an extra water bowl and have been misting but the humidity won't stay up. I tried covering the screen with cardboard but it sent my temperatures sky rocketing.

If anyone has any suggestions for what I can do to raise the humidity in his tank I would greatly appreciate it.

[AkHerps]

This is a Great tutorial!
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...foil+treatment

Do you use an under the tank heater with a thermostat?

Are you using any overhead lighting, like red bulbs?

[kgfernan]

I have a UTH attached to a thermostat, but I also have to use a bulb for extra ambient heat (the house is very cold). I haven't tried the thing with the aluminum foil but I did use a piece of cardboard over the top with a hole cut for ventilation and one for the lamp. It did help with humidity but it made the temperature too warm with both the uth and lamp and without the lamp the ambient temp was still in the low 70s. Would it be ok to do this and not use a UTH and only use the lamp?

[AkHerps]

Try it out with only the UTH and thermostat, take away the lamp. They do need the UTH though, you can't go without that.

If your ambient temps are too low with just the UTH, just lower your bulb wattage to get the right temps. What wattage are you using now?

[kgfernan]

The bulb I'm using is a 60w. Do you think it would help if i covered the top with the aluminum and also put a bowl with a wet sponge in it underneath the lamp (after lowering the wattage)?

[AkHerps]

Yes you can either use a sponge in a dish, or just put your water dish under the heat source or a little but over the UTH. Either way, when the water evaporates, it won't escape out of the tank but will stay inside.

[kgfernan]

Thank you so much for your help! I'm seriously setting this up tonight!

[AkHerps]

Yeah I'm going to do the same thing tonight with my snakes tank until I get everything for the tub to be set up. I have to use extra heat with a bulb in my tank also as I can't keep the temps in the 80's either.

[kgfernan]

Yah tubs are definitely the way to go, I use one for my hog island boa and his temps and humidity are always perfect. I tried using one for my ball python but he went off feed for a month and a half until i switched him back into his glass tank!