Humidity questions

[thegoalie22]

Where would I find spagnum moss this time of year? I found it at a garden supply store, but it's like ground up and looks like dirt.

Also,is cypress better at keeping humidity up that Aspen? And where wud I find it?

[DaveR]

I have bought all of my moss, aspen and cypress at the local pet store. Im not sure what you have in your area, so I would suggest calling around to all the pet store around you, or shopping online and have it delivered depending on when you need it.

Cypress will hold the humidity better than aspen. It is not necessary to use cypress to obtain good numbers though. I use aspen and my numbers are pretty constant.

What kind of humidity problems are you having? What kind of set up do you have right now and what kind of maintenance are you doing? What are you numbers looking like right now? Are you increasing the humidity so a shed cycle? Are you finding the humidity is dropping to fast?

Once you give some more information, Ill be able to help out more. Cheers!

[thegoalie22]

I unfortunately have a 40 gal tank. There is moss at
my local petstore,but it's 15 bucks for not very much. My humidity stays at about 40-45 because I have to use 2 heat lamps as well as a heat pad

[DaveR]

I have found issues with keeping my humidity up, but currently have it down to a science. Now what works for me, might not work for you. Just keep that in mind. You will have to trail out a lot of different stuff to find your own way to keep your numbers.

Now with the information given, I will suggest ditching the heat lamps and replacing it with a 100W light on a 12.5 hour cycle. BP dont really come out of their hides much, so I would concentrate all of my time to getting the numbers perfect in both your warm and cool hides. By doing this, you will correct for ambient temps/humidity.

What is the temp inside of your place? Do you spray the tank down? How often? What do you use for substrate now? Is the top of the tank covered with some plastic? How big is your water bowel and where is it located in the tank? We really need all your information to assist you properly.

Here is a copy and paste of a reply I made to a different post concerning humidity where I have gave a list of my set up and results. Just copy and paste the message and change the information to your own information and we will have a better idea on how to assist you. The more you can provide, the better:

"Here is what I have set up, try out different techniques to obtain your numbers (my BP is in shed, so that is why the humidity numbers are high):

-my apartment heat is at a constant 80
-she is in a 30g tank away from any heat vents
-one UTH that covers about 1/3 of the tank
-thermostat *this is IMPORTANT* regulating belly temps
-one light fixture with a 100W light set to a timer for 12.5 hours a day
-bi-daily misting
-daily water change in the 9 inch ceramic bowl
-a 1.5" to 2" inch moss bed above the UTH with aspen covering all
-plastic covering over half of the top

RESULTS:

-my temp/humid numbers for my warm hide is 91-92/75-80%
-cool hide 80-87/70-75%
-ambient temp is approximately 87-90 day, 80-84 night with humid numbers staying between 65-75%.

Once she is done shedding, I will be removing all the substrate and only using aspen. I only throw the moss in during shed to increase the humidity. I can keep my normal humid/temp numbers fine with 1 daily misting and a water change (logged anywhere from 55-65%). I was having the same issue with the low ambient temps until I started running the 100w light for a 12.5 hour cycle. Be sure you are regulating that belly temp with a thermostat, mine burrows down to the glass all the time.

Also, check the numbers in your hides. Concentrate on getting your numbers perfect in the hides and in turn you may improve your ambient temp/humid numbers.

Just keep in mind what works for one, may not work for another. Keep plucking away at it and you will find a way to get your numbers. Keep a log too,(log everything) this will help out a ton in the future.

Good luck with your work and research! Hope you find your numbers soon! Cheers!"

My little one has finished her shed, which came off in one piece. No stuck shed anywhere on her. I have since cleaned out the tank, replaced the substrate with only aspen (only about 1 inch) and still preforming daily water changes and misting. My numbers are recoded between 48%-64% since the change over. They start off high after the misting, then drop down during the night. If for what ever reason the tank is down below 50% when I get home from work, I give it another mist to bring it back up.

Hope I can help out more, Im just not sure of your set up so I cant offer any advice other than switching out the heat lamps for a 100W light on a cycle. Hope you can find your numbers soon!

ps - how big/old is your bp?

[thegoalie22]

He's 6 years old and about 800 grams
in the bold type it says your humidity is 80-90...
That is WAY high

[DaveR]

Yes in the bold type, the humidity is higher than normal (between 65%-80% depending on where it was recorded, not 80%-90%).

As it is written in the post, those numbers were recorded during the shed cycle when the humidity needs to be higher. At the end of the post I put my current numbers. Perhaps you missed that part, it was a rather large post.

All I can offer at this point, is doing some research. I can't offer any suggestions on husbandry when you don't provide any information.

Good luck with your research, I hope you find a solution for your numbers soon!

Cheers!

Here is a link to one of the many online stores who sell moss substrate

[Kaorte]

DaveR, I think your temps and humidity are a little too high. If your house is at 80*, then you really don't need a lamp at all, which means you don't need moss everywhere and you don't need to spray down the tank so much.

Just my opinion though..

[thegoalie22]

I am typing this on an iPhone so it takes awhile to type things which is why I didn't provide all the info u wanted
also, 80 humidity is way too high. It shouldn't reach above 70 anytime anywhere
I never asked what correct humidity is; I asked where I could find moss and if cypress held humidity better than Aspen. You did not really answer either of those questions. Luckily I found moss at petco. I think you are the one that needs to work on humidity issues