Is that a probeless thermostat?????????????? are you checking the hotspot also? Humidity drops with heat. The moss in the hide will lift the humidity in the Hide, Get a damp moss box. Also put a towel over your mesh - Warm water? no. Warm water in the bowl wont help unless you have a cermic heat lamp directed onto it. You NEED a thermostat... I dont believe your hot spot is less then 98f with out a stat, could be in the100's - I have a 4WAT mat in my current tank, and we removed the thermostat to restick the mat, when we put it back in 3minutes later, the hot spot was 98... so if it is constant unregulated, it could be in the 100s/...