please help

[Rstrui]

buzz hit blue a little early and i wasnt prepared... i need gimmicks to keep humidity 60-70 in a large low 20 gallon.. already have a pet humidifier i ran out and bought which is doing a bad job (dont buy nat geos decorative log humidifier lol) and i have a plastic box full of mixed moist stuff in it (with holes in the top)

[Slim]

Cover as much of the top of the enclosure as you can with a damp bath towel. Keep the humid hide moist, and you can always try a larger water bowl, but in a tank that big, it's really won't do much good.

I like that you used the right word when you asked for gimmicks. The real trick is to keep the humidity in the proper range at all times. Scrambling to jack up the humidity after the animal has already started the shed cycle is like locking the garage door after your motorcycle's already been taken to Mexico...

Good luck.

[Scottywelsh]

In my opinion I sort of disagree with the comment above as I cant get my humidity in my exo terra terrarium to get a higher average than 39%. But my last 3 sheds have been perfect.
First sign of going into shed I put a good amount of spagnum moss all around the viv and have to spray it 3 or 4 times a day or it dries out because I use a heat lamp. Spagnum moss is a god send and iv never had a problem with it. I also put a little bit in the corner of both hides but make sure it's damp and not wet.
I also put a second water bowl under the heat lamp which does help quite a bit. I use bark chips as substrate which has been the best for me for humidity by far !!
This all gets my humidity between 55 and 80 % so the average is quite good and has worked great for the last 3 sheds.
I would like to mention that I have a lucky reptile fogger which is pretty useless with a heat lamp as it goes from 30 to 70 and then back to 30 in about 1 minute. I don't like using it much because of the risk of RIs tho.

I don't have this setup anymore as iv switched to a rack to expand my collection and would like to add that my BP seems so much happier in a rub than she ever did in the exo terra

[Scottywelsh]

Forgot to mention with the top I covered 3/4 of it with tinfoil and it stayed that way the whole time I had it

[Slim]

In my opinion I sort of disagree with the comment above as I cant get my humidity in my exo terra terrarium to get a higher average than 39%.

As always, your mileage may vary...

[Scottywelsh]

As always, your mileage may vary...

I couldn't agree more. Didn't mean any disrespect
I was just saying in my experience of having a glass viv.

It'd also useful to check the calibration of your hygrometers with a salt test.
I have 3 exo terrace digital hygrometers. 1 is 3% off 1 is about 12% off and the other is a massive 25% off so it's worth checking them.

[Albert Clark]

buzz hit blue a little early and i wasnt prepared... i need gimmicks to keep humidity 60-70 in a large low 20 gallon.. already have a pet humidifier i ran out and bought which is doing a bad job (dont buy nat geos decorative log humidifier lol) and i have a plastic box full of mixed moist stuff in it (with holes in the top)

Go straight to Petland and buy a "versa top" that fits a 20gallon tank. Humidity issue solved and ambient temps upgraded. You can even find them at Petco or Petsmart also. No gimmick, the real deal.

[Coluber42]

Cover all of the screen top completely, leaving only a hole for the lamp. You could even get a smaller hood for the lamp so it can use a smaller hole. There will still be plenty of ventilation, your snake won't suffocate.
The reason it's easier to maintain humidity in a tub than in a tank is that if you add up the surface area of all the air holes people put in tubs, the total is still pretty small - way smaller than the amount of screen remaining if you cover 3/4 of it. Smaller than the area the hood of your lamp covers, too. If you can find another way to heat the tank or seal up the area around the lamp, you could also just cover the screen completely and poke a few holes in the covering as needed.

Essentially, keeping humidity inside an enclosure is about limiting ventilation, full stop. There's nothing magical about plastic or PVC or any other basically impermeable material - it's just about how much surface area is open to the dryer outside air.

[Scottywelsh]

I could only cover 3/4 of mine because of the heat lamp. I would have covered more if I could have tho.

With a heat lamp (you can disagree with me of you want) but in my experience you can block up as much of the ventilation as you possibly can and the humidity will not change that much really because the lamp is still drying out the air. You still need humidity aids like misting several times, spagnum moss and a humid hide.

Keeping the heat in which in turn would make the temp easier to maintain which then could mean the heat lamp is using less power and drying the air out slower which could make the tank more humid for longer ?? Don't know if that's right but it sounds like it could be lol

Good Luck.

[M.P.C]

Or use a very large water bowl under the light and cover the entire top in foil minus a hole for the light and one smaller opening in the cool end, my tank is much much bigger then what your using and my humidity sits at 50-55%