repti bark questions

[olaf]

I have 4 questions about reptibark-
1. Will a UTH work with repti-bark, or will the repti-bark burn? I'm getting a thermostat, so it probably shouldn't be a problem.
2. Repti-bark says that if you soak it in hot water every few weeks, it will increase the humidity in the cage. Will this grow any fungus or anything in the repti-bark?
3. or be bad for the snake?
4. I read somewhere that there was a product you could use on the humidity releasing type substrates to make it not harmful to the snake. Is this nescissary?

[tigerlily]

1. No you shouldn't have to worry about catching fire, if that is your question.
2. You should be able to achieve 55% humidity without soaking reptibark, unless you are in a super dry climate. Wet porous materials will have a higher tendancy to harbor fungus and bacteria. Are you having problems with your humidity? If so just a light misting with a spray bottle is usually enough to increase it.
4. No not necessary for most people, but it all comes back to your individual set up and what your current measurements are.

[olaf]

Thanks! I went ahead and purchased some repti-bark today. It smells good. I put in the repti-bark and misted the whole cage and got it up to 80% humidity.

[tigerlily]

80% is a little high unless your snake is shedding. Normally you should try for 50-60% and 70-80% while in shed.

[olaf]

yeah, that was right after I sprayed the WHOLE cage to get the humidity up, and right now I have a screen topped cage, so the humidity will probably go down.