humidity help

[RoyalGuardian]

I am having a horrible time keeping kyna's humidity levels up... its at 56% right now after misting... but I go to school everyday and while I'm gone the humidity goes down to around 41%. I have moist towels on top of her cage.. Keeping room for enough fresh air to enter of course. and she has a big water dish too... any more ideas?

[SatanicIntention]

Warm, moist towels are a good breeding ground for bacteria, regardless of how often you change them. Think about it... Air is being filtered down through that wet, bacteria infested towel, and into your snake's lungs. Not a very healthy situation.

For a more permanent solution, get a piece of plexiglas from the hardware store, drill a few holes in it(start with a few until the humidity stabilizes. You can get this cut to fit the screen top so the humidity doesn't escape. Also, get some 3/4" panel insulation styrofoam. You can cut it to fit 3 sides and the bottom of your enclosure as glass isn't a good insulator. The inside of the cage may be 83 or whatever, but the glass won't be. And if your snake lays up against the glass(which is cold), he/she may get sick or regurgitate from improper body temps. The insulation will help keep the temperatures more stable and reduce heat loss.

How is your enclosure set up now? Bedding, temps, hides, sources of heat, etc.

[RoyalGuardian]

well she has aspen snake bedding, a hide box, a big water dish, and some silk plants. one of the plants acts as a kind of hide

[RoyalGuardian]

what do i do about the UTH?

[bigballs]

i feel that aspen doesnt hold humidity too well. if you switch to cypress mulch or repti-bark you may see some positive results.

[RoyalGuardian]

i feel that aspen doesnt hold humidity too well. if you switch to cypress mulch or repti-bark you may see some positive results.

Thanks! I will try that! I will have to wait till i get my next paycheck..

[SatanicIntention]

Ideally, you should have 2 small, identical hides, one for each side of the enclosure. If the snake prefers one over the other, then they will have to choose between security and proper thermoregulation, neither of which is healthy.

Plastic plant saucers(little bowls that catch water under the planter) are great hides as they are low to the ground and hug the snakes on every side. You can cut a hole in the side of two of them and put one on each side.

Are you measuring your temperatures with a digital thermometer? What are they currently?

[RoyalGuardian]

I am only 17 so I can't afford 2 hides right now because I just lost my job... I am having lots of problems with her temp/hum because I live in kansas and is it really dry and cold. so as for hides I'm not worried at the moment cause she never goes over to the cool side except to chill in her plant and for a drink maybe a little soak. I am flat broke at the moment and am currently fighting my job to give me my pay check which they should have given me a week ago. thats $200 they are cheating from my sweet little kyna. I really just need a quick around the house fix. would saran wrap with tape work in place of plexi glass for a week? I would imagine it to be better than wet towels but they were all that I could think of at the time.. her cold side is 79 degrees and her hot side is about 86 degrees..

[SatanicIntention]

Those plastic saucers are 40 cents apiece...

But do you have any small dark plastic bowls from around the house you can use? Or if you have some single serving frozen entree(already eaten out of and cleaned) plastic containers? You can use those as hides as they're dark and easily cleaned. She really needs two hides so she doesn't have to choose. I doubt she goes over to the cool side because 1.) it's too cool(but that doesn't mean a thing to her) and 2.) there's no security over there for her.

Her temperatures NEED to be between 92-94 on the warm side and 82-84 on the cool side. Without these proper temps, she could get a respiratory infection, which is even more expensive if you have to take her to the vet to get her treated.

It's either spend a little money now to get proper housing/heating for her or spend alot a little later and possibly have her die. I'd choose the first option, myself, regardless of my financial situation.

And yes, saran wrap and duct tape on the entire screen top(minus 2-3 small triangles cut out for the corners(and a circle for heat lamp if any) will work just fine.

If you have a thick blanket, you can wrap that around her tank to help insulate from any drafts, temp fluctuations, etc. Just try VERY hard to get her temps and humidity up. It's very important to her well-being and her life.

[rabernet]

I am only 17 so I can't afford 2 hides right now because I just lost my job... I am having lots of problems with her temp/hum because I live in kansas and is it really dry and cold. so as for hides I'm not worried at the moment cause she never goes over to the cool side except to chill in her plant and for a drink maybe a little soak. I am flat broke at the moment and am currently fighting my job to give me my pay check which they should have given me a week ago. thats $200 they are cheating from my sweet little kyna. I really just need a quick around the house fix. would saran wrap with tape work in place of plexi glass for a week? I would imagine it to be better than wet towels but they were all that I could think of at the time.. her cold side is 79 degrees and her hot side is about 86 degrees..

My hides cost me 25 cents each. Go to Dollar Tree and buy a set of cereal bowls - packed 4 for $1.00 and solder out entrances. Voila!