Hi, i live in Colorado and it is very dry ive tried everything but a fogger to get some humidity in the tanks, wet towels on top of the tank, spraying down the bedding, wetting moss to put in their hides, none of it dripping wet but nothing moves the dial and I’ve heard there might be issues with respiratory problems with using a fogger but I don’t know what else to do help!
I take it you’re using screen tops. Is that correct? If so you can cover the top with plastic wrap etc to completely close it off, then put the water dish on the hot spot. That will help some.
I have screen tops and use the thick clear plastic used to cover a table top (like mom uses lol). I got it at the hardware store & cut it so it fits in the screen or hang over the wire top an inch or so. This works so well that I have to partially remove it at times, even on my 90 gallon terrarium.
What species of snake? @randall_turner_jr was correct in what he stated, but if you do all that you should have plenty of humidity. Can you give us temperatures one on the heat side and one on the cool side, as well as humidity %s? I live in Colorado and the only thing I do is mist my snakes when they are going into shed. I have done this for ball pythons, retics, boas, even king and corn snakes, although not as much with the colubrids. I use plastic bins though, with heat tape on one end on a thermostat. Retics have pvc enclosures with heat pad under a side on thermostat. Glass doesn’t insulate well or keep humidity in very efficient in my experience. Give us some more info we will try to help.
On top of what’s been said, don’t forget to double check your getting the correct readings.
If nothing is moving the dial you might want to try a digital hygrometer. The ones with dials can be inaccurate. Honestly, if the dial isn’t moving at all no matter what you do it sounds like it might be broken. Even if the reading was off it should still move in response to changes in the humidity.
How about your snakes? Does their skin feel smooth? Have they had good sheds? If they’ve had bad sheds that’s a definite sign you need to increase the humidity, but if they’re shedding out fine I wouldn’t worry about it.
Thanks for the responses! I just used the phrase “moved the dial” showing my age. I have two ball python, i just got them about 2 weeks ago and neither of them have shed yet their only 7 1/2 weeks old I actually have the thermometer with the humidity reading to, I have 2 in each tank one on the hot and one on the cold. I keep the hot side approximately 91 to 94 ish degrees cold side around 80 to 85 degrees, thermometer’ are working if I put my room humidifier kinda rigged up on a table higher than the tank and try and direct the mist I can get it around 50%, the way it’s set up is probably not as safe as it could be, I’m just trying to figure out if a fogger would work the best, i don’t want them to have any respiratory problems more than anything with the fogger. I have put a wet towel on half of the top of the tank and still nothing. Thanks again for talking the time!
That is way too hot for a BP. Max temps should be 90°F and no higher. Take the hot side down to 88-90°F and the cool side down to 75-80°F. That alone will help raise humidity because you won’t be baking away the moisture.
Hi, I too live in the dry Rockies, and grappled with this a little, and I gotta ask, what’s your substrate?
Just to add to the already good suggestions here - If you have an enclosed room the snakes are kept in, getting a whole-room humidifier with a feedback sensor has been a game changer for me. I set it a bit lower (40%) than what’s needed in the enclosures, but it really helps keep the target in the bins to not be starting at 20% or whatever in the room. Especially good during the winter months when the heater really sucks the moisture out of everything.
Here’s an example that I bought and liked. I have to refill it usually once per week for my 11x11 snake room.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08HS45N13
what they said…
What substrate do you have, some reduce humidity, some raise it, and some are nuteural.
I’ve found a good mix of prococo chips, eco-earth coconut husk and sphagnum moss works really well at maintaining humidity, and absorbant enough it makes for super easy spot cleaning. If you put a nice thick layer in the bottom of your enclosure you can even drizzle some water in the corners, you just want to make sure that they aren’t sitting directly on damp bedding
In addition to all the above- Have you tried a wider water bowl? Every inch in diameter makes a difference to humidity levels in a tub, less though if you have a tall viv .
I keep my snakes on a mix of a little chopped up sphagnum moss into some coco chip substrate, which holds a decent amount of humidity without being surface damp.
I also have a couple of terra cotta “sugar Saver” discs I bought on etsy that I soak with water when I spray the bigger enclosure, and they very slowly evaporate moisture into the air. I like them because they’re safe around the snake, being just baked clay, and a good scrub, thorough dry out and a low temp bake in the oven or hot bake on the 180F+ surfaces outdoors in the UV sunshine can re-sterilize it if it gets soiled on.
What others have posted is spot on. When i used glass with wire tops, i covered the tops, placed the water dish near the hot side, and also added another water dish on the hot side and filled it with cocohusk and water so they stayed wet much longer. Since they like to hide and come out at night, you might want to switch to tubs and put holes in it for air flow. Holes on the side near top will help, and not many is needed. Some on the lid on the cold side.