Using a fogger.

[Jace]

I am having a hard time keeping the humidity up in my Green Treefrog tank. It was suggested I use a fogger, and because I have never used one before, was wondering what other members thought of them and if there is anything I should know about using one? Thanks.

[bshmerlie]

I use the zoomed reptifogger in conjunction with the zoo med hygrotherm. That way your temp and humidity are exactly where you want them. You can even set for day and night drops.

[Paul Rust]

Personally I dont like foggers. I find the best way to keep postive control of humidity is to seal the enclosure and use fans to pull air out as needed. I always have a water feature for a source of moisture. This is for my leaf frogs, my darts a whole other story.

[Jace]

I use a medium sized water dish, but my humidity drops below 50% some days unless I mist 3-4 times a day. I am concerned about mould, so I want it to dry out some, but not drop so low that the frogs are stressed. Should I just stick with mistings, invest in a fogger or create a better water source?

[Paul Rust]

When i build the substrate I use rock then coco fibre and then a top of moss. This is so I can keep a few inches of water under the ground at all times for humidity. It works very well. In my larger setups I make ponds.

[Jace]

I have a so called "drainage layer" of aquariam gravel, with mesh overtop and then moss on top of that. Would adding a bit of water to that drainage layer be okay and help?

[bshmerlie]

I think it all depends on how dry your climate is where you live. Today in my house the humidity is 14%. I would have to mist 10 times a day to keep it where it needs to be. Also one third of my enclosure is water and it doesn't go over 40 % on its own. If you live in an area where it rains a lot misting would suffice.

[Jace]

I live in a semi-desert zone. The last week, we've had lots of rain, raising the overall humidity above normal, but today, we had sudden high temps and crazy wind. My humidity level nose dived even after two mistings. My frogs have finally settled in and are starting to become a more attractive green, and I would hate to loose that headway after two weeks of touch and go.

[bshmerlie]

Check out the Zoomed Reptifogger and the Zoomed Hygrotherm. They are on Ebay for $50 bucks and $70 bucks respectively. Or you can get them at Petsmart or reptile shops or shows.

[Jace]

Thanks, Cheri. I will do a bit more research on them and go from there. I might be able to get it on discount at my local petstore, which would be a bonus. Thanks again!

[JimO]

I use the Repti-Fogger in one of my dart vivs, but it's mostly for asthetics. Like Paul, I put water features and have running water in all my vivs, even my green tree frog viv. The advantage of the Repti-Fogger over others is that it is external to the viv and you can have the fog enter the viv where you want using hoses. I have it coming in at the top in the back and it cascades down - pretty cool. The fogger designed to place in a dish within the viv can be dangerous to the frogs if they fall onto the ultrasonic plate.

My dart frog vivs are sealed pretty tight with controlled ventilation. That, combined with running water, keeps the humidity up pretty high even though we have an AC unit with a dehumidifier.

Putting water in the drainage layer can help if it is heavily vegetated because the plants will transpire a lot of water. However, without the plants, the water can't really get to the surface and evaporate unless you have a water feature. I use waterfalls, streams, or drip walls with an inexpensive powerhead and a short piece of tubing. Moving water increases evaporation and keeps the water from getting stagnant. It also oxygenates the water so you don't develop a nasty anaerobic layer, which can form methane and hydrogen sulfide (rotten egg smell), neither of which is good for animals.

To make my waterfalls, I create a sump in the drainage layer to place the powerhead on the bottom of the viv and cover it with a small flower pot. I run the tubing under the substrate to where I want the waterfall. I use cork bark for the water fall structure, drilling a hole the size of the tubing. Then you can either glue the cork bark in place against the glass or simply lean it up in a corner. You can dig a small pool at the base of the cork bark down to the drainage layer fill it with some nice looking gravel. I typically fill in behind the cork bark with sphagnum moss. Cork bark has natural channels running lengthwise, so it makes a perfect waterfall structure. If you have sufficient lighting, moss will flourish on a waterfall. All the materials for this will cost less than the Repti-Fogger, but either would work.

[Jace]

JimO, I really like the idea of a small waterfall in their setup. I think it would provide exactly the right humdity as well as look fantastic, even when the frogs are not active during the day. Is there anyway you could post a picture or two so I can see what it looks like? I am in the process of getting my GTFs a more vertical tank, as well, and really making them a more appropriate home. Thanks for the great suggestion!

[JimO]

I'll try to post some photos in the next day or two.

JimO, I really like the idea of a small waterfall in their setup. I think it would provide exactly the right humdity as well as look fantastic, even when the frogs are not active during the day. Is there anyway you could post a picture or two so I can see what it looks like? I am in the process of getting my GTFs a more vertical tank, as well, and really making them a more appropriate home. Thanks for the great suggestion!