hi from pa

[Frank Maxwell]

i just purchased pacman a 20 gallon tropical startup kit and three bricks of eco coconut fiber it has a heat lamp and 50 watt day blue light , a zilla heat mat, and a thermometer / barometer. i am having issues with the setup . the humidity will only go as high as 50 and the temp stays around 80 i have tried covering the screen with plastic wrap to bring up the humidity without any results. as a noob i used all three bricks so there is around 8 inches of soil could this be my problem ?

[Heatheranne]

i just purchased pacman a 20 gallon tropical startup kit and three bricks of eco coconut fiber it has a heat lamp and 50 watt day blue light , a zilla heat mat, and a thermometer / barometer. i am having issues with the setup . the humidity will only go as high as 50 and the temp stays around 80 i have tried covering the screen with plastic wrap to bring up the humidity without any results. as a noob i used all three bricks so there is around 8 inches of soil could this be my problem ?

Hi Frank! Nice to meet you. I am from PA also.

The moist soil can help increase the humidity. What will you be housing in the new tank? It's actually easy to fix the issues knowing the goal you'd like to reach. Depending on what you'll be housing...such as, dart frogs need tropical plants and its best to close off almost all air vents to help with humidity, whereas with pacman frogs an extra misting is better.

Using a dimmer switch on your dome lamp can allow you the ability to adjust your heat output. So if you want darts, temps in the 70's and humidity >80% - 100% can be achieved by turning down the heat, covering the screen 98% and adding live plants, plus misting. Pacs like 80'F and 80% humidity...keep the heat up, nice amount of moist substrate, cover 3/4 of screen and mist. Most tanks just need a bit of tweaking to get things right.

[Mentat]

Hello and welcome to FF Frank! Well, since you stated Pacman start up kit; imagine you either got or plan to get one. Please confirm that and we will go from there, thank you !

[Frank Maxwell]

o i should have explained better the pacman is already in the tank

[Mentat]

Ok Frank, well not sure how you came to mis-combination of Pacman frog and 20 gallon tank. So let's start from the beginning and have you read this: Frog Forum - Pacman and Horned Frogs - Ceratophrys - Care and Breeding. Unless you have a full grown Ornate female; that tank is overkill and actually will stress out a smaller baby or juvenile to point it will not eat.

So read article so you get some background about their care and then please let me know what is Pacman size from tip of snout to it's vent (rear end). Also, need to know if "albino" or regular color. A photo will help ID it's species if interested. Then we can discuss proper enclosure and care .

[John]

Welcome Frank!

[Frank Maxwell]

Ok Frank, well not sure how you came to mis-combination of Pacman frog and 20 gallon tank. So let's start from the beginning and have you read this: Frog Forum - Pacman and Horned Frogs - Ceratophrys - Care and Breeding. Unless you have a full grown Ornate female; that tank is overkill and actually will stress out a smaller baby or juvenile to point it will not eat.

So read article so you get some background about their care and then please let me know what is Pacman size from tip of snout to it's vent (rear end). Also, need to know if "albino" or regular color. A photo will help ID it's species if interested. Then we can discuss proper enclosure and care .

Thank you for the link. although it is eating good 2 medium sized crickets a day. I don't know if its male or female but its 2 inches long. Here is a pic

[Frank Maxwell]

Hi Frank! Nice to meet you. I am from PA also.

The moist soil can help increase the humidity. What will you be housing in the new tank? It's actually easy to fix the issues knowing the goal you'd like to reach. Depending on what you'll be housing...such as, dart frogs need tropical plants and its best to close off almost all air vents to help with humidity, whereas with pacman frogs an extra misting is better.

Using a dimmer switch on your dome lamp can allow you the ability to adjust your heat output. So if you want darts, temps in the 70's and humidity >80% - 100% can be achieved by turning down the heat, covering the screen 98% and adding live plants, plus misting. Pacs like 80'F and 80% humidity...keep the heat up, nice amount of moist substrate, cover 3/4 of screen and mist. Most tanks just need a bit of tweaking to get things right.

nice to meet you too and thanks for the response. the tank will be housing just the pacman i did cover the tank and have tried misting to bring up the humidity. i like the idea of the dimmer that will be my next step

[Heatheranne]

Hello and welcome to FF Frank! Well, since you stated Pacman start up kit; imagine you either got or plan to get one. Please confirm that and we will go from there, thank you !

Ha ha!!! Geez, Heather , lol! I must have left a few marbles behind .

[MatthewM1]

I wouldn't trust analog gauges. I had analog ones originally and thought I was having a hard time keeping the humidity up but after I switched to digital I realized that I was not only over spraying the hell out of it and keeping it well above 80 and temps were 5 degrees higher than I thought as well.

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[Frank Maxwell]

I wouldn't trust analog gauges. I had analog ones originally and thought I was having a hard time keeping the humidity up but after I switched to digital I realized that I was not only over spraying the hell out of it and keeping it well above 80 and temps were 5 degrees higher than I thought as well.

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I did think about that Monday i will go for a digital setup. D you have any suggestions on a good quality digital that won't break the bank?

[Mentat]

I did think about that Monday i will go for a digital setup. D you have any suggestions on a good quality digital that won't break the bank?

ExoTerra Digital Combo .

[N3XU5]

Hello Frank Maxwell.

[MatthewM1]

I went with an accurite from Lowes for about $10,but would recommend looking for a probed one no matter what you get. I got one that sits in the tank but the high humidity is effecting the display just a couple months later.

I'm thinking about springing for the large model that has multiple wireless "probes" (they are black boxes you would mount on the wall of the enclosures) so I can see temps/humidity in multiple enclosures all in one place

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