Trouble keeping substrate moist throughout

[Bedore]

I am gonna call petsmart in a minute and get a price quote on the items you just mentioned and go there tomorrow and purchase them. I knew from the start that a metal crate lid was not going to hold humidity, but the guy at petsmart said it would along with misting. Thank you for this! Oh and by heat source I assume you mean the heat lamp? Still trying to grasp all this..sorry

Correct. You plug the heating device and humidity device into the hygrotherm and it regulates them automatically. I would still recommend a ceramic heat emitter for the heat source, however the decision on what you use for heat is yours.

[MikeIsGreen]

Got'cha! Well, i called and they only had the reptifogger. They don't have anything to regulate the flow. I will go tomorrow and buy the reptifogger and ceramic heat emitter. Will the CHE work in this fixture?

[Bedore]

That looks like the Zoomed mini deep dome. In which case no I would not use a ceramic heat emitter with that particular dome. I believe I read on the box that it was not recommended for use with a CHE. However they should carry a flukers or zoo med dome that is bigger and safe for a CHE. Just look on the box.....I know the Zoomed box says that it will work with a ceramic heat emitter, etc. Something like this: Deluxe Porcelain Clamp Lamp. I have the 8.5", and either that or the 10" would work. Consider buying a stand for it as well.

[MikeIsGreen]

Ok lol...i called back to petsmart and they have "all living things" brand CHE and the fixtures also. BUT I'm not sure how many watts I should get? They have 65, 100, 150 watt all are on sale atm. I'm definitely going to get a reptifogger and CHE and fixture. I will have to order a regulator if I can't get it dialed in correctly. Also, will R/O water be alright to use with the fogger? I'm under the impression that it will, but wanna make sure! Edit - is this what you were refering to? Petsmart doesn't have one and if this is what I need then I will order it from amazon and go ahead and spend the extra money getting he reptifogger tomorrow since it's much needed! Thanks

[Bedore]

Yes, that is the device you can hook both your heating and humidity devices up to. The Zoomed Hygrotherm. As for the CHE wattage, it depends on how cold it gets in your area. I tried 60W but it wasn't enough. For a 10g I would recommend trying 100W but double check that the fixture can handle 100W. I believe most can take up to 150W.

With the Reptifogger you want to use distilled water. Regular tap water has too much hard stuff in it that will gunk up the internals (minerals, metals, etc). Not sure on R/O water as I have no experience with R/O, but I assume it will work. Just read the directions to be sure. When you first hook the fogger up be sure to check and see how often it runs. If it's running constantly it will most likely fail quicker and you have too much humidity escaping, but for now worry about getting everything plugged in and fine tuned.

[GrifTheGreat]

Just so everyone knows it is normal for he surface to dry some. If it never did then there would not be any humidity without misting. Moisture evaporates from the soil no matter what heat source is used. There is always a drying effect. Makes the substrate a little more moist and some of this probkem will go away for a while. Allow it to be moist enough so that when squeazed it will drip some. This will help keep the soil more moist longer.

[MikeIsGreen]

Grif...thank you for replying! I understand that the substrate will dry out on top no matter what, but with the light petsmart pushed on me it dries it out bad. I've stopped using any light except for the infared heat light. I hope this is ok...? There is a lot of ambient light from windows and other lights I have on. I'm gonna get the reptifogger today and a CHE/fixture. I will the. Order the hygrotherm regulator from amazon. I just feel like I'm doing my little guy wrong by using lights, by not using lights. Do pacman frogs need additional light or can I just put it aside and let the natural light work. Please help lol...

[DigitalPunk]

Mike,

Here si the pic I promised yesterday.

As for the HydroTherm. I do not have mine connected to my misting system It was keeping the substrate to wet for my liking. I instead got a Mistking timer. Lets you schedule to on off for days of the week and hours, mins, and seconds. Its very nice! I do however have have the CHE plugged into it. Works great at regulating the temperature.

[MikeIsGreen]

Wow Paul! Thats a very nice setup! Well i got my CHE and new fixture (60watt) and I also picked up the reptifogger. Once I finally got it to turn on, it works and works great BUT once humidity reaches 80% and I turn it off it's only about 10min if that and it drops back down to 40%. Rather frustrating to say the least. Any ideas on what I could do? When I get the regulator it will be turning off and on all the time....confused

[Bedore]

Wow Paul! Thats a very nice setup! Well i got my CHE and new fixture (60watt) and I also picked up the reptifogger. Once I finally got it to turn on, it works and works great BUT once humidity reaches 80% and I turn it off it's only about 10min if that and it drops back down to 40%. Rather frustrating to say the least. Any ideas on what I could do? When I get the regulator it will be turning off and on all the time....confused

If you haven't covered the top of the tank with aluminum foil etc, then the humidity is escaping rather quickly. You should try covering some of the top of the enclosure. I tried a 10g tank for mine and I could not get humidity past 40% or so. I ended up going back to my exo-terra enclosure and it holds humidity much better. This was more than likely due to my low room humidity, as it's winter and the forced hot air dries the room out. You may need to consider a different enclosure.

[MikeIsGreen]

Thank you for fast reply! I will cover it right away! I'm also gonna have to cut the screen kid to get the fogger tube down in there. Now I assume I should poke hole in the aluminum foil to allow some air exchange? Thanks again man

[Bedore]

Thank you for fast reply! I will cover it right away! I'm also gonna have to cut the screen kid to get the fogger tube down in there. Now I assume I should poke hole in the aluminum foil to allow some air exchange? Thanks again man

Yep, I cut a section out right below the ceramic heat emitter but my enclosure is also smaller than yours. Try covering a portion of the top....not the entire top and see how the humidity holds. Leave space below the CHE and fogger tube clear.

[MikeIsGreen]

Ok will do! Im doing this now so as it unfolds (have to get foil first) I will let you know how it's working. Thanks for your time!!

[MikeIsGreen]

Well guys i think i got it tuned in (fingers crossed) got the lid covered in foil and got and left an 8" opening for the CHE and another hole through the actual screen for the fogger tube. Humidity held at 70 all night long and that's a first! When I got home the damn thing wouldn't even work! But after messing with the knob for awhile it kicked on and worked flawlessly (again, fingers crossed) lol...still trying to find the sweet spot on the dial for the CHE but since it's a 60 watt it pretty much has to be 3/4 the way to max. Here's a pic of the new setup! Thanks guys!!

[Bedore]

Good deal! Hopefully that will end the problems you have been having.

[Louis Charles Bruckner]

BTW always check amazon prices before going to the big box pet stores.