Substrate retaining moisture

benzimm86

New Member
Joined
May 12, 2021
Messages
4
Location (City and/or State)
Austin
Hello. I have 2 month old leopard. I am using 100% coco fiber peat for the bedding. I have an inkbird humidity controller that turns the humidifier on and off based on the current humidity. I am keeping the humidity between 65-80. The enclosure temp, using an inkbird temp controller is set to 85. The bedding is always getting very wet and water is leaking out of the enclosure if I don’t change the bedding once a week. I take the bedding out and replace it with dry bedding, get the moisture out of the wet bedding and continue to let it dry out until the current bedding is wet and ready to be swapped out.
Any suggestions on the bedding not getting so wet?
 

Randy Micheals

Active Member
Tortoise Club
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jun 8, 2019
Messages
202
Location (City and/or State)
British columbia
Wow that sounds like a lot of work. Peat holds moisture fairly well, could be it is retaining too much moisture between humidifying? Have you considered fine grade orchid bark? I switched to this and find it worked well for me.
 

benzimm86

New Member
Joined
May 12, 2021
Messages
4
Location (City and/or State)
Austin
Wow that sounds like a lot of work. Peat holds moisture fairly well, could be it is retaining too much moisture between humidifying? Have you considered fine grade orchid bark? I switched to this and find it worked well for me.
Where do you buy it from?
 

Randy Micheals

Active Member
Tortoise Club
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jun 8, 2019
Messages
202
Location (City and/or State)
British columbia
Many local plant and garden shops will have it, this may be a tad more expensive but you can pick the fineness a bit better.

You can order ZooMed Labs Reptibark from Amazon fairly cheaply and it's middle of the road, good for adult tortoises.
 

Tom

The Dog Trainer
10 Year Member!
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jan 9, 2010
Messages
63,265
Location (City and/or State)
Southern California
Hello. I have 2 month old leopard. I am using 100% coco fiber peat for the bedding. I have an inkbird humidity controller that turns the humidifier on and off based on the current humidity. I am keeping the humidity between 65-80. The enclosure temp, using an inkbird temp controller is set to 85. The bedding is always getting very wet and water is leaking out of the enclosure if I don’t change the bedding once a week. I take the bedding out and replace it with dry bedding, get the moisture out of the wet bedding and continue to let it dry out until the current bedding is wet and ready to be swapped out.
Any suggestions on the bedding not getting so wet?
Humidifiers shouldn't be used over tortoise.

Humidity should be 80+ all the time. Retain your humidity by using a closed chamber, not a humidifier.

Your closed chamber should be impervious to water and leakproof.

What is getting the substrate wet? Stop doing whatever that is.

 
Top