so right now i have a semi closed enclosure for my redfoot its 5’x2’x2’ (i know its small its only his winter enclosure and ill probably turn it into an outdoor one next year anyways) but i am having the hardest time keeping up humidity. i know for right now its cause its not entirely air tight due to a complicated situation but the CHE is KILLING the humidity and barely even getting the ambient temps above 86-87° i know there has to be a better option. i literally mist it and within 20 minutes its pretty much dry.. its crazy.
better heating ideas?
- Thread starter baldegale
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Instead of CHEs, many use Raduant Heat Panels connected to a thermostat. Here’s the URL http://www.reptilebasics.com/rbi-radiant-heat-panels
RBI Radiant Heat Panels
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RBI Radiant Heat Panels
Home > Heating > RBI Radiant Heat Panels
Instead of CHEs, many use Raduant Heat Panels connected to a thermostat. Here’s the URL http://www.reptilebasics.com/rbi-radiant-heat-panels
RBI Radiant Heat Panels
Home > Heating > RBI Radiant Heat Panels
i figured this thread was gonna go that route, i should’ve mentioned that i knew about RHP (due to doing a TON of research on snakes and PVC enclosures) but i wont be able to afford one for a couple months
Also, to my way of understanding the tortoise physiology, they do best in an environment that is warm not by absorbing the heat from below. Their carapace contains their lungs, with their organs and gut tract being more inline with their plastron. Them trying to heat their lungs could ultimately cause them to overheat their organs creating an unknown illness. I use a CHE exclusively for heat at night and it maintains upper 80°’s-lower 90°’s with regularity. Also while maintaining the humidity I like my young to have. I have an automatic mister set in mine. Also, under the CHE I have like a coffee cup containing an aquarium type air stone and I believe this helps as well. My substrate is pear moss hand mixed with organic topsoil. I’m not sure if all of that can help or not.
You should be dumping water into your substrate and mixing it in with your hands. The top layer may dry out but underneath it should remain damp for several days. This should help with the humidity much more than misting.
by your wording im assuming you think the RHP is like an under tank heater? well to clarify it actually sticks on the top or the side of the tank and radiates heat outwards! to my basic small understanding its like an overpowered undertank heater that actually effects ambient temps. some people make them out of heat cable and foam insulation. a lot of people (including @Tom) uses them in their winter boxes.
ive been kinda hesitant to do this being that its a new tank and im always nervous with how water tight tanks are [emoji28][emoji28] ill probably do this tomorrow though. also ive been trying to find a water bowl thats not massively big so it wont take up space that he can still fit in, any ideas? due to its a small enclosure with a massive hide in it already? i just kinda thought of an idea but i dont know how it would work.
Plant saucers make good water dishes. These are the saucers that go underneath plant pots. They come in many sizes. You can bury it in the substrate to make it easier for your tort to get in and out.
Maybe you should consider replacing the hide with something that doesn't take up as much room. Many people just use a plastic tub with a hole cut in it.
that’s essentially what i have, its actually a gerbil hide im pretty sure? i had a half log but hes just too big for it! thats the hard thing about redfoots how theyre more football shaped so finding hides is a lot harder given their height
Exactly. The reason many of us use a RHP instead of a CHE is because our tortoises are too big. The CHE concentrates the heat in too small of an area. On a large tortoise, this could lead to burns in the center of a tortoise while his extremities are still cold. The tortoise gets a slow burn and doesn't move because he is still cold.
I was thinking of something that is rectangular, with straight thin vertical sides rather than something that slopes. A sloping or domed hide is going to take up more room.
mines not quite that big which i think is an issue given ive had him for i think 3-4 years now? and i dont feel like hes grown much. its because nooby me never learned that i have to give him protein so im stuck trying to figure our how to start that. i should try and find a pic from when i first got him and laugh at how unknowledable i was
this is a picture from the very first day i got him. so many wrongs: aspen bedding, basking light, no UVB, 20 gal long tank. im ashamed. this is him a couple months ago 
and the same hide.. i dont think hes gotten much bigger and i was never told how old he was when i got him.
100% correct on your thinking on this 1 of 3 thoughts. Your way off on your 2 of 3, I’m just posting when convenient for me. What you’re doing at the time, going to bed is just luck. As for your 3 of 3, you’re looking at it wrong. Remove a large amount of that substrate from inside your, (tortoise) habitat and while it’s in a separate container mix in the water. Leave it wetter than what y’all ultimately want it to be and mix that up by hand. Might help. Water dish no help from me. You’ve got to make something work even if it’s unsightly.
unsightly i dont mind, i used 12” plastic plant saucers from the dollar store for about 8 months until i had to move him to a smaller enclosure and now i feel horrible cause his hide takes up a lot of space, so does his feeding rock, and adding in the water dish i dont think hell have much room, but ill try it
I didn't see a picture of your enclosure. Perhaps I missed it?
The biggest problem you have is that it's not fully enclosed. That's why you are struggling to keep temperature and humidity. Is it possible to close the open area?
What wattage of CHE are you using? If fully enclosed, a single 100 watt should be able to heat that size up with ease.
The biggest problem you have is that it's not fully enclosed. That's why you are struggling to keep temperature and humidity. Is it possible to close the open area?
What wattage of CHE are you using? If fully enclosed, a single 100 watt should be able to heat that size up with ease.
@Ramsey is correct. The only way to solve your humidity problem is to close off the enclosure. The smallest of openings, especially towards the top, will create a chimney effect and suck all the warm, humid air out of the enclosure. We are heating an enclosure to a temperature warmer than the room in which you have the enclosure. The lights and CHE are mounted to the "ceiling" of the enclosure - where it is even warmer. So any opening will begin to immediately draft the warm air up and out. The smallest of other cracks anywhere in the enclosure will then have cooler, drier, room air being sucked into the enclosure.
A properly enclosed chamber is very easy to heat and to maintain humidity.
A properly enclosed chamber is very easy to heat and to maintain humidity.
yeah i know i need to get it fully enclosed, i just havent been able to yet due to a complicated situation, gonna try to this weekend.
i use a 150 watt CHE
