Humidity: Closed chamber versus Ventilated chamber.

Axelay2003

Member
Joined
May 14, 2017
Messages
34
Wow!!! The office enclosure is so nice. Who needs fish to keep clients/customers engaged. Snakes and lizards are neat for that purpose but more upkeep.

I agree! Low maintenance these RF tortoises, especially living in Florida where the humidity and temperature are closer to their natural habitat.
 

Melissacoop

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jan 3, 2020
Messages
237
Location (City and/or State)
Pembroke Pines, FL
First and foremost, stay off of FB. Those people give terrible tortoise advice and spread all sorts of bad info, and then ban you if you argue with them about how wrong they are.

Second, your tortoise needs substrate at least three inches, and fine grade orchid bark works best. Its not good for their legs to be walking around on a hard slick surface like that.

Third thing, and kind of related to the fourth thing: If you need a humidifier in a closed chamber, you are doing it wrong. The whole point of a closed chamber is to contain the moisture and humidity.

Fourth thing: All closed chamber have SOME ventilation. We are not hermetically sealing them in. How much ventilation depends on many factors like temperatures inside and outside the chamber, size of the chamber, air flow in the room, insulation properties of the material the enclosure is made of. Obviously, the fans are too much ventilation, so says your hygrometer.

Give your tortoise some substrate, stop using the humidifier, turn the fans off, and see what your hygrometer tells you. I'll bet it hovers around 80-90%. If too high, add some ventilation and let things dry out a little. If too low, add some moisture and seal off some ventilation.

I use nothing but closed chambers (8 of them currently) for all species and have no fans. I get no stale air, no respiratory infections, no mold, and no acid smell. I would be banned for that sentence if this was FB.

Please feel free to ask questions or discuss any of these assertions. This is not FB and you won't be banned even if you disagree.
 

Jennifer McGowan

New Member
Joined
Aug 7, 2018
Messages
2
Location (City and/or State)
Iowa City, Iowa
Your office set up is a dream! I have my Hermann at my Junior High in a large table, but I would love to have something like that! I am in Iowa, so it would be just a dream. My Stella has a set up here at my house and comes and goes to school with me daily.
 

Sue Ann

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Joined
Mar 19, 2019
Messages
436
Location (City and/or State)
chapin , South Carolina
Sounds good, but how do you know my tortoises “cannot” drink from the water feeder? Are you assuming or know this to be a fact?
They need to be able to submerge their heads to drink. A large terra-cotta saucer is much better. My Sully gets a deep “bath” daily that he submerses himself. If you look at all the setups other tort keepers show here no one has a chicken feeder looking water set up.
Just trying to help.
 

Axelay2003

Member
Joined
May 14, 2017
Messages
34
Your office set up is a dream! I have my Hermann at my Junior High in a large table, but I would love to have something like that! I am in Iowa, so it would be just a dream. My Stella has a set up here at my house and comes and goes to school with me daily.

Thanks! That's awesome that you are able to take Stella to school!
 

Axelay2003

Member
Joined
May 14, 2017
Messages
34
They need to be able to submerge their heads to drink. A large terra-cotta saucer is much better. My Sully gets a deep “bath” daily that he submerses himself. If you look at all the setups other tort keepers show here no one has a chicken feeder looking water set up.
Just trying to help.

Thanks! I guess I am just an oddball thinking outside the box. I removed the plastic ramped water feeder and replaced it with a feeder that is the same height and volume as a medium sized terra cotta saucer, but made with heavy plastic.
 

lynnefay

Active Member
Joined
Aug 9, 2021
Messages
106
Location (City and/or State)
OREGON
i like this thread. it shows how people shoot from the hip, before getting the full story. it also shows how we can give and receive advice, and even apologize humbly.
 

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