Humidity technique?

Iktomi

Arachnoservant
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Dec 16, 2002
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I read somewhere (I think it was here) of a way to approximate humidity. Someone wrote that if for example a T needed 75% humidiy, you cover about 75% of the enclosure lid with saran wrap or something. ( I assume this would be like a Kritter Keeper)
I don't mean to question the one who wrote that, but does anyone else do this and is it a good way to go?
 

deifiler

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Feb 22, 2003
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Yes in theory it's appropriate - but in practice, you need greater ventilation with higher humidity to avoid moulds...

Also, take into consideration a spider's tank covered up 25% and is allocated say 5 sprays, compared to a spider's tank with 90% covered who gets one spray - obviously the 25% is going to have a higher humidity.

A better way is to use a hydrometer or guess work. Regular misting (twice a day) should suffice for any though, just cover up half. Any more and mould/fungus is a bit of a bugger

Oh don't forgot humidity is the water vapour level in the air, not how soaking the ground is, using warmer water helps humidity to a degree
 

Iktomi

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Thanks for the info. I recently got my first Pokey and that's the one I'm concerned about with humidity.
 

deifiler

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Feb 22, 2003
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Ahhh, my poec' is OK with being sprayed once a day or similar to that, just provide a water dish and it'll get it's own. The substrate is dry in it's tank aswell.

She often drinks beads of water from her web aswell
 

Palespider

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May 30, 2003
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I on one hand, find misting/spraying substrate a complete waste of time. Misting can be so stressful on your T's. Opening up their cage every day to mist the cage and sometimes I hear people doing it 2-3 times a day!

What you need is damp substrate. I'll use my T. blondi for instance. I pour about 3-4 cup fulls of water into her cage about every month and it stays at a very high 90% (which I find ideal for T. blondi's. I just over fill the water dish so you don't dig holes with the stream of water. Depending on how dry/deep your substrate is this will vary. Just pour until the water absorbs and all of the substrate is wet (I do this by looking at the side of the cage). Limit some of the ventilation to increase humidty more and so forth. Just make sure you have more than one source of air exchange.

Think about watering a plant. If you simply misted the top of the surface of substrate you would be misting like crazy and would very possibly kill the plant. So we water out plants by pouring large amounts of water, and the substrate mix will maintain wetness for many days providing constant water for the plant. This works for our T's by the water providing constant humidity.

At the very most you want your substrate damp, never soggy or swampy. I use this technique for all of my 20 tarantulas and has worked great. Of course it's only nessesary for the higher humidity needing T's. I have only found one use for misting in which I occasionally mist near my arboreals hides/webs for a source of water as will drink the droplets and it's exactly how they get their water in the wild. They never seem to use their dishes, no matter how high I place them.

Good luck :D
Jim B.
 
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