Humidity?

[That Guy]

Well.... You know those critter keepers you can get from petco/ petsmart... Weel I was wondering how do you keep humidity up in a tank like that?? I mean it has all those holes on the lid....... Thanks for your help.


Hampton.

 

[Tranz]

Originally posted by hampton
Well.... You know those critter keepers you can get from petco/ petsmart... Weel I was wondering how do you keep humidity up in a tank like that?? I mean it has all those holes on the lid....... Thanks for your help.


Hampton.

A waterdish, and if needed, misting of the substrate. There is a growing concensus that most humidity requirments are overstated. All those holes in the lid are good, because they let in fresh air that keeps down mold and mites.

 

[Devildoll]

saran wrap over part of the cover helps too.

 

[D-Man]

Critter Keepers

I have the small or xtra-small size Keeper for my 2.5" A. chalcodes. It takes daily misting to keep it at about 60% using 50/50 vermiculite & sphagnum peat moss (about 1-1/2 deep). I don't put saran wrap on the vent holes since Mexican Blonds are a drier species. Using potting soil with vermiculite seems to promote humidity better, so I'd use that mix on a higher humidity T to prevent the constant misting.

 

[D-Man]

ALSO

I use a large glass jar lid for the water dish - always kept full.

 

[Godzilla2000]

Pet Pals are my enclosures of choice. They have good ventilation, snap tight lids (This is especiacially good for the defensive spiders, arboreals, and escape artists.), and they are totally portable. I put waterdishes inside the enclosures plus I mist the Pet Pals every so often. Those lids are perfect for just aiming the spray bottle without having to lift the lid.

 

[jwb121377]

Once my tarantulas hit sub-adult size I don't even bother with thinking of humidity. The only two I would even worry a little over would be H. gigas(I don't keep at the moment) and T. blondi due to it's molting issues.

 

[Venom]

You could try covering part of the lid with saran wrap, and if you really want high humidity, you could do what I do for my E.murinus, and start out with pre-moistened peatmoss for substrate. It shouldn't be so wet that you can squeeze buckets of water from it, but should hold its shape if you mold it in your hand and be moist to the touch. After that, I mist and/ or water the substrate to keep it moist. I have to pick out molding things now and then, but other than that, I haven't had any problems.

 

[Code Monkey]

If you've paid any attention to my past posts, you already know the answer: I don't. I really, really, really, really, really, really think humidity has to be the most erroneously emphasised aspect in T husbandry.

Water dish so the T can remain hydrated, occasional "floodings" for the ones that appreciate a little moisture, sure, but I think humidity is one of the least important aspects and would never do something as unhealthy as cover the openings with cellophane wrap or moist towels or any of the other voodoo that I see consistently recommended on this board.

Maybe I'm just an "old fart" too set in my ways, but when I first started keeping Ts the *recommended* setup was pretty much dry aquarium gravel and a water dish. The only one I ever killed with this was my first T because it was an obligate burrower and I didn't know any better; in hindsight I'm pretty sure I stressed the thing to death.

As an example that demonstrates how mislead so many people are, consider how Darrin Vernier of Golden Phoenix keeps T. blondis in the middle of Arizona: dry, not even moist, dry, and they do fine.

My opinion is that it probably does no harm, but I don't believe it does much, if any, good either.

 

[happymeal]

I agree 100% Code Monkey!!