Take Meta Mars
Python Habitat
We've finally got this thing the way we want it! The temperature is under control; and after struggling to find a successful method of keeping up the humidity inside the tank, we have finally found a balanced system that is working well.
The humidity has been a challenge due to the very dry air in SoCal. When we first set up the tank, we waited to see if the water dish that came with our snake kit would steadily evaporate and add moisture to the air inside of the tank. It didn't; too small. I was spritzing the tank with mist from a water bottle every few hours and that wasn't even enough. We replaced the water dish with a larger one and that didn't help either and I was still spritzing by hand. I added some moss around the water bowl to try to add moisture, but I left a small portion of the moss hanging in the water and it sucked a ton of water out of the bowl...and it flooded the bottom of the tank. Huge mess; no more moss.
Then we decided to buy a small $30 humidifier from CVS and we attached a tube to pump moisture up and into the tank from the bottom shelf of our table. That worked for a little while, but eventually water started to collect at the bottom of the tube, blocking the flow of mist. After discovering that the tube wasn't going to work, I placed the humidifier itself inside of the tank and turned it up as high as it would go. Still not enough. The tank is constantly trying to dry out and the tiny CVS humidity machine couldn't keep up. Finally, we broke down and bought a $60 reptile fogger from the pet store. And it's *working*! With the use of a timer, the fogger powers on and off keeping the tank between 50% and 75% humid. Perfect!
In the photo, the new humidifier (as well as the box that Mokiki stays in while he eats his meals) can be seen sitting on the bottom shelf underneath the tank. The tube that pumps moisture into the top of the tank is visible as well. There are two heat pads warming the tank: one on the side, which can be seen in the photo, and one on the bottom of the tank under the red heat lamp. The heat pad underneath the tank is hooked up with a dimmer switch which is left on the lowest setting possible for just a little bit of warmth on Mokiki's belly. The hot spot temperature under the red lamp is sitting nicely between 85° and 90° (dropping to about 83° at night). The other side of the tank stays around 80°-82° and drops to about 75° at night when the light is off for twelve hours.
Since first setting everything up, we've improved quite a bit. Good temp, good humidity, new cleaner bedding, extra hide spots for Mokiki to enjoy on both sides of the tank, and a little plant to add some color to the whole set-up. I think we've created a great habitat for our reptile friend, and he seems very happy in his home. We noticed that he enjoys climbing on the plant in the corner of the tank (mostly hidden by the heat pad in the photo), so I think we'll be getting something a little more sturdy for him to crawl on in the future. I'm very happy with how this is all coming along and I'm super excited to have this great pet!
Also, today was feeding day and I successfully fed him all by myself! I'm finally starting to feel like I know what I'm doing :]
Python Habitat
We've finally got this thing the way we want it! The temperature is under control; and after struggling to find a successful method of keeping up the humidity inside the tank, we have finally found a balanced system that is working well.
The humidity has been a challenge due to the very dry air in SoCal. When we first set up the tank, we waited to see if the water dish that came with our snake kit would steadily evaporate and add moisture to the air inside of the tank. It didn't; too small. I was spritzing the tank with mist from a water bottle every few hours and that wasn't even enough. We replaced the water dish with a larger one and that didn't help either and I was still spritzing by hand. I added some moss around the water bowl to try to add moisture, but I left a small portion of the moss hanging in the water and it sucked a ton of water out of the bowl...and it flooded the bottom of the tank. Huge mess; no more moss.
Then we decided to buy a small $30 humidifier from CVS and we attached a tube to pump moisture up and into the tank from the bottom shelf of our table. That worked for a little while, but eventually water started to collect at the bottom of the tube, blocking the flow of mist. After discovering that the tube wasn't going to work, I placed the humidifier itself inside of the tank and turned it up as high as it would go. Still not enough. The tank is constantly trying to dry out and the tiny CVS humidity machine couldn't keep up. Finally, we broke down and bought a $60 reptile fogger from the pet store. And it's *working*! With the use of a timer, the fogger powers on and off keeping the tank between 50% and 75% humid. Perfect!
In the photo, the new humidifier (as well as the box that Mokiki stays in while he eats his meals) can be seen sitting on the bottom shelf underneath the tank. The tube that pumps moisture into the top of the tank is visible as well. There are two heat pads warming the tank: one on the side, which can be seen in the photo, and one on the bottom of the tank under the red heat lamp. The heat pad underneath the tank is hooked up with a dimmer switch which is left on the lowest setting possible for just a little bit of warmth on Mokiki's belly. The hot spot temperature under the red lamp is sitting nicely between 85° and 90° (dropping to about 83° at night). The other side of the tank stays around 80°-82° and drops to about 75° at night when the light is off for twelve hours.
Since first setting everything up, we've improved quite a bit. Good temp, good humidity, new cleaner bedding, extra hide spots for Mokiki to enjoy on both sides of the tank, and a little plant to add some color to the whole set-up. I think we've created a great habitat for our reptile friend, and he seems very happy in his home. We noticed that he enjoys climbing on the plant in the corner of the tank (mostly hidden by the heat pad in the photo), so I think we'll be getting something a little more sturdy for him to crawl on in the future. I'm very happy with how this is all coming along and I'm super excited to have this great pet!
Also, today was feeding day and I successfully fed him all by myself! I'm finally starting to feel like I know what I'm doing :]