Fighting low humidity again! Please help!

[MissSkittles]

I’m just going to insert myself in here because I’m kinda curious - what is this chimney effect and how is it useful in maintaining humidity/temperatures? Can someone explain what exactly it does?

I can try to explain it. Basically the air gets sucked in thru the lower areas and is pulled up and out the top. It has to do with air temperature, with cooler air getting sucked in, getting warmed and then rising up and out. It’s why when you burn your chimney, the smoke doesn’t come out into your home. I guess it’s also called the stack effect.

 

[ItsMike64]

I can try to explain it. Basically the air gets sucked in thru the lower areas and is pulled up and out the top. It has to do with air temperature, with cooler air getting sucked in, getting warmed and then rising up and out. It’s why when you burn your chimney, the smoke doesn’t come out into your home. I guess it’s also called the stack effect.
View attachment 319122

That’s really interesting! Thank you for explaining it. How would one go about achieving this in their enclosure? This isn’t really for myself I’m just curious

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

thanks for the advice both Planet Remulak and Klyde O Scope! My humidity probes are deep n the foliage so that’s my actual humidity. Last night when the mister went off the humidity would get up in the 90s but would go back to 70s when off. I’m not sure how it did when the fogger was on because I was asleep but I will check my phone later. Right now I’m getting ready for a blizzard tomorrow. Talk to you all later.

I just have the model they sell on Amazon for about 11 or 12 dollars. It doesn’t have a probe at all.

I'm having trouble reconciling this. Do you have probes or not? Placing a Govee without probes in the foliage is not the same as having a probe in there.

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

I've said this in other threads but the reality of the universal adoption and recommendation of screen cages for this hobby should be rethought and swapped in favor of hybrid enclosures.

Ditto. I wouldn't have a problem rethinking enclosure sizes either, as both Zen and DS are leaning toward 48x24x48.

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

That’s really interesting! Thank you for explaining it. How would one go about achieving this in their enclosure? This isn’t really for myself I’m just curious

That's the beauty of it—you don't have to—it's a natural occurrence powered by the difference in temperature between the top & bottom of the "chimney".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stack_effect

Picture it like a chimney or stack—essentially a tube with both ends open. In the case of a chameleon enclosure, the top and an area at substrate level (as close to the bottom as possible) will do the trick.

 

[Lindasjackson]

I'm having trouble reconciling this. Do you have probes or not? Placing a Govee without probes in the foliage is not the same as having a probe in there.

I have one device that has a humidity probe and a temp probe. They are both deep in the foliage. My govee does not have a probe, I just hang it on small branches close to the trunk of the ficus tree.

 

[suprdude]

I think 30 during the day and 70 at night is fine. Maybe not ideal, but it'll do.

 

[Mark_C]

FYI, I was encountering some humidity concerns as we have baseboard heat and the mister/fogger combo wasn't really cutting it. Enclosure was at 25-30% during the day and 40-50% at night with considerable fogging.

Picked us a Vornado Element A2 humidifier. Holds 2 gallons, programmable for humidity percentage, and covers up to 1,000 ft/2. It has cool, warm, and hot mist options

Ran it yesterday and it upped the downstairs from 25% to 50% in a matter of hours on warm mode, then switched to cool mode. House is maintaining at about 45% and the enclosure is doing much better, now hitting 45-50% during the day and 60%+ at night with minimal fogging.

So impressed i went out and bought a second one for the upstairs for general health. They're not cheap at $110 or so each, but they're working better than any humidifier we've had.

 

[DocZ]

Ditto. I wouldn't have a problem rethinking enclosure sizes either, as both Zen and DS are leaning toward 48x24x48.

+1 to you both.
Screen cages make it nearly impossible to maintain day/night humidity cycles unless your ambient humidity is at or near day time goals, and even then getting to 80-100% is very hard to do

Mine will always be covered on all four sides or outdoors from now on

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

FYI, I was encountering some humidity concerns as we have baseboard heat

That surprises me. Generally, baseboard heat is kinder to household humidity than (gas) forced air.

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

+1 to you both.
Screen cages make it nearly impossible to maintain day/night humidity cycles unless your ambient humidity is at or near day time goals, and even then getting to 80-100% is very hard to do

Mine will always be covered on all four sides or outdoors from now on

+1. It's challenging enough here in the Northeast/Great Lakes even with a hybrid enclosure, and hybrids are evolving as well. They used to have screen doors, and now they have acrylic doors.

 

[Lindasjackson]

That’s what I have is base board heat.

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

Electric or hydronic?

 

[Lindasjackson]

It’s got hot water running through it for heat. My apartment is heated with a boiler

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

That would be hydronic. Better choice for chameleon keepers, IMO. Hydronic won't dry the air out as much as electric.

 

[Lindasjackson]

That would be hydronic. Better choice for chameleon keepers, IMO. Hydronic won't dry the air out as much as electric.

True but it still drys it out.

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

True but it still drys it out.

Hence, "as much as". I thought I was the pedant!

ATM, I can't think of a central heat without central humidifier that dries it out less.
Didn't you wind up getting a room humidifier?

 

[Lindasjackson]

No, I have a humidifier hooked up to pvc piping that takes it to the top of the enclosure and sends it down over the enclosure as fog.

 

[Klyde O'Scope]

Sorry...my bad. Right appliance—wrong application.