Importance of avoiding drafts?

[davisc12]

When i got my panther chameleon the breeder stressed avoiding a drafty area of the house and definitely not putting it by a window. But everywear else i see screen cages are best because they allow airflow? Im a bit confused and only worried because i have been opening the window in the room for about an hour before lights off to let the temp drop in the room.

 

[Beman]

So opening the window is fine as long as the cage is not right in front of it.
You don’t want drafts simply because you can’t control ambient levels. So this is why a window placement does not work with a cage. In turn full sun on a window where a cage sits is going to heat the ambient levels too much.

 

[elizaann2]

I agree with what @Beman said above. I have windows in the rooms my chams are in and I will open the windows at night to help drop the temps but they aren’t able to see out the window and their enclosures are placed far enough away from them that the temps in their enclosures are affected by the window. I also have them away from any vents.

 

[elizaann2]

I agree with what @Beman said above. I have windows in the rooms my chams are in and I will open the windows at night to help drop the temps but they aren’t able to see out the window and their enclosures are placed far enough away from them that the temps in their enclosures are affected by the window. I also have them away from any vents.

Also welcome

 

[DeremensisBlue]

When i got my panther chameleon the breeder stressed avoiding a drafty area of the house and definitely not putting it by a window. But everywear else i see screen cages are best because they allow airflow? Im a bit confused and only worried because i have been opening the window in the room for about an hour before lights off to let the temp drop in the room.

I think you can look at it in the way that in everything in nature there is too little, just right, and too much. Heat, UVB, Vitamin D3, and even water. Literally every husbandry parameter can have the three Goldilock levels. In fact, to truly understand any of these parameters we need to know where those cut off points are.

And we can apply this to air movement as well. Too little air movement and the air is stagnant. It is oppressive to breathe and stinks. Bacteria, fungus, and mold start growing and we have a unhealthy environment.

When air movement is just right the air is fresh, comfortable to breathe.

When there is too much air movement it is annoying and uncomfortable. If it is cooler air then it means we have to work harder to keep our head warm. Our immune system starts getting stressed leaving us to be more vulnerable to opportunistic diseases.

I can't lay out exactly what drafts do to chameleons. I don't know how drafts would affect a cold blooded animal. I imagine it would be similar to us because it cools them, but I have no references to back this up. But if the draft is dry then your humidity will also be a challenge to keep in the comfortable range.

So, in the end, your breeder warned you against drafts because it is considered on the side of "too much" of the critical husbandry component of air exchange. I recommend avoiding drafts as well even though my explanation of it (at least at this time) probably won't convince someone who wants solid proof drafts are bad. But, at least, you can reconcile what your breeder told you with the commonly understood need for ventilation.

 

[davisc12]

I think you can look at it in the way that in everything in nature there is too little, just right, and too much. Heat, UVB, Vitamin D3, and even water. Literally every husbandry parameter can have the three Goldilock levels. In fact, to truly understand any of these parameters we need to know where those cut off points are.

And we can apply this to air movement as well. Too little air movement and the air is stagnant. It is oppressive to breathe and stinks. Bacteria, fungus, and mold start growing and we have a unhealthy environment.

When air movement is just right the air is fresh, comfortable to breathe.

When there is too much air movement it is annoying and uncomfortable. If it is cooler air then it means we have to work harder to keep our head warm. Our immune system starts getting stressed leaving us to be more vulnerable to opportunistic diseases.

I can't lay out exactly what drafts do to chameleons. I don't know how drafts would affect a cold blooded animal. I imagine it would be similar to us because it cools them, but I have no references to back this up. But if the draft is dry then your humidity will also be a challenge to keep in the comfortable range.

So, in the end, your breeder warned you against drafts because it is considered on the side of "too much" of the critical husbandry component of air exchange. I recommend avoiding drafts as well even though my explanation of it (at least at this time) probably won't convince someone who wants solid proof drafts are bad. But, at least, you can reconcile what your breeder told you with the commonly understood need for ventilation.

i do get the balancing act but see a lot of people with PC fans on their enclosure and was thinking about adding one to help dry out the bottom but being warned of drafts made me hesitant. Thank you for that right up. I suppose i could turn the fan the opposite direction so it sucks air out of the enclose would be much less of a draft while still creating some air flow.

 

[Beman]

i do get the balancing act but see a lot of people with PC fans on their enclosure and was thinking about adding one to help dry out the bottom but being warned of drafts made me hesitant. Thank you for that right up. I suppose i could turn the fan the opposite direction so it sucks air out of the enclose would be much less of a draft while still creating some air flow.

Yes pc fans are used on cage tops... But they are reversed so they are pulling air out of the cage not blowing air in. This sitting on top helps allow for the chimney effect that happens in a hybrid enclosure.

 

[davisc12]

Yes pc fans are used on cage tops... But they are reversed so they are pulling air out of the cage not blowing air in. This sitting on top helps allow for the chimney effect that happens in a hybrid enclosure.

Great! I plan to do this, i already use pc fans to cool my reef tank so i always keep a stack of cheap easily replaceable fans on hand.

 

[Andrew1283]

Put your wired probe on a window sill and watch how hot it gets. So they can bake in the sun by a window and then encounter cold drafts at night if your windows aren’t insulated well enough.