Lights off when misting?

[Grasshopper]

Ok so I'm sure I'm fine but just making sure what you guys think. I'm in a group on Facebook called veiled chameleons. They have on the care sheet that when you mist you have to turn the basking light off. True? If so I haven't been. Should I?

 

[CamoChameleonsHuman]

False! Chameleons are diurnal meaning they're awake during the day. This is when they drink off the leaves. Mist at least every 4-6hrs for at least 2min each time DURING THE DAY lol. I choose not to mist at night so he gets his beauty rest and isn't disturbed by simulated rain. I know people that must at night too though. My cham is just not a fan of baths lol.

 

[Grasshopper]

Good to know I've been doing it right lol, one said everytime you mist you should shut the light off for a few minuets or they get burned. False as well?

 

[CamoChameleonsHuman]

I mean if your misting into the light itself there's a chance of an electrical shock or burn so yeah don't mist the lights themselves. But no I've never turned my lights off when running my mister and my little man is doing just fine. You're doing good. Do you see your Cham drinking? How does his/hers urates look are they milky white? Eye turrets nice and full? If yes to all three your Cham is staying hydrated and that's all that matters. Humidity can be anywhere from 40-70% preferably higher at night using either a foogger or ultrasonic cool air humidifier in the room.

 

[Grasshopper]

Yes on all I have a humidifier sitting beside her runs all day and night just to be safe. Humidity goes closer to 70s at night when I dont mist. I mist her in the morning 10 minuets after the lights come on 8am then 12pm and once more at 4pm.

 

[jamest0o0]

No humidifier during the day, unless you're dropping below 40% keep it off. Only for a few hours at night and make sure to clean regularly. Those things get messy fast. To raise humidity during the day(temporarily) just mist more. You don't want high humidity all day. Just remember heat+humidity= bacterial growth=RI, you want high humidity when it's cool at night.

As for misters with lights off, technically the FB group is correct about this. I mist with just my uvb light on(so it's pretty dim). So what I do is have the lights go off and then a few minutes misters pop on, then several minutes after the misters stop, lights go back on. The reasoning behind this is to let it cool down like it would during a rainstorm and to avoid the warm temperatures/high humidity. With that said, if you mist for a few minutes with your lights on, it probably won't make much of a difference. They aren't going to develop an RI that fast. As long as the humidity drops back down you're good. You want it mostly dry during the day.

 

[Grasshopper]

So humidity in the 60s day and night is ok? And I will do the heat light off while misting and back on 5 or 10 minuets after.

 

[iMi]

If you need to turn off the basking light to mist, then the setup you have is incorrect. There should be no need to turn off the basking light. It’s not going to hurt anything if you do, but misting should not interfere with lighting for a number of good reasons.

 

[jamest0o0]

If you need to turn off the basking light to mist, then the setup you have is incorrect. There should be no need to turn off the basking light. It’s not going to hurt anything if you do, but misting should not interfere with lighting for a number of good reasons.

He's not talking about the lighting set up IDT. This information is all coming out due to Petr Necas' report on natural hydration, RIs, etc that came out I think last year or so. The idea is that when there is rain, it should be cool, to inhibit bacteria growth and stimulate the cham into drinking behavior. Though I'm with you, idt a few minutes of misting with lights on or off is going to change much. I do this for my Parsons though who regularly gets 45 minute+ misting sessions.

 

[jamest0o0]

So humidity in the 60s day and night is ok? And I will do the heat light off while misting and back on 5 or 10 minuets after.

Sounds good, what is your average daytime humidity with the humidifier off? I would keep the day around 40-60(you want it to spike, rather than stay a constant level). Then at night you can turn the humidifier on and try to keep it at 70-80 give of take.

 

[iMi]

He's not talking about the lighting set up IDT. This information is all coming out due to Petr Necas' report on natural hydration, RIs, etc that came out I think last year or so. The idea is that when there is rain, it should be cool, to inhibit bacteria growth and stimulate the cham into drinking behavior. Though I'm with you, idt a few minutes of misting with lights on or off is going to change much. I do this for my Parsons though who regularly gets 45 minute+ misting sessions.

Got'ya. I thought it was more about safety and the two functions not interfering. The logic in what you stated is rock solid. I am now reading a lot about the natural climate of the Vailed. It's fascinating stuff.

 

[jamest0o0]

Got'ya. I thought it was more about safety and the two functions not interfering. The logic in what you stated is rock solid. I am now reading a lot about the natural climate of the Vailed. It's fascinating stuff.

Note to anyone out there, we should not be misting our light fixtures hahaha.

Definitely interesting stuff though! Always good to learn about where these animals come from.

 

[Beman]

So I follow the natural hydration method. I set my lights, fogger, and misting up according to this which I learned about in a few of Bill Strand's podcasts. chameleonbreeder.com
I do turn off basking for misting but only for my long session that is mid day. It kicks off 15 minutes before the mister comes on to allow for a cool down prior. Then kicks back on 15 minutes after the mister has stopped. My fogger kicks on with the mister for this afternoon session. Two minutes prior to the mister going off and then turns off at the same time as the mister. My two other sessions are shorter at 2 minutes. 1 is in the morning an hour after lights are on so it is already much cooler then the other is in the evening prior to lights off.
I do have two 30 second cycles as well. One in the morning about 30 minutes prior to lights on to lay down morning dew and then one at 10pm. My fogger runs from 12am-4am.

I am not sure where someone came up with the they will get burned if you are misting and have lights on. Seems pretty wonky to me. Beman basks quite often with a little water on him and no burning here. I mean maybe if your using way too much wattage for bulb but then you would have the much too high temps to go with it.

 

[JoXie411]

False! Chameleons are diurnal meaning they're awake during the day. This is when they drink off the leaves. Mist at least every 4-6hrs for at least 2min each time DURING THE DAY lol. I choose not to mist at night so he gets his beauty rest and isn't disturbed by simulated rain. I know people that must at night too though. My cham is just not a fan of baths lol.

The moment you said false I had to

 

[Grasshopper]

Sounds good, what is your average daytime humidity with the humidifier off? I would keep the day around 40-60(you want it to spike, rather than stay a constant level). Then at night you can turn the humidifier on and try to keep it at 70-80 give of take.

Humidifier off durning day is between 50-64 and night time with it off is 67-73 (most the time.) I've been running it constant since she was dehydrated but shes doing awsome now. I only run it when it goes close to 70 but with the misting it's been staying between 50-64% so haven't been using it much.

 

[jamest0o0]

Yeah definitely keep it off during the day