misting screen tanks?

[herper147]

as you guessed i am new to chameleons and i am looking at getting the largest terra thatcher cage as they look best. but what i dont get how do they keep humidity dont it all go out the top?

also how do you mist them to keep the humidity up as it will go straight through?

another one how would they then drink would i need a dripper as the mist wont stay on the sides of the tank and also what sort of humidity should it be at normally so how many times a day to mist

 

[WinstonChrchll]

Well the thing with humidity is that, given the nature of screen enclosures, its going to escape. Its much easier to keep the humidity in the room itself higher with humidifiers and such. Regardless, the humidity will spike (at misting) to the desired level and gradually go down. It doesnt need to be "consistent" (watching my words here!), but it needs to be misted frequently so it averages the desired humidity. Mist the plants and branches in the enclosure (most chams dont enjoy the mist) and that will assist in keeping the humidity. You will need a dripper for water, as they will drink it off the leaves and such. Set it up so that it drips on some leaves and then catches at the bottom. I mist 3 times daily for about 5 minutes give or take. Give the tank a decent amount of time to dry up before going for the next round. Hope that helped!

 

[herper147]

but when you mist does the water not just go on the wall behind and all escape so no water stays in the tank

 

[WinstonChrchll]

Well when I mist I generally dont mist the actual enclosure, but the plants and branches in it, which retain the moisture and humidity.

 

[Monkeykungphu]

but when you mist does the water not just go on the wall behind and all escape so no water stays in the tank

Some people use a hard surface as their rear wall to keep this from spraying their wall as well.

 

[pantherlover]

i used to use shower curtains but i now use towels on two sides. i aim towards the corner when i mist. i learned the towel trick here. it holds some of the moisture & lets off its own humidity. it keeps the mist from going everywhere. it seems to be working great. my house is dry but the humidity in the cage sits at around 55 when its dry. when i mist the humidity goes upto 100 & slowly declines. my chams drink & shed properly.