New Panther terrarium

Jebus247

Member
Getting ready to order a Cham this is my setup.
Exo Terra 36 L X 18 W X 36 T
T5HO 5.0 UVB
Grow lights for the plants.
Light on a timer from 7 to 8 30
Feeder Cup
Mistking mister ( one 2 min blast in the morning and then 30 second bursts during the day.)
3 combo temp/humidity meters
temp ranges from 72 ish to 85 under the basking light.
120 MM fan on a timer for air circulation.
 

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Looks pretty awesome... But your mister is spraying towards the glass, not sure if you want that :)
 
Looking good for the most part! My only comment is that your misting schedule needs adjusting. Chameleon's really ought to have at least 2 minutes of continuous misting in order to properly stimulate them to drink. So the only change I would make is to those 30 second misting bursts. Just up them to 2 minutes or more and reduce the frequency imo
 
Looking good for the most part! My only comment is that your misting schedule needs adjusting. Chameleon's really ought to have at least 2 minutes of continuous misting in order to properly stimulate them to drink. So the only change I would make is to those 30 second misting bursts. Just up them to 2 minutes or more and reduce the frequency imo
Ahh I do have the first misting of the day start 30 seconds before the light turns on it goes for 2mins :D
 
Ahh I do have the first misting of the day start 30 seconds before the light turns on it goes for 2mins :D

Right, I read that, but your chameleon will want more than one opportunity a day to drink! 30 sec mistings will help with humidity, but I never personally mist for less than 2 minutes
 
Right, I read that, but your chameleon will want more than one opportunity a day to drink! 30 sec mistings will help with humidity, but I never personally mist for less than 2 minutes

I sure will keep that in mind. I might take some of the smaller 30 second settings and turn them off, and do a mid day 2 min as well we will see once the cham gets here. I think once he is in the tank alot will change with how he likes or needs it.
 
Sounds good. I just want you to be aware that 2+ minutes is the widely accepted standard.
For screen cages Yes, With glass its completely different and it will hold humidity way longer (Meaning water sits around a lot longer). Since you only use very little wattage in a glass you will have standing water for a lot longer. For a small exo terra for a panther i was running around 2mins split up between the day and that was good when he was on 10hour cycle for dry winter in Canada. Now he's grow up and in a dragon strand breeder cage which has 3 solid sides and he gets 6mins a day of misting a day spraying split by 2mins a spray every 4 hours. Breeder cage has double nozzle added so it uses a little more water than normal. Husbandry is different between glass and screen. Don't have to be living in a desert either to use one, Christopher V. Anderson who wrote one of the best articles on it i'm pretty sure was living in Florida when he wrote it. Its a little out dated because bigger vivs did not exist when he wrote it but its a great read, he was also on the chameleon breeder podcast talking about glass.

I'd be worried of bare bottom though i always made a drainage layer like you would in a bioactive terrarium and add live plants. :) The fans not needed and will just dry it out quicker the circulation is perfectly fine in exo terras they create a chimney effect no fans need to be added imo. If you do choose to keep it more spraying will be required.

Also make sure basking lights are on for atleast 30mins before first spraying so the chameleon can warm up first. ;)
 
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For screen cages Yes, With glass its completely different and it will hold humidity way longer (Meaning water sits around a lot longer). Since you only use very little wattage in a glass you will have standing water for a lot longer. For a small exo terra for a panther i was running around 2mins split up between the day and that was good when he was on 10hour cycle for dry winter in Canada. Now he's grow up and in a dragon strand breeder cage which has 3 solid sides and he gets 6mins a day of misting a day spraying split by 2mins a spray every 4 hours. Breeder cage has double nozzle added so it uses a little more water than normal. Husbandry is different between glass and screen. Don't have to be living in a desert either to use one, Christopher V. Anderson who wrote one of the best articles on it i'm pretty sure was living in Florida when he wrote it. Its a little out dated because bigger vivs did not exist when he wrote it but its a great read, he was also on the chameleon breeder podcast talking about glass.

I'd be worried of bare bottom though i always made a drainage layer like you would in a bioactive terrarium and add live plants. :) The fans not needed and will just dry it out quicker the circulation is perfectly fine in exo terras they create a chimney effect no fans need to be added imo. If you do choose to keep it more spraying will be required.

Also make sure basking lights are on for atleast 30mins before first spraying so the chameleon can warm up first. ;)
Couldn’t agree more. I would recommend utilizing bioactive substrate too, and I’d ditch that styrofoam background. The chameleon’s nails will start to shred it, and may potentially eat it. I use universal rock backgrounds. They look way better, and are extremely durable. Also, run your cage for a few months and work out all the kinks in your watering schedule, heating, drainage, etc. This is valuable time to make sure everything is right before you purchase a chameleon.
 
Couldn’t agree more. I would recommend utilizing bioactive substrate too, and I’d ditch that styrofoam background. The chameleon’s nails will start to shred it, and may potentially eat it. I use universal rock backgrounds. They look way better, and are extremely durable. Also, run your cage for a few months and work out all the kinks in your watering schedule, heating, drainage, etc. This is valuable time to make sure everything is right before you purchase a chameleon.
Taping it on the back looks alright, I've never seen them wrecked by chameleons but crickets can get behind it.

I sometimes give hand sprays for if its a really dry or hot day but always make sure all water is gone before next big mist or lights off. For potted plants i still water every week or two depending on plant till water comes out of drainage holes. I have drilled pvc bottom and drainage tray with planters hanging on dragon ledges so i don't have to remove them.
 
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Couldn’t agree more. I would recommend utilizing bioactive substrate too, and I’d ditch that styrofoam background. The chameleon’s nails will start to shred it, and may potentially eat it. I use universal rock backgrounds. They look way better, and are extremely durable. Also, run your cage for a few months and work out all the kinks in your watering schedule, heating, drainage, etc. This is valuable time to make sure everything is right before you purchase a chameleon.
I have been running the cage for about 2 months right now getting the temps set.
 
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