Newbie help with humidity

[Mace]

Hi everyone. I’m new to chameleons but have been researching for the past year and half now before I decided this was the route I absolutely wanted to take.
so I’m getting my chameleon tomorrow morning actually ?? and I have everything set up and going right now. Today is the first full day that absolutely everything is on and functioning on time like it’s supposed to.
but I can’t seem to get this humidity up. I have the back side and the side closest to the wall lined with like paint liners as well as the bottom part of the front enclosure. Don’t worry I provided pictures because I’m not good with words lol.
but any help is needed at this point. Oh please give pointers to things I need to change. I want him coming tomorrow and thinking his home is nice and cozy and is exactly what he needs.
I do plan on adding another branch closer to the uvb light because I think it’s too far.
thanks for all your help!! Also the picture with the temp gun, the laser was hitting the two branches in the back corner.

 

[Lennoncham]

How old is the Cham your getting? 89 is a bit on the warm side if it’s young. Also It looks like you are taking the temp from a bit to far away.

where In the cage are you measuring the humidity? There will be less humidity up top near the heat. The plants and misting will create pockets of higher humidity.

 

[Mace]

How old is the Cham your getting? 89 is a bit on the warm side. Also It looks like you are taking the temp from a bit to far away.

where In the cage are you measuring the humidity? There will be less humidity up top near the heat. The plants and misting will create pockets of higher humidity.

He is a panther chameleon and he will be 2.5-3 months old. I’m getting him from Kammerflage Kreations. As for the humidity, it is in the top back corner wedged in between the vine. I will add another picture for exact area.

 

[Lennoncham]

He is a panther chameleon and he will be 2.5-3 months old. I’m getting him from Kammerflage Kreations. As for the humidity, it is in the top back corner wedged in between the vine. I will add another picture for exact area. View attachment 273881

for a panther that young you want the basking spot around 82-85 max.

you are probably getting a low humidity reading because of where the prob is placed. The higher heat near the top means drier air therefore less humidity. It you test near the bottom or in the middle of the plants it will be higher. You want a gradient of temperature and humidity. Warmer at the top and gets colder as you go down. There will be pockets of higher/ lower humidity throughout the cage.

 

[Mace]

for a panther that young you want the basking spot around 82-85 max.

you are probably getting a low humidity reading because of where the prob is placed. The higher heat near the top means drier air therefore less humidity. It you test near the bottom or in the middle of the plants it will be higher. You want a gradient of temperature and humidity. Warmer at the top and gets colder as you go down. There will be pockets of higher/ lower humidity throughout the cage.

Ahh that actually makes sense and you’re right it definitely changed it once I moved it down to the middle now temp is 78 and humidity is 58%. So should I get another temp/humidity temp and place one in the middle too?
I will also move that light higher since that temp is way too high.
thanks for helping me out because I want to fix everything before he comes tomorrow. So I want all advice I can get.

 

[Beman]

You want to raise that basking fixture. Babies screen climb and will get right under the lights which is a major risk for thermal burn. What wattage are you using?

As far as the UVB and distance to basking what did you buy? T5HO or T8 and what bulb strength? What is the current distance directly below the uvb bulb to the highest point baby can get to?

 

[Mace]

You want to raise that basking fixture. Babies screen climb and will get right under the lights which is a major risk for thermal burn. What wattage are you using?

As far as the UVB and distance to basking what did you buy? T5HO or T8 and what bulb strength? What is the current distance directly below the uvb bulb to the highest point baby can get to?

The fixture in the back is hanging from the ceiling a good 8 inches from the top of the highest branch in the corner. I just moved it higher because the other member said the temp was way too high so I brought it higher to see if my temp on that branch would go down. It is a 50w repti basking spot lamp.
I bought aT8 with a zoomed reptisun T8 5.0 UVB.
I plan on upgrading to the T5HO when I upgrade the cage (which I have just need to build) because I felt that was way too much for this small cage. The current distance from the T8 to the tallest point baby can reach without screen climbing would be 7 inches. I had planned on putting a branch a little closer to the top like i did in the back but now I’m second guessing my setup here...?

 

[Beman]

The fixture in the back is hanging from the ceiling a good 8 inches from the top of the highest branch in the corner. I just moved it higher because the other member said the temp was way too high so I brought it higher to see if my temp on that branch would go down. It is a 50w repti basking spot lamp.
I bought aT8 with a zoomed reptisun T8 5.0 UVB.
I plan on upgrading to the T5HO when I upgrade the cage (which I have just need to build) because I felt that was way too much for this small cage. The current distance from the T8 to the tallest point baby can reach without screen climbing would be 7 inches. I had planned on putting a branch a little closer to the top like i did in the back but now I’m second guessing my setup here...?

So with the T8 and a 5.0 bulb they literally need to be 3-5 inches from it... take a look at this link the first image on it shows your distances. https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-cage-set-up-replicating-the-sun/

 

[Mace]

I just want to ship one of y’all over here to help me ? lol

 

[Beman]

I just want to ship one of y’all over here to help me ? lol

Welcome to the beginning stages of chameleon keeping... Where you question every single detail and lose sleep.

More then likely he will screen climb non stop. So UVB and heat both need to be adjusted for this. If you go by the chart then you will be fine. with the T8 5.0 bulb even if baby screen climbs it will be fine having the fixture on the cage. You will not need to lift it. But you will have to accommodate your basking branches below it to be from 3 inches down providing multiple distances... As baby matures and stops screen climbing you will need to then drop basking branches to 9 inches down and get the T5HO fixture with a 5.0 bulb or a 6% bulb. This will be important because his size will make it so that he can't be easily 3-5 inches from the top screen with the T8.
For heat having it lifted you should be fine. But make sure you are putting your hand right on the screen below the fixture. If it is hot to you then it will burn baby. So also I recommend having a wired probe for temperature checking below basking. The heat guns have their uses but only check surface temps and you have to be quite close with most to get an accurate reading.

This link will literally walk you through every aspect of husbandry. https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-husbandry-program-getting-started-with-chameleons/
This link will provide you info on your Panther's needs https://chameleonacademy.com/panther-chameleon-care/

 

[Mace]

Welcome to the beginning stages of chameleon keeping... Where you question every single detail and lose sleep.

More then likely he will screen climb non stop. So UVB and heat both need to be adjusted for this. If you go by the chart then you will be fine. with the T8 5.0 bulb even if baby screen climbs it will be fine having the fixture on the cage. You will not need to lift it. But you will have to accommodate your basking branches below it to be from 3 inches down providing multiple distances... As baby matures and stops screen climbing you will need to then drop basking branches to 9 inches down and get the T5HO fixture with a 5.0 bulb or a 6% bulb. This will be important because his size will make it so that he can't be easily 3-5 inches from the top screen with the T8.
For heat having it lifted you should be fine. But make sure you are putting your hand right on the screen below the fixture. If it is hot to you then it will burn baby. So also I recommend having a wired probe for temperature checking below basking. The heat guns have their uses but only check surface temps and you have to be quite close with most to get an accurate reading.

This link will literally walk you through every aspect of husbandry. https://chameleonacademy.com/chameleon-husbandry-program-getting-started-with-chameleons/
This link will provide you info on your Panther's needs https://chameleonacademy.com/panther-chameleon-care/

These are very very helpful thank you for including those links. And for the tips because now I know what to expect from him. I am going to tweak some things and hopefully post a final picture of the cage. Time to get crickets and more branches.