Questions about heating!

[Luckyspawn]

Hi everyone, I'm brand new here, and brand new to chameleons!

I just got my Jackson's chameleon today, his name is malachai

Anyway, I have everything I need, but I have a question about heating...

I have a basking lamp and a night time lamp, but I also have a heating pad from when I used to have leopard geckos....

My question is, should I use the heating pad for young Malachai? Would it help with humidity and such?

I have good humidity readings, but i'm skeptical because its analog and not digital (Only because the store didn't have digital ones, I plan on getting one offline).


Also, what are some good plants to use that collect water well? The ones I'm using don't keep water very well, and I'm feeling like Malachai is thirsty, and I want him to be as comfortable as possible as hes still getting used to his new home.

Anyway, any help would be appreciated, glad to be part of the cham community!

 

[Luckyspawn]

also, his horns are crooked.... Is this normal?

 

[beeze]

Welcome to the forums. I don't have a Jackson but other members do maybe they can help with the details.

 

[Luckyspawn]

Also, Im noticing that the temperature is a little low....

Whats a good Watt for a basking lamp?

Im having trouble keeping the humidity up as well... I have a dripper and I've been spraying to get the right humidity, but everything evaporates and the humidity drops in just a half hour. Is this just how it is and I'll have to deal with it until I get a mister or what?

Sorry for all the questions, just want to make sure I'm doing everything right!

You were new at this once too!

 

[Julirs]

Howdy-where abouts do you live and where did you get your cham from? It is normal for them to have crooked horns. First of all ditch the heating pad. Hopefully you do not have a glass "tank" that you were planning to stick it on. I will warn you-Jacksons are not the easiest of chams and are not a good starter cham. They need higher humidity and higher air flow than most. The best way to accomplish this is with a well planted (live plants) screen cage. The number one thing you need is a thermometer-a digital one-not a crappy analog. Temps for Jackson shoud be no higher than 80-82ish in the basking spot-low 70's everywhere else. What kind of lighting do you have? You certainly need a UVB bulb-a 18" or larger linear tube-Zoomed Reptisun 5.0-this is crucial to your animals survival and well being.

 

[Luckyspawn]

I live in dover NH, and I got him from a local pet shop. I'm aware they aren't good starter chams, but im new to chams, not reptiles. I've cared for difficult reptiles before, and I'm confident that I can do it.

I was thinking no on the heating pad, I wasn't using it, just wanted to ask if anyone did.

As for temperatures I'm getting about 70 degrees in the middle of the gradient, and about 78 in the basking spot.

The only real problem I'm having now is the humidity level, I get it to the right humidity, then everything evaporates and the humidity level drops way down below normal in about half hour 45 minutes.

I have a dripper and I'm manually spraying until I get a mister, which is on its way. Is this just normal and I should set a mister to spray every half hour to an hour or what?

 

[Julirs]

You really only need to mist 2-3 times daily, letting the cage dry between mistings.

Have you a screen cage? You can cover 2-3 sides with plastic sheeting to help keep humidity up-esp. in the winter.

 

[Luckyspawn]

Well the only reason Im misting so much is because the humidity drops so fast...

Maybe its just the humidity gauge? I donno

 

[Julirs]

You have your chameleon in an aqaurium don't you?

 

[Luckyspawn]

No, I don't.

The air is really dry where I live this time of year, so humidity management is tough. I'm looking for tips, not accusations of being foolish, thanks.

I'll try the 3-sided plastic sheeting, hopefully it will help.

 

[pssh]

Mist longer, get broad leaved live plants like pothos, and cover a few sides with shower curtain. If it's really dry you may need a humidifier.

 

[Luckyspawn]

I was thinking that, so heres a question:

I actually have two humidifiers, ones a normal sized one, used for an entire room, the other is a much smaller more portable one.

Would just having a humidifier in the room suffice, or should I rig up some contraption to have the humidifier running directly into the encloser?

I know the second option would obviously work better, but if its not needed than I'd rather just have a humidifier in the room

 

[Syn]

If you do plan on rigging up the humidifier into running directly into the enclosure, check out this link:

Really easy ultrasonic humidifier journal - Dendroboard

 

[Luckyspawn]

Wow syn, thanks!

That looks incredibly easy to do, and would appear to cure my problem perfectly!

I appreciate it!