repti fogger advice/info please!

froggyfields

froggyfields

New Member
i've been having an issue with my veiled chams humidity. his enclosure doesn't want to go above about 20% unless i have a humidifier on constantly and spray every couple hrs. i have enclosed the mesh cage on 3 sides with plastic and have 2 plants. my problem is that i will have to go back to work soon and i wont be able to spray every couple hrs! i've been considering a repti fogger...anyone have any advice/info on these?? could i let it run all day since there is such a huge issue? and does it cause a lot of water in the bottom?
 
Never tried the reptifogger.. I did some research on fogging systems because I was wanting fog in the cage for the humidity and it would look awesome! The reptifogger has a habit of burning out the little computer fan that blows the fog into the enclosure.. you can replace the fan with a better quality one though if you like.. I tried one of those sonic foggers that you put in a dish of water but I would not recommend them.. they spit water all over the place and the spray is HOT.. I tried covering the dish with screen but the fog wouldn't go through it and all I was left with was a foggy dish.. I've heard good things about making your own out of a humidifier.. do some youtube searches and you will find them.. cost is a little cheaper than the reptifogger and I believe it would last longer, but there is some work to getting them made.. Also make sure that your hygrometer is reading correctly..
 
Okay, I'm going to barrage you with questions, lol. What size is the enclosure? what type of plants? What is the temp in the enclosure? and what are you using as a hygrometer?

I personally prefer a good mist system to a fogger, If you have a bit of money to spend on it you can get the Mist King system for about $140 (shipped), it is one of the best investments I've made for my cham. Its all automated and does a phenomenal job of keeping him hydrated and keeping the humidity up.
 
Wrap 3 sides of the cage with a shower curtain liner, get a mistking (they're pricey but SO worth it). The reptifoggers break (from all the reviews I've read) all the time because the little motor poops out from being used too long.
 
I actually have a reptifogger for each of my chameleons and I love them! I do not have any issues with either of mine and they are working as great as they did from the day I got them (I've had them for months).
The bottle is almost like an oversized soda bottle thats easy to fill and put in the machine. If you fill the bottle it can run for up to 12 hours on the low setting(in my experience). The higher the setting the more water it uses, the less time it will create fog. I've noticed with my fogger that the fog gathers on a certain part of their enclosure and creates nice water drops on the leaves and a sort of rainforest affect. This is also really good for the chamelesons hydration not just humidity.
I also have a mister in each enclosure too which helps my humitity all the way up here in Alaska. It's super dry right now!

Hope this helps :)
 
thanks so much for the info! and luvbug237...do they create much water in the bottom of enclosure? i don't have a drainage system.
 
jbrough42 said:
Okay, I'm going to barrage you with questions, lol. What size is the enclosure? what type of plants? What is the temp in the enclosure? and what are you using as a hygrometer?

I personally prefer a good mist system to a fogger, If you have a bit of money to spend on it you can get the Mist King system for about $140 (shipped), it is one of the best investments I've made for my cham. Its all automated and does a phenomenal job of keeping him hydrated and keeping the humidity up.
Click to expand...

not sure on the size of enclosure but i think its a smaller or medium size version. the plants are pothos and the temp is usually 85 basking. is hygrometer to measure humidity? if so it's an acurite from lowes.
 
froggyfields said:
thanks so much for the info! and luvbug237...do they create much water in the bottom of enclosure? i don't have a drainage system.
Click to expand...

I honestly couldn't say how much becuase the drippings I get just fall right into my live plant I have but it does indeed cause water to collect and fall. Just depends on what you have to catch it :)
 
froggyfields said:
thanks so much for the info! and luvbug237...do they create much water in the bottom of enclosure? i don't have a drainage system.
Click to expand...

I used one for a while before I got my Aquazamp system, they didn't make any water in the bottom. It also didn't give them any moisture to drink. I personally wouldn't waste your money on one. I use it in my ball python enclosure, but I really don't think they provide the humidity and water droplets that an Aquazamp or Mistking or even the low end mister, can't think of its name.

Get a room cool mist humidifier and put it under your enclosure if just raising humidity is what you need. Chams need water droplets to drink, the foggers just don't provide that.
 
..i can't understand how misting every couple of hrs does not make it past 20% humidity. Either you are misting very lightly since you have no drainage system or you need a new hygrometer. Instead of buying a fogger, i would go with these 3 simple steps before : 1 - elevate enclosure to make tray at bottom to catch water from mistings and increase misting duration and area (drench all leaves ). 2 - add a dripper by just using a bottle or cup with a pin sized hole in it . 3 - add damp towel covering one of the sides. If none of those wrk then you def need a new hygrometer. There are digital ones on ebay for bout ten dollars
 
GrimsbyPatchwork said:
..i can't understand how misting every couple of hrs does not make it past 20% humidity. Either you are misting very lightly since you have no drainage system or you need a new hygrometer. Instead of buying a fogger, i would go with these 3 simple steps before : 1 - elevate enclosure to make tray at bottom to catch water from mistings and increase misting duration and area (drench all leaves ). 2 - add a dripper by just using a bottle or cup with a pin sized hole in it . 3 - add damp towel covering one of the sides. If none of those wrk then you def need a new hygrometer. There are digital ones on ebay for bout ten dollars
Click to expand...

The evaporation rate in the cage depends on many factors...how much air movement there is in the room, the humidity level of the ROOM itself, using forced air indoor heating, the cage setup itself and how much surface area is available to hold the water droplets from the misting. The size of the water droplets the mister creates, all sorts of things. Yes, the hygrometer itself can also be part of the problem but the accuracy also depends on just where it is placed in the cage.

I prefer making my own fogger using a cool mist (ie ultrasonic) humidifier. They use the same basic technology as the Reptifoggers, but are larger, seem to be better built, produce more fog, and you don't have to fill the reservoir as often (or risk running it dry which will damage the unit). I can also create more of a custom fogger by attaching tubing or pvc pipe fittings to the spouts depending on the design.
 
froggyfields said:
i've been having an issue with my veiled chams humidity. his enclosure doesn't want to go above about 20% unless i have a humidifier on constantly and spray every couple hrs. i have enclosed the mesh cage on 3 sides with plastic and have 2 plants. my problem is that i will have to go back to work soon and i wont be able to spray every couple hrs! i've been considering a repti fogger...anyone have any advice/info on these?? could i let it run all day since there is such a huge issue? and does it cause a lot of water in the bottom?
Click to expand...

Chances are there isn't enough foliage in your setup. You want to fill the cage space with as much live bushy foliage as you can. The more plant surfaces available to hold water droplets from spraying the longer the cage humidity will stay higher. Most cage setups I see need to add more plants. Your cham will prefer this too.

A little water on the cage floor isn't the end of the world. What you don't want is a deeper pooling of stagnant water sitting unabsorbed for days on end especially if fecal matter falls into it. If the water can be soaked up with paper towels easily you are OK. Again, the more foliage you have to trap and hold mist the less trouble you'll have with cage floor water.
 
Carlton said:
The evaporation rate in the cage depends on many factors...how much air movement there is in the room, the humidity level of the ROOM itself, using forced air indoor heating, the cage setup itself and how much surface area is available to hold the water droplets from the misting. The size of the water droplets the mister creates, all sorts of things. Yes, the hygrometer itself can also be part of the problem but the accuracy also depends on just where it is placed in the cage.
Click to expand...

yes that is absolutely true. The reason i find it hard to imagine is that my location is naturally humid and my enclosures sit at around 60 without misting / 80 after not such a heavy misting.
Then again i do try to keep my enclosures densely planted using only live plants which helps humidity by far.
 
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