First an air conditioner, An air conditioner is an air dryer. it removes the water from air. Have you have noticed that? It also means the room is relatively cool and with very dry air.



The lite on top the cage means you have to use a relatively high wattage to allow the basking temps that are considered normal(135F plus or minus) You will see many people using 150 to 250watt bulbs to heat a small cage. These high wattage bulbs are heating a lot of air. Air thats warmer then the surrounding air rises(hot air balloon) raising air, picks up moisture and takes it out of the cage, think drying paint. Dry air(from the air conditioner, picks up even more moisture. The reall effect is, you have not created a reptile cage, but a meat drying machine or as I wrote many many years ago, a jerky(beef) machine. Only in our cases, its a reptile jerky machine.



While the keeper looks at it as a good thing for their reptiles, nice hot spot, the reptile now must avoid becomes reptile jerky.



Reptiles are not designed to lose water thru their skin, their are designed to lose water their their urinary track. Not thru the skin. If reptiles are exposed to long periods of drying thru the skin, kidney disease and gout are common reflections of this.



But what about nature, nature allows reptiles choices. Nature is a giant moisture sink, the earth holds moisture(even deserts) But if a certain level of moisture is not available, they reptiles will not stay active and will seek moist areas. Like, deeper burrows, water to soak in, inside trees and termite mounds, etc. They will not come out until a suitable range of moisture is available. This is the live of a reptile in nature.



Of course this is only a little bit of all the reasons. Kinda why those of us that are successful have smaller lites, IN the cage and do not use such high wattages. This allows a lot less air movement, a lot more temperature range, and the cost of keeping is less to boot. In my book, this is at least a threefer. You cannot deny a threefer.



A threefer= something that benefits in at least three different ways. Oh and lower wattages do not burn reptiles, so its a fourfer or more. Cheers

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