Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i posted this in the caging forum but it doesnt see a lot of traffic.
i need to re purpose my current snake room into a bed room and my 2 options are out building or basement. out building would be expensive as id have to run electric/generator/ new heating and cooling unit....ect ect.
the basement has its own drawbacks. it does get moist and on occasion water has entered it. only the front half though. back half stays dry. so i have kept rats down there for over a year and havent had any issues. my biggest concern is with the relative humidity and air quality. i have never noticed mold or mildew but im sure it is their somewhere.
if i build a seperate room and seal away from water and dampness of the rest of the basement do you think they would be ok? ive also thought i could add a air purifier and a dehumidifier in the summer and a humidifier in the winter. i live in new york and teh heater drys the air excessively.
all input is appreciated.
adam jeffery
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" a.k.a. farfrumugen "
When I die, I want to go peacefully like my Grandfather did, in his sleep -- not screaming, like the passengers in his car.

I would think building a room would be the best. You can control the environment much easier in a small dry-walled room then in an entire basement.
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"What is man without the beasts?
If all the beasts were gone,
men would die from great loneliness of spirit.
For what happens to the beasts,
soon happens to men.
All things are connected."

-Chief Seattle (Duwamish Tribe)

Hi Adam,

I had my basement snake room for years. It sounds as if your NY conditions are similar to mine: damp in the summer and bone dry in the winter. As long as you don't allow too much air exchange in the cages, you should be ok with a dehumidifier in the basement in the summer, which will benefit the whole house. My only issue was the snakes in the Freedom Breeder rack. They tended to have a tough time shedding in the winter here in Buffalo without a little extra humidity, as the FBs allow way too much air exchange IMO. I solved the problem by dumping the water dish into their hide when they go into the blue (shed). I don't think that dry ambient conditions will harm them at all as long as they have some greater moisture options in the cage itself. I liked the basement as a snake room because it was incredibly stable temp wise because of the sheer mass of concrete involved. It remained cool in the summer, so no a/c required, and was heated with the rest of the house in the winter. I kept an ambient temp of 65-70 year round, which proved to be a perfect base temp for all of my snakes. The only reason that my snakes left the basement was to keep my wife happy. I have since built a snake building on my property and have had many more challenges than I had in the basement. Go for it!

Will

here...basement......dry in winter....wet in summer...air is moist and water drips from the cold water pipe from my well.....(runs along ceiling in snake room).....at times the water floods to an inch or more...like gallons...even a hundred gallons of water...and do the snakes hate it...?...nope...what is more natural than flooding, rain and drying out...?...they do fine...balls love the humidity....been in there 21 years now...
mold on wet aspen...yes...really fast too....

the only drawback...I cannot have like sand boas, western hogs, sonoran gophers, ...too damp half the year....after a year or so they just don't do well......balls, BTP and like all morelia ssp, rainbow boas,,,etc...love the humidity...and you can add water in winter....

...make it snake tight....
make it rackwise...as in all racks up off ground so you can see under them and find loose stuff...
make it insulated...before you put snakes in it...
2 inch styrofoam works fine , along with expanding foam selaer....
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........JY

It's not normal to have water in the basement.

You need to solve this first. Then you can build a room for your snakes.

May be it's get more humid in the basement than outside, I would suggest a fan to the outside first, instead of a deshumidifer.

An humidifier would probably be needed in winter. I suggest a good one, that is connected directly to the piping, not one that you need to refill every day. Won't be enough.

Also, add a drain to the room, will help if any water gets in and will help to clean the floor.
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love this world, don't hate it.

Depending on where you live, water in the basement is quite normal. That's what a sub-pump is for.

In CT, if you don't have a sub-pump, you're not prepared for Spring.
-----
"What is man without the beasts?
If all the beasts were gone,
men would die from great loneliness of spirit.
For what happens to the beasts,
soon happens to men.
All things are connected."

-Chief Seattle (Duwamish Tribe)

i live in ny where if you have a dry basement then its not normal....lol
i know the majority of the water is do to not having proper water control off my roof. the gutters got messed up and i havnt taken the time to fix them. their is also a hole in the foundation where my old furnace chimney exited the foundation. it wasnt repaired correctly when the new unit went in. lots of water from that spot alone. that all has to be done before i can play with my snakes anyway says the wife......
adam jeffery
-----
" a.k.a. farfrumugen "
When I die, I want to go peacefully like my Grandfather did, in his sleep -- not screaming, like the passengers in his car.

dig a hole in the ground...
build a house in it...
let it set there for 20, 50, 150 years...
the house WILL settle into the hole deeper and deeper...
the cement outside WILL sink lower and lower...
rains for a week straight.....(like this week so far) wow...
and it gets wet INSIDE a house celler.....
I have had gallons...way too many gallons.....right now just a few....LOL.....it's cool....snakes like it....

soon........all new sidewalk around the house...all 3 sides....then no more rain IN....(so I'll dump a gallon of water ON floor when needed...!

.......
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........JY

A properly insulated/sealed room will allow you to have better control of the snake environment. Heat the entire room, not the individual snakes. Humidifying a small room is easy in the winter time.

If possible, build your snake room with a window so the snakes know the time of the year by the length of daylight.