I want to change my substrate from sand to the recommendation of Robyn on the soil/sand/verm mix.But what happens to the humdity in the tank from the extra moisture in the soil?How do you keep the humidity as low as possible while adding water to the bottom of the substrate?
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Mike
1.3 mali
1.3 central banded gecko
1.1 veiled chameleon
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Substrate low humidity?
kriminaal
Aug 22, 2004 08:20 AM
Replies (3)
robyn@ProExotics
Aug 24, 2004 02:11 AM
i am not sure you are getting the gist of the idea...
a soil substrate ALLOWS for moderate humidity, especially in the burrows. with proper temp gradients, proper basking areas, and proper overall temperatures, the moisture isn't a problem.
you are not making a mud pit- for the most part, our soil is dry on top, and moist as you dig. we add water a couple of times a week, just dump a set amount in, but that is no threat to the health of the animal. water is life 
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robyn@proexotics.com
kriminaal
Aug 24, 2004 05:12 AM
What are your humidity levels on top then.Are they not supposed to be very low.Like below 30 percent?
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Mike
1.3 mali
1.3 central banded gecko
1.1 veiled chameleon
-ryan-
Aug 25, 2004 10:53 PM
I know Robyn doesn't measure the humidity in their setups, and there's a good reason for that. You don't need to. You can easily judge how much humidity is too much and whatnot. You just don't want it to be a rainforest basically...well, that's a little extreme, but here's what I've noticed. Usually the actual open part of the tank is only humid after you add water to the soil. After about a day with the heat lamps and everything, the higher humidity levels are usually reserved to the burrows/humidity shelters.
True, uromastyx come from a desert climate where the humidity above ground is very low, but they spend most of their time underground where it's much higher. When you live in a desert that reaches such high temperatures, you need to retain as much moisture as possible or else you'll shrivel up and die. In captivity, it's not as important that uromastyx have the heightened humidity because the high water content of their foods make up for what is lost, but it's still definately a good idea to give them somewhere to retreat to that's dark, moist, and diggable.
