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I was contemplating ways to increase humidity in my tank and I came across terrarium fog machines. Anyone know if they will help with my problem and be safe as well?

- Ryan

Ryan,
...Your subject line poses a really interesting question. Fog machines that are used to make lots of fog like for a halloween party or a movie or play use fogger fluid which is a mixture of glycol and water. It is heated in a small chamber and produces the fog which is a mixture of mostly vapor with a little smoke from the heated glycol.
...On the other hand I do not know how terrarium foggers work. I know they do not require glycol fogger fluid.
...Onto the serious question which is what you need to do to get the humidity up high enough in your tank. If your tank has a screen top then that is your primary problem. Inside a heated or airconditioned home the humidity is often below 35%. The heater for the tank causes a flue effect. The warm moist air rises out of the tank and is replaced by the cool dry room air. This will quickly dry out the cage and the snake. You can fix the problem by covering between 90 and 98 percent of the screen with something solid like a sheet of plastic or even some aluminum foil. This will hold in much of the humidity. Be careful because doing this will also hold in much more of the heat. You may need to cut way back on the heater to keep from overheating the tank and snake. If you have damp substrate in the cage and limit the ventilation enough the air in the cage will stay very humid and all you have to do is pour a little water on the substrate every couple of days. This is easier than misting and cheaper than getting a terrarium fogger. I know that several people who post on this forum use terrarium foggers and hopefully they will come along and answer more specific questions about using them.
Jeff

>>I was contemplating ways to increase humidity in my tank and I came across terrarium fog machines. Anyone know if they will help with my problem and be safe as well?
>>
>> - Ryan

>>Ryan,.
>>...Your subject line poses a really interesting question. Fog machines that are used to make lots of fog like for a halloween party or a movie or play use fogger fluid which is a mixture of glycol and water. It is heated in a small chamber and produces the fog which is a mixture of mostly vapor with a little smoke from the heated glycol.
>>...On the other hand I do not know how terrarium foggers work. I know they do not require glycol fogger fluid.
>>...Onto the serious question which is what you need to do to get the humidity up high enough in your tank. If your tank has a screen top then that is your primary problem. Inside a heated or airconditioned home the humidity is often below 35%. The heater for the tank causes a flue effect. The warm moist air rises out of the tank and is replaced by the cool dry room air. This will quickly dry out the cage and the snake. You can fix the problem by covering between 90 and 98 percent of the screen with something solid like a sheet of plastic or even some aluminum foil. This will hold in much of the humidity. Be careful because doing this will also hold in much more of the heat. You may need to cut way back on the heater to keep from overheating the tank and snake. If you have damp substrate in the cage and limit the ventilation enough the air in the cage will stay very humid and all you have to do is pour a little water on the substrate every couple of days. This is easier than misting and cheaper than getting a terrarium fogger. I know that several people who post on this forum use terrarium foggers and hopefully they will come along and answer more specific questions about using them.
>>Jeff
>>
>>>>I was contemplating ways to increase humidity in my tank and I came across terrarium fog machines. Anyone know if they will help with my problem and be safe as well?
>>>>
>>>> - Ryan