Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have mostly finishing constructing an indoor walk-in vivarium/enclosure and would like some tips from anyone with experience with this sized enclosure. It's a 6' long x 6'8" tall x 3' deep, accessible via double-pane sliding glass patio doors. The sides are 17/32" thick plywood with a study 2x4 frame built directly into the (newly renovated) wall and a platform floor. The back wall will be solid with a double-pane window (not yet installed) looking into the main area of our home. The enclosure will be housing two large boas.

I've been looking into misting systems (and cringing at the cost of high-pressure pumps). I've never used a misting system and don't want to invest in an expensive set up if it isn't the ideal kit for the enclosure. How much luck should I expect to have with humidifier (of the sort designed for humans and whole room application) with this enclosure?

If a humidifier is the way to go, are there any tips around their use?

I was thinking of building a small but sturdy mesh-and-wood frame/cover to keep the animals off of the device itself, but easily accessible for refilling.

Thanks in advance for tips. Also feel free to point me to any resources for large DIY enclosures like this. I've done smaller stackables before, but this is my first full sized adventure.

I would recommend the cool mist ultrasonic humidifiers for humans. You might want to get your water for it from those refill stations that most supermarkets have. This is supposed to be RO water with no minerals which will clog your humidifier.

With a little ingenuity you can also modify these with some PVC plumbing parts and clear vinyl tubing and keep the unit outside of the enclosure. Then run the tubing to the top of the enclosure so the mist falls from top to bottom.
-----
BigT
There is a difference between ignorance and stupidity. The ignorant can be taught, stupidity is beyond our control.
1.2 P. m. melanoleucus B/W N. J. Northern Pines
1.2 P. d. deppei Mexican Pines
2.2 P. l. lineaticollis Linis or Lined Pines
1.2 P. m. lodingi Black Pines
0.3 P. c. sayi red bulls
1.1 Drymarchon melenurus Blacktail Cribo
1.2 D. corais Yellowtail Cribos
1.2 M. s. cheynei Jungle Carpet
2.6 L. p. pyromelana Arizona Mt. Kings
1.1 L. g. californiae B/W Cali kings
0.0.3 M. f. flagellum Eastern Coachwhips
1.2 G. m. bottegoi Western Plated lizards

Thanks for the tip! The plumbing mods sound great -- I was thinking of something along those lines but was not sure (having never worked with a humidifier) if it would have enough *umf* to work.

I currently own a Bionaire Clear-Mist humidifier, 2 gallon I think, which I picked up from a second-hand shop in unused condition. (It's an older model, but was just clearly never turned on.) I'm running it now to test the function and it seems to be working just great, in a regular room. The vent that disperses the moist air is round and about 2" across -- perfect for a decent sized PVC pipe, I should think. I hadn't considered keeping the device up high, outside the enclosure -- this may well solve my problems! (The current humidifier is coded to run for 25 hours at maximum, before a refill is needed. I can easily work a refill into my daily routine, or even do another modification that connects the current tank to a larger reservoir of water that "feeds" it as the tank level lowers -- keeping it at a constant "full".

I'll look into the humidifier you've recommended as well, and do some compare and contrast. If what I've got will work, I may stick with that for now since I picked it up for nothing (and therefore can afford to mess it up if my mods don't work!)

I googled you Bionaire and it is a cool mist humidifier, so as long as it's pumping out a lot of fog you should be good on that. If it cranks out 2 gallons of mist in 25 hours that's a lot of humidity. So it should have more than enough "umf". You might even need to put a timer on it.

It should be a pretty simple mod to make a "remote" unit out of it. You may have to caulk around a PVC fitting where it goes into the unit. You might even want to reduce that down so you can use a smaller diameter vinyl tubing.
-----
BigT
There is a difference between ignorance and stupidity. The ignorant can be taught, stupidity is beyond our control.
1.2 P. m. melanoleucus B/W N. J. Northern Pines
1.2 P. d. deppei Mexican Pines
2.2 P. l. lineaticollis Linis or Lined Pines
1.2 P. m. lodingi Black Pines
0.3 P. c. sayi red bulls
1.1 Drymarchon melenurus Blacktail Cribo
1.2 D. corais Yellowtail Cribos
1.2 M. s. cheynei Jungle Carpet
2.6 L. p. pyromelana Arizona Mt. Kings
1.1 L. g. californiae B/W Cali kings
0.0.3 M. f. flagellum Eastern Coachwhips
1.2 G. m. bottegoi Western Plated lizards

Wonderful, thanks for taking a peak at the unit I've got. I've had it running for about 20 hours now just in a big open space to test-run its programming/function and so far so good! As I look at it I may be doubling the tank capacity: I'll need to check. (It's an oddly shaped rectangular reservoir that may only be 1g, but it felt like 2 when I filled it last night. I'll read the info again.

I'll run some tests with piping/tubing to see what I can get away with. I'd like as narrow an opening as possible without putting too much pressure on the little vent's pump/motor doodads, for easy of install, efficient airflow/pressure, animal safety, and aesthetics.

Thanks again. Helpful! Now to figure out the lay-out of the enclosure's physical set-ups. Hides, shelves, etc. Would love to do a more naturalistic vivarium but that's a long way out, due to budget constraints & research limitations. For now it'll be a more conventional multi-level snake enclosure, with plenty of climb/hide spaces, a soaking pool, and room to be spread out, draped or otherwise unfurled in a whole slew of different directions and configurations!