My Jungle Boas Terrarium Setup

[LCSCALES]

this is my boas setup. exo terra 36x18x18. he will be good in here for a little while.

[Terranaut]

I love the door setup on those cages. Not a fan of the screen top or using lamps for heat. It looks great. Watch the humidity levels closely. Wild fluctuations is just as bad as low. Also those dial gauges are not very accurate. Sorry I am not trying to knock your setup but many people with screen tops and lights for heat end up with shed issues. People who do not have issues tend to live in more humid regions. Just be aware if you have a shed issue it will be humidity regardless of what that gauge says.
Are you using a thermostat?
Again not trying to rain on your parade, just being honest.
But as far as looks it's great.

[snakeman879]

Hi the set up looks really nice

[sharthun]

Lookin good!;)

[thinkbig317]

Like it alot!

[LCSCALES]

Thanks everyone. As far as humidity the humidity is just fine. Here in utah its still pretty hot so A/c is still on which helps humidity but the heat lamp only goes on for a little while so day temps dont get too low. Have an undertank heat mat but not enough alone. Thermostat is behind tank. So far he hasnt had shed issues, already had 1 shed and no problem there.

[smy_749]

Air conditioning lowers the humidity, not raises it. Warm air holds more water, condense the air by cooling it and you get 'condensation' because the cold air isn't capable of holding as much.

[Terranaut]

Air conditioning lowers the humidity, not raises it. Warm air holds more water, condense the air by cooling it and you get 'condensation' because the cold air isn't capable of holding as much.

Yup. What he said!


What is your homes typical ambient humidity ?
You mentioned the light only coming on for short periods. Is that both lights or is the red on all the time?

[B_Aller]

Screen tops are a death sentence for reptiles, your set up looks nice but is 30 years behind the times. Ditch the fish tank with doors and build a reptile enclosure.
Sorry to be harsh but it's the truth.
B

[jausi]

If the screen top is the Issue use glass to cover the screen top, that what I did for both of my exo terras and humidity is great, you setup looks great, good job

[formica]

agree with the above, get the top covered with glass or plastic, and get a digital hygrometer so you can monitor the humidity properly. air con = low humidity.

looks nice apart from that, would love to see pics of the snake

[LCSCALES]

Sorry that was a typo. meant with a/c on doesn't help humidity but Im actually going to go today to get plexiglass to cover screen top. the humidity so far doesn't fluctuate very much. I keep an eye on it. but I do plan on building a cage for him here in near future.

[bigsnakegirl785]

You can have boas in screen top/lighting heat set-ups. I had Cloud in one until I moved him into his new custom enclosure several months ago. I have never had even the slightest issues with shedding the whole time I've had him. Just cover most of the top and it should keep humidity well. It looks really nice, I hope to be decorating Cloud's kind of like that whenever I get a job. Right now he's got just the bare necessities; water bowl, two hides (need to work on new ones, he's just about outgrown these ones), and a branch.

[B_Aller]

You can have boas in screen top/lighting heat set-ups. I had Cloud in one until I moved him into his new custom enclosure several months ago. I have never had even the slightest issues with shedding the whole time I've had him. Just cover most of the top and it should keep humidity well.

Absolutely terrible advice.
Screen tops allow all of the necessary humidity to attach to heat and rise out of the enclosure. A "reptile cage" with a screen top is actually the exact same design as a meat dehydrator. Imagine living in a meat dehydrator and what it would do to your internal organs.
Your boas may have been fine short term but this type of antiquated husbandry is PROVEN to cause gout and long term problems.
We need to move this hobby past the 1970's style of keeping. Fish tanks are for fish. Screen tops are a slow death sentence.
What we try to tech people is that holding humidity in an enclosure is just like holding water in a bucket, if you have even a small section of the bottom of your bucket made of screen will it hold water?
Not to mention the waste of money, why pay to heat your enclosure when it all just escapes out of the top?
Thanks.

[smy_749]

If you cover the whole top with a custom fit glass top that doesn't allow moisture to escape....? Not advising that tanks are the best way to keep an animal, but covering the top sufficiently and sides for security....

[Mikoh4792]

If you cover the whole top with a custom fit glass top that doesn't allow moisture to escape....? Not advising that tanks are the best way to keep an animal, but covering the top sufficiently and sides for security....

Adding onto this, I know light bulbs dry the air out, but wouldn't using an UTH with the screen top covered be okay?

[B_Aller]

If you cover the whole top with a custom fit glass top that doesn't allow moisture to escape....? Not advising that tanks are the best way to keep an animal, but covering the top sufficiently and sides for security....

Sorry, not sold. Tanks can be used as a stop gap solution but need to be phased out completely as they are not designed to house reptiles.
WE always stress that lights need to be INSIDE of the enclosure to allow for maximum use of heat and to limit loss of both heat and humidity.
Also most top opening enclosures let all accumulated heat and humidity out when opened. Plus the vents on the hood of the lights speed up convection around the lights, accelerating humidity loss. Yes, you lose heat and humidity opening from the front but not nearly as much.
Most cover the top with plexi or tin foil and leave a round opening just bigger than the light, so where you need it the most you are losing heat, again, taking humidity with it.
Generally when you build an enclosure you will have ventilation around doors, windows, gaps here and there etc. So you do have air exchange and some limited ventilation, but not total loss of humidity.
My whole point of being here is to try and bring up these realities and get some conversation going. All the evidence is out there, we need to push NOW for progress and change or we are all going to lose our right to keep these animals. Things need to change, the status quo for keeping reptiles is torture. There is a better way and people are doing it, just not most people, so we need to take every opportunity to get the party started.
Most reptiles are housed in a manner where they are physically unable to breed! Imagine if you kept a dog or cat in conditions that didn't even allow them to breed, you'd go to jail.

This is not intended to reflect on any one person or the o.p, just trying to shake it up a bit.
Thanks.

[B_Aller]

Adding onto this, I know light bulbs dry the air out, but wouldn't using an UTH with the screen top covered be okay?

Yes, there are lots of ways to achieve the proper husbandry parameters, but again, even a covered screen top will let all the heat out when opened. Not to mention the way that top opening enclosures affect behavior. Most reptiles are preyed upon by birds in the wild, so coming in from above can and does(in my opinion) affect behavior.
I've notice a huge change in behavior in my animals when allowed to perch above MY head height. Both snakes and monitors.
Best.

[smy_749]

Fair points

[bigsnakegirl785]

Absolutely terrible advice.
Screen tops allow all of the necessary humidity to attach to heat and rise out of the enclosure. A "reptile cage" with a screen top is actually the exact same design as a meat dehydrator. Imagine living in a meat dehydrator and what it would do to your internal organs.
Your boas may have been fine short term but this type of antiquated husbandry is PROVEN to cause gout and long term problems.
We need to move this hobby past the 1970's style of keeping. Fish tanks are for fish. Screen tops are a slow death sentence.
What we try to tech people is that holding humidity in an enclosure is just like holding water in a bucket, if you have even a small section of the bottom of your bucket made of screen will it hold water?
Not to mention the waste of money, why pay to heat your enclosure when it all just escapes out of the top?
Thanks.

You said yourself it's ok short-term. OP said it wouldn't stay in there. I said to cover it to keep humidity in. I never once said they should be kept permanently in this set-up. "Most" is not the whole top. Leaving some uncovered will allow for some airflow. Seeing as OP said "for awhile," they may be planning to upgrade to a better enclosure. For now, surely, this set-up will work?

[B_Aller]

You said yourself it's ok short-term. OP said it wouldn't stay in there. I said to cover it to keep humidity in. I never once said they should be kept permanently in this set-up. "Most" is not the whole top. Leaving some uncovered will allow for some airflow. Seeing as OP said "for awhile," they may be planning to upgrade to a better enclosure. For now, surely, this set-up will work?

I think you may not have understood my posts.
I said it is O.K to use a tank for a "stop gap" solution not a temporary home.

The whole top of the enclosure should be sealed.
The lights should be INSIDE of the enclosure.
Covering "most" or some" of the top is worthless, see my response to Sam above for the details.
"airflow" is your enemy.
To me this set up is unacceptable because of the screen top.
Thanks.

[LiL Zap]

Great enclosure! I'm a huge fan of the natural look!