How close to 100% RH is close enough? (for corn eggs)

[MouseKilla]

I don't even have the eggs yet but I'm working on the egg box while I still have time to piss around with it. I've got 3" of moist perlite in a Rubbermaid (no holes). I am using the ambient temperature of my snake room (80 - 84F) for heat. The temps are pretty stable in the box so I'm not too worried about that.

The thing I'm not sure about is that the humidity gets up to about 90% but that's it. Everything I've read and heard says to get 100% but I'm not sure how literally I need to take that.

I know some people are more hung up on having extremely stable and accurate temps while others insist that staying within an acceptable range is all that's necessary. I wonder if there is a similar situation when it comes to humidity.

I guess my question is if 90% is high enough or whether I need to up it somehow?

[marisa]

Mine were incubated at 80% humidity last year, with a wet paper towel placed very lightly over the clutch for 3/4ths of the incubation. 100% hatch rate.

Marisa

[MouseKilla]

Thanks Marisa, I feel better now. I wonder why so much emphasis is placed on 100% RH in a lot of the literature out there, especially when 80% works just as well going by your experience.

[marisa]

Well my experience is minor, and only once. I am sure the wet paper towel contributed to the humidity under it being probably 100%

Ideally you would want the entire thing 100% or as close to it without the paper towel. I was having trouble so I used it. Then again some corn eggs hatch usually even through worst of problems just fine.

Marisa

[Jeff_Favelle]

90% is plenty. Corn eggs don't need the humidity that python eggs need.