my substrate is DRY!!

[ciaraalston]

With heat tape being below the substrate and my bubblers aren't as powerful as they used to be (gotta replace them i guess, i'm not sure why they're low now) but my humidity stays average 75% but my substrate is so dry! I have 2 Es buried right now.... What can i do?
Yesterday i tried pouring a LITTLE water into the substate and misting but i didn't want to flood the tank. i emailed reptile basics, they said i CAN insulate the heat tape. So i'll be removing the heat tape below the substrate, just keeping the one above it, and insulating the back and both sides of the tank. But will that solve my dry substrate problem?

[fandt94]

Obviously I’m not too knowledgeable yet but how come you had the tape below the substrate? Just curious. I’m also curious to what someone with more knowledge will say. When I set up my new tank, on top of the mixed substrate I did a thin layer of EE that I hoped over time the crabs would mix in to help keep the substrate good.

[ciaraalston]

I added the tape below the substrate because having it just above wasn't keeping the temperature up. Once i added it below, the temp help but my substrate is drying.
I hope if i keep just the one above the substrate and insulate the back and sides that the temp holds.

[wodesorel]

The substrate will dry out over time, it's what stabilizes the humidity in the tank. That moisture has to come from somewhere! The heat tape speeds the process when it's below the substrate and will boost humidity levels. If you remove it you may end up with lower humidity than what you want, you'll need to try it and see. I have to add in water to my sub along the heat mats to keep everything stable, but it works really well and is the only maintenance I have to perform.

[ciaraalston]

The substrate will dry out over time, it's what stabilizes the humidity in the tank. That moisture has to come from somewhere! The heat tape speeds the process when it's below the substrate and will boost humidity levels. If you remove it you may end up with lower humidity than what you want, you'll need to try it and see. I have to add in water to my sub along the heat mats to keep everything stable, but it works really well and is the only maintenance I have to perform.

Once my Es are up, i'll be able to take everyone out and mix the substrate with more water but until then i can pour it along the back wall. How much water do you pour and how often?

[wodesorel]

I do a bottle or two of water whenever it starts looking dry, maybe once every month or two depending on the weather. More in winter! It's not a hard and fast rule. I use straight sand so it's easy to tell by color if it's wet or dry.

[ciaraalston]

I use mostly EE, but i can eyeball it and do pencil tests regularly.

[wodesorel]

I would be cautious with EE. With sand, water tends to spread evenly without puddling at the bottom. Cocofiber on the other hand tends to drain well, which sends the water straight down. I would recommend spraying the surface so it has time to absorb, rather than just pouring to prevent issues!

[curlysister]

How big of a tank would you add a couple of bottles of water to, Wode? When I add water, pouring it along the side/ back of the tank, I am quite cautious and only put maybe a half a cup at a time, spread out in different locations! My tank is 55 gallons. Maybe I don't need to be quite so cautious?

[HHIhermies1004]

With heat tape being below the substrate and my bubblers aren't as powerful as they used to be (gotta replace them i guess, i'm not sure why they're low now) but my humidity stays average 75% but my substrate is so dry! I have 2 Es buried right now.... What can i do?
Yesterday i tried pouring a LITTLE water into the substate and misting but i didn't want to flood the tank. i emailed reptile basics, they said i CAN insulate the heat tape. So i'll be removing the heat tape below the substrate, just keeping the one above it, and insulating the back and both sides of the tank. But will that solve my dry substrate problem?

Just something to look into from owning several fish tanks. The air pumps will start to work wonky if water is back flowing into the pump so I would suggest changing your tubing since humidity builds inside the tubing and installing a check valve to prevent water back flow. Cheap you'll only need one get at petstore for about a dollar.


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[wodesorel]

How big of a tank would you add a couple of bottles of water to, Wode? When I add water, pouring it along the side/ back of the tank, I am quite cautious and only put maybe a half a cup at a time, spread out in different locations! My tank is 55 gallons. Maybe I don't need to be quite so cautious?

My tanks tend to dry so fast I don't worry about flooding. I pour mainly along the back, but also on any other spot that is dry. For my 10 gallon I used to do 8 to 16 ounces, for my 29 gallon I do 16 to 32 ounces, and for my 135 gallon I would do 1 to 2 gallons. My 75 gallon tubs upstairs surprisingly have never needed messed with much, just a quart here and there to keep the surface good.

[ciaraalston]

With heat tape being below the substrate and my bubblers aren't as powerful as they used to be (gotta replace them i guess, i'm not sure why they're low now) but my humidity stays average 75% but my substrate is so dry! I have 2 Es buried right now.... What can i do?
Yesterday i tried pouring a LITTLE water into the substate and misting but i didn't want to flood the tank. i emailed reptile basics, they said i CAN insulate the heat tape. So i'll be removing the heat tape below the substrate, just keeping the one above it, and insulating the back and both sides of the tank. But will that solve my dry substrate problem?

Just something to look into from owning several fish tanks. The air pumps will start to work wonky if water is back flowing into the pump so I would suggest changing your tubing since humidity builds inside the tubing and installing a check valve to prevent water back flow. Cheap you'll only need one get at petstore for about a dollar.


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I will try this, thank you!

[GotButterflies]

I swear by glass tops. I know they are pricey- but they really work! My humidity stays at 99%


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[ciaraalston]

I swear by glass tops. I know they are pricey- but they really work! My humidity stays at 99%


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I've been thinking about a plexiglass lid. Would it also help with keeping heat in a little more than my seran wrap?

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[Motörcrab]

I had a piece of plexiglass cut for half of our 75 gallon tank. I had a 6" hole cut in the center to allow a UV bulb to shine directly down into the tank. The plexiglass measures less than 2' x 2' and ran me about $30. In reality it would be about the same price to do the entire 75 gallon in plexiglass as buying the entire glass 2 piece lid. It would probably be cheaper to get it and cut it yourself though.

We first started with Saran wrap under a screen top. Adding the glass tops made big improvements with humidity with all of our tanks. It's a lot less of a hassle not having to rearrange the plastic whenever you need to get into the tank. I thought it was worth the price of going with glass for that luxury!