DIY Fogger assembled, A+

mattjillson

New Member
Well, I took a couple hours today to do some shopping and modified a basic ultra sonic humidifier to work as a fogger and set up a new enclosure. I went off of pics I saw from chambabysitter and the link Chris posted to the Ezine. Good stuff guys, worked with very little brain power on my end.

So far, from what I've seen, the fogger works better that I was expecting. I ran it for a few hours today to see how it works and how much moisture it built up in the enclosure plants. I'm amazed how quite it is and how little water from its reservoir it uses but how wet the plants got. I had almost got it to rain in the cage it was getting so thick with mist! Next time no room fan on to see what happens. I was hoping to get the same results as Josh with his Quads and it seems I might have nailed it. I still have my Rainmaker Jr. that I bought almost 10 years ago and it looks like I won't have to bring it out of retirement. I plan on tinkering with it for the next week or two to work out some type of "fog cycle" where I can get the enclosure really wet and allow it to dry out during the day. We'll see how it goes.

I used 2 old Scales cages I picked up from Dan I have had laying around for years and years now. You know you've been around Chameleons for a while if you remember Dan. Just flipped one upside down and screwed it to the bottom of the second cage. Simple and cheap, since I had the cages just taking up space and big too once assembled. I still have some work to do, like get a water trap bin going, some lighting and to put in some perches but I'm pretty satisfied with how it's coming along. I might want to attach a Reptisun along the back wall of the cage to run length ways and have a 40 watt bulb up top for a basking spot. Thoughts?


Instead of putting on an end cap to close off the piping, I put an L joint to have a large exit for the fog. In addition to this, I burned 4 holes in the bottom of the pipe facing the cage. I noted that if the holes you burn are too small your tube will clog and not emit fog or just very little. You can see in the middle the fog building up.


P1010140.jpg


I opted to use the Ziploc 8oz Tupperware cup to create a cap on the humidifier. Cups that would fit inside the top of the humidifier weren't large enough to cover the vapor hole from the reservoir. Plus a 6-pack was on sale for $1.29, the remainder becoming mise en place containers - classic win/win. You see here the remainder of the "Penguin" humidifier. A quick and steady hand with the glue is necessary to get the cup placed right.

P1010144.jpg


I'm seriously considering getting a few Orchids to add but I'm not sure how they'd do in something like this. I know a few of you are deep with those guys, what do you think? What varieties would work best? Thanks for the input.

-Matt
 
Convinced

You guys have finally convinced me to do this project. I am planning on getting a Veiled and I have been battle on ways to keep the cage humid. Is this also a good way to allow the chameleon to drink?




Well, I took a couple hours today to do some shopping and modified a basic ultra sonic humidifier to work as a fogger and set up a new enclosure. I went off of pics I saw from chambabysitter and the link Chris posted to the Ezine. Good stuff guys, worked with very little brain power on my end.

So far, from what I've seen, the fogger works better that I was expecting. I ran it for a few hours today to see how it works and how much moisture it built up in the enclosure plants. I'm amazed how quite it is and how little water from its reservoir it uses but how wet the plants got. I had almost got it to rain in the cage it was getting so thick with mist! Next time no room fan on to see what happens. I was hoping to get the same results as Josh with his Quads and it seems I might have nailed it. I still have my Rainmaker Jr. that I bought almost 10 years ago and it looks like I won't have to bring it out of retirement. I plan on tinkering with it for the next week or two to work out some type of "fog cycle" where I can get the enclosure really wet and allow it to dry out during the day. We'll see how it goes.

I used 2 old Scales cages I picked up from Dan I have had laying around for years and years now. You know you've been around Chameleons for a while if you remember Dan. Just flipped one upside down and screwed it to the bottom of the second cage. Simple and cheap, since I had the cages just taking up space and big too once assembled. I still have some work to do, like get a water trap bin going, some lighting and to put in some perches but I'm pretty satisfied with how it's coming along. I might want to attach a Reptisun along the back wall of the cage to run length ways and have a 40 watt bulb up top for a basking spot. Thoughts?


Instead of putting on an end cap to close off the piping, I put an L joint to have a large exit for the fog. In addition to this, I burned 4 holes in the bottom of the pipe facing the cage. I noted that if the holes you burn are too small your tube will clog and not emit fog or just very little. You can see in the middle the fog building up.


P1010140.jpg


I opted to use the Ziploc 8oz Tupperware cup to create a cap on the humidifier. Cups that would fit inside the top of the humidifier weren't large enough to cover the vapor hole from the reservoir. Plus a 6-pack was on sale for $1.29, the remainder becoming mise en place containers - classic win/win. You see here the remainder of the "Penguin" humidifier. A quick and steady hand with the glue is necessary to get the cup placed right.

P1010144.jpg


I'm seriously considering getting a few Orchids to add but I'm not sure how they'd do in something like this. I know a few of you are deep with those guys, what do you think? What varieties would work best? Thanks for the input.

-Matt
 
Matt I love the DIY setup, very nice, but I do have one question for you do you plan on doing this instead of having a mister and is this going to be the main way you guy gets hydrated? Thanks,

-Dave
 
Thanks for the replies guys. I'm not sure if this would be the main or only source of water. I did get it to somewhat rain a bit in the middle of the top plant into the bottom plant. Based on this it might be a major contributor of hydration to the point that I won't need to set up my misting system. The thing is loud and sucks down water, so I would like to stay away from it for only 1 set up. I would still have to do some hand misting or possibly the occasional drip cup I'd wager though. We'll see, the cage isn't holding anything at the moment, so will depend on how the animal reacts. I do know that Josh uses a fogger as the main source of hydration for his Quads, so it might work for a dwarf species.

Any Orchid people out there who have experience keeping flowering plants thriving in a Cham set up? I plan on using for Reptisun and 40 watt uvb bulb and have the fogger running of course. Thoughts? Thanks!
 
The condensation on the top of the cage will keep a constant source of water for the chams. Even if the water isn't dripping, my quads know where to go and just take the drops off of the top. It is exactly the same concept as cup feeding just with water. Nice work, Matt. I am going to have to do it myself!
 
Hey Matt,

Great setup. When are you getting your merumontanus?

I don't think you'll do so well with orchids in the enclosure, unless you can prevent the plants from collecting too much water. Medium-light orchids such as Phalaenopsis have a crown that acts as a water reservoir, eventually causing rot and death.

You'll probably do much better in smaller enclosures such as vivariums for stump-tail chameleons, where you can really control the amount (and location) of watering.

Either way, if you succeed, I'd love to see photos!

Cheers,

Fabián
 
Hi Fabien,
I had a CB animal lined up that unfortunately the seller was too attached too. There should be a shipment coming in 2-3 weeks. We'll see what is available from that. If that doesn't pan out, my local Reptile shop has a Willingness form of j jacksoni that will need a little acclimation but looks to have some nice colors hiding under the scruff.

Fear, Did you put one together? Let's see pics.
 
Hi Fabien,
I had a CB animal lined up that unfortunately the seller was too attached too. There should be a shipment coming in 2-3 weeks. We'll see what is available from that. If that doesn't pan out, my local Reptile shop has a Willingness form of j jacksoni that will need a little acclimation but looks to have some nice colors hiding under the scruff.

Fear, Did you put one together? Let's see pics.

No not yet, I have 2 Ambilobes diggin holes for their eggs......gotta watch for that.................I'll post when I have the humidifier done......
 
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