My Mister/draining system (lots of pics)

[Lenny]

Hi all,

3 weeks ago I figured that my veiled cham (Lenny) wasn't getting enough water and humidity during the day. Because I was going away on working experience for a while and that my (very busy) girlfriend was going to take care of him, I was going to have to make something automatic. Thaught that you guys might wanna have a peek. So here it is.

The air pump (usually for aquariums)...

plugged with a digital timer to go off at certain intervals during the day...

pumps air into this water jug...

which then pushes the pressurized water through this mister add-on (usually for garden hoses) which I adapted to the tubing with non-toxic sealant.

...But then I realized I would have a water build-up. When the plant gets too much water it drips underneath the pot. Iv'e had this problem before and that's why I had put a pie pan underneath to collect the water (which was a hassle to empty). So I thaught a draining system was in order.

I took everthing out to place these little baskets to later make an incline.

Then I put this green mat on top and configured it to bring the water from the plant to slide down to a part of the cage that wasn't on the bookshelf.

I pierced the mat where the water slides down.

Water drips through the cage. I already had this plastic sheet to protect the bookshelf so I folded it to direct the water into this bucket.

And there you have it!

Took a lot of work and problem solving. It isn't much and it probably costed me more than it should but it'll have to do until I finally build the cage of Lenny's (or my) dreams this summer with my dad.

What do y'all think?

 

[fabos]

looks pretty cool...

so how much pressure does that little pump produce.. id love to see i pic of if working

 

[MWheelock]

How did you attach the tubing to the bottom of your waterbottle (resevoir) without it leaking with increasing pressure? How much pressure do you get from that aquarium air pump? (decent spray?)

Neat idea... How much to make this positive pressure system of yours?

Matthew

PS Oh yeah, for incorporating the laws of physics into your daily life...I'm afraid you have out'ed yourself as a physics nerd. (Welcom to the club )

 

[Lenny]

It says 4.0 PSI on the machine but I don't set it on high. Because although it would give a better spray, it would also give a longer lasting one (like 1/2 hour long approx.). Iv'e tried taking a picture of the spray but it's hard getting a decent shot. But the truth is I think I should get a different misting bit since this one is designed for garden hose pressure which the aquarium pump can obviously not match. To better the system I should use a harder reservoir. This water jug is too ''elastic'', meaning it's hard for the pump to increase pressure fast enough because the jug expands and loses water at the same time. And afterwards, deflates slowly making water come out long after the pump is finish until pressure is normal.

As for the tubing at the bottom, I used a drill to make a hole smaller than the tubing and shoved it in. Simple as that.

As for the cost, in canadian $, air pump = 50$, tubing (6feet...I wanted to make sure I had alot) about 15$ I think, big plastic water bottle 2$, add-on mister 10$...and the rest (sealant, elastic bands, hose adapter...). Id say little over 100 can$. But I bet you could get away with cheaper than that.

 

[Lenny]

P.S. I'm not taking all the credit, the pet store guy gave me the basic Idea.

 

[gonzalez6115]

where can you get the misting nozzles? i've been looking all over and cant find em anywhere.

 

[Lenny]

I got this hose add-on at a hardware/gardening store.

 

[thechurro]

What kind of aquarium pump are you using? I tried this same idea a couple weeks ago but could only get enough pressure to have the nozzle 6 inches above the water jug.

 

[Lenny]

It's a Hagen Optima Elite Air Pump....4.0 PSI/lb/pO2....It was the biggest one at the pet store.