Need general enclosure advice

[Natos]

Hello everyone!

Unfortunatelly my previous panther chameleon passed away some weeks ago (after 4,5 happy years) and i would like to get some advice about my enclosure before getting the new resident to make sure he will have a long and happy life. I've bought this terrarium about a half year ago because i wanted to have a bigger vivid enclosure with bioactive soil, living plants, isopods and with proper misting system. I have an arcadia pro T5 6% UVB at back and i am still testing if i need 1 or 2 50W heating lamp (at the moment i have 1 on the left side above basking branch and a fan on the right side). The fan is working only during the lamps are on and it is switched off during night. Like this the temperature at the top right corner is about 26 °C and the room itself is kept at about that temperature. Under the basking spot there is about 32 °C. The basking branch is about 13 cm away from the top and the chameleon can't go directly under the UVB lamp as basking spot is at the front and the lamp is at the back. I am misting for some seconds after switching lamps on and before switching lamps off and 2 more times during the day. The moss and the soil keeps water well and in the room (where terrarium is located) there is about 50% humidity during summer so now even without misting i can keep about 60-70% humidity during the day under the fan. In the evening without the lamps and the fan it goes up to about 90% humidity. The terrarium has opening at the bottom under the doors and on the top. Everything was bought and built from a local terraristics shop. After i've bought the terrarium i read that it should have had some kind of ceramics layer under the soil for water absorbtion but i have never seen mold anywhere and plants are growing happily. I hope this extra layer is really not mandatory as i would have to rebuild the whole thing by myself and i've spent a tons of money on the kit. The dimensions of the terrarium are: 80x50x100 cm.

Please help me with these questions:

• Do i even need misting with this high humidity during summer? Or it would be enough to mist in the morning and evening and install a dripper for drinking?
• Is the temperature okay like this and is it okay if on one side the top of the terrarium is colder than under the basking spot on the other side?
• Can i place the fan as it can blow air on the chameleon or should it be placed somehow it won't happen? I set it to about 65 CFM (1800 rpm).
• Is the placement of the UVB lamp is okay like this and won't be harmful to the chameleon?
• Can i give only distilled water for the chameleon or i should use a dripper with normal tap water (we have quite hard water at my location)? I use only distilled water in the misting system.

I couldn't take very good pictures of the terrarium because of the reflection but i tried my best to take some. If you have any other advice that i could do better please share it with me.

Thank you very much!

 

[LizardLurkin]

The accepted minimum for chameleons is 60cmx60cmx122cm (2ftx2ftx4ft)
Chameleons get pretty long, and so you want to give them plenty of space to comfortably turn around and explore. Maybe someone can chime in with how feasible the current dimensions are.

For humidity, it really depends on your ambient humidity. There are a few ways to check this, a decent hygrometer placed in the room and monitored is one of them. I used a dual thermometer/hygrometer to get an idea of what the room was sitting at.
Honestly, rather than foregoing important equipment like either a good handmister or an automatic misting system (I highly recommend the mistking) it might be better to consider a standing dehumidifier for the room you plan to have the cham in, if humidity is too out of control.
Daytime humidity for a panther is recommended to be 40-50% while nighttime humidity should see a spike of 80%-100% humidity. I'd be shocked if your house was in these ranges as is! Misting is also very important for chameleons to get their hydration. In my experience, my chameleon never drinks from the dripper (that I've seen) so he must get all his hydration from the misting sessions.

As for the fan, you would not want the fan to point down into the enclosure. You would want it to suck out air from the enclosure and blow it outwards to create a chimney effect. This will stave the possibility of the cham developing respiratory infections. The humidity itself isn't so much the problem as is stagnant air from a lack air flow.

I noticed you said "UVB lamp" and I don't think I see it here either, but it is crucial, of the utmost importance! To purchase a linear UVB. The round lamp bulbs do not supply the correct UVB for our chameleons at all. This can stunt their growth, lead to MBD, and bad eye health. The trusted linear UVB bulbs are Reptisun T5 Ho or Arcadia 6%. These lights will still put out light past their effectiveness, however. It is generally recommended to replace the bulbs every six months (Though I hear arcadia bulbs can last a year). The best way to ensure you're getting proper output, however, is to purchase a solarmeter 6.5 uv index measurer, though it is rather pricey. In the long run, it does save $$$ on the bulbs.

Also for the heating, it's pretty standard that the basking spot is the warmest place in the enclosure, and the ambient temp to be lower. It's good for them to have a centralized basking spot and avenues of cooling down if they need to. This is what's recommended for panthers:

Aaaand I use tap water for my dripper, and purified water for my mister...Though I do have well water and it's not terribly hard...Maybe someone smarter can help there!

 

[BleuSaphir]

How big is this terrarium?