[bsamps]

The humid hide is on the UTH side which has been maintaining a 85-90 temp. I'm using sphagnum moss dipped in warm ro water then squeezed out to keep humid. Both new Leo's molted yesterday, and left it just outside of their hide, so I know that the humid hide is working however, I check the moss morning and night to see if it's still damp, and both AM & PM it's dry as a bone. Am I not soaking it long enough? Does it need to be more damp? Does it always need to be humid in there? Or is this just what I need to do periodically throughout the day (which I don't mind)?

[Mardy]

You are doing fine, you can allow the moss to be a bit more dripping wet if you want to keep it moist long enough. But if you have your moist hide sitting directly above the UTH, it will dry out faster, and there's not much you can do about it. However leopard geckos don't need a completely moist hide 100% of the time so having it dry during the day while they sleep is fine. You could place the moist hide in a way that half of it is over warn floor, the other half cool. Doing it this way may allow you to keep the moisture inside the moisthide longer.

Also depends on what you use as your moist hide container. If you use a container with the opening on the top, try one with an opening on the side so moisture does not escape as easy.

With regards to sphagnum moss, I feel I should toss in an user warning. Leopard geckos are known to ingest sphagnum moss at times. And as you can see how the moss is, it's not digestible. So sometimes they get impacted due to sphagnum moss. It's a warning you don't hear often, but impaction from sphagnum moss happens more than you think with leopard geckos. Just google it up and you will find plenty of forum threads and ugly pictures of this happening.

I saw this happen not with my own geckos, but with someone else's. Ever since then I've used wet paper towels as the moist hide medium. It works well for me and I'm happy to not have to worry about impaction risk. Some people also use cocofiber, which is also a fine alternative to sphagnum moss. Cocofiber is small enough that if ingested, they don't seem to have that negative effect that sphagnum moss have.

Anyways, thought I'd toss these ideas out there. You as the owner gets to decide what's best for your own pets. Good luck

[shanao]

I am NOT an expert, but I use natural sponge. It's working well and when I tuck it way in the back on the moist hide it seems to stay moist for a week!

[bsamps]

Thanks for the info. I did not realize that sphagnum miss could be a hazard. I think I will look into another alternative. I thought about paper towels at first and probably should've gone with that. The sponge idea is interesting. Maybe I'm being a bit too cautious but, I think a sea sponge would be best, vs the color dyed sponges that you see in the grocery store.

[shanao]

yep. natural sea sponge.

[Riverside Reptiles]

Grocery store sponge works fine too. Keep in mind that people use them to wash their dishes that they eat off of. So they're obviously safe and non toxic. Something else to keep in mind is that you do want the humid hide to dry out some as constant heat + humidity = the perfect environment for bacteria to breed. So keep it very clean and do let it dry out from time to time. One of the nice things about sponges is that they can be run through the dish washer.

[Mardy]

One issue with sponge is sanitation. Much like the sponge we use to wash our dishes with, they trap bacteria, mold, and anything that wants to grow inside it.

[bsamps]

Originally Posted by Mardy

One issue with sponge is sanitation. Much like the sponge we use to wash our dishes with, they trap bacteria, mold, and anything that wants to grow inside it.

I was just thinking the same. I know that sponge that sometimes sits behind the sink sure get nasty sometimes. Guess that's why it's suggested to nuke your kitchen sponges from time to time. I suppose the same idea could be applied to our humi sponges, too.

[Yoshi'smom]

Another warning about a dish sponge is that you may want to really rinse it well before you put it in the tank. I've had dish sponges come straight out of the package with pre-soapies in it.... Other than that I think a sponge would be a great alternative.

[bsamps]

Originally Posted by Yoshi'smom

Another warning about a dish sponge is that you may want to really rinse it well before you put it in the tank. I've had dish sponges come straight out of the package with pre-soapies in it.... Other than that I think a sponge would be a great alternative.

I agree that the typical grocery store sponge will most likely contain chemicals that we don't want however, I think a natural sea sponge would be best.