kholtme
New member
I just wanted to write a little review on Zoo Meds 3 in 1 medium hide. This one --> Amazon.com : Zoo Med Reptile Shelter 3 in 1 Cave, Medium : Leopard Gecko : Pet Supplies
This is the same hide that [MENTION=3989]Elizabeth Freer[/MENTION] recommend to me for a humid hide, but when she recommended it to me she did not know that they slightly changed the design of the hide. I called Zoo Med and talked to them when I realized that my hide was different than Elizabeth's. The older style was made out of resin (similar to plastic) and had a flat bottom. They said with how much moisture that the hide was producing the resin was known to crack, so zoo med changed the material to ceramic to prevent this problem. When they made this switch, they also changed the bottom. With the new style, the bottom is raised up about a quarter inch, and the hide is only touching the ground around the edge. For those of you who dont know, air is an insulator. So this air pocket under the hide prevents the heat from the uth to travel up into the substrate (in my case i was using eco earth inside the hide). I liked the hide because it had such a big bowl that it could hold a lot of eco earth, which could hold more moisture so i didnt have to re-damp it every day. I could go every other day. My tile on the warm side was around 91-93, and i had a 100 watt CHE 12 inches from the ground. My warm air temps were 78 on average. With the CHE on, the top of the eco earth inside the hide were only reaching 75-80 degrees and there was no condensation being created on the inside walls of the hide, even if I poured water into the hide until it there was sitting water a quarter inch below the surface of the eco earth. My gecko was not having any problems shedding so I kind of over looked it. Now that it is getting warmer outside, I turned my CHE off because my room temps are warmer as well. This is what worried me, because now the CHE was not heating up the top of the hide and it was cool to the touch, about 74 degrees. The eco earth was only reaching about 70 and my gecko was no longer spending time in this hide (when the CHE was on this was the hide he used most). I switched this hide out for a different one that was flat on the bottom, but it doesnt have a bowl like area that you can fill with eco earth, so i am now using damp paper towels. It is creating condensation and I no longer have to worry about it. My 3 in 1 hide is now the cool hide. The 3 in 1 hide is a great hide and it is constructed well, but with the new design I would not recommend it as a humid/warm dry hide. If you can find the old style hide it would be a different story, but they no longer make them.
This is the same hide that [MENTION=3989]Elizabeth Freer[/MENTION] recommend to me for a humid hide, but when she recommended it to me she did not know that they slightly changed the design of the hide. I called Zoo Med and talked to them when I realized that my hide was different than Elizabeth's. The older style was made out of resin (similar to plastic) and had a flat bottom. They said with how much moisture that the hide was producing the resin was known to crack, so zoo med changed the material to ceramic to prevent this problem. When they made this switch, they also changed the bottom. With the new style, the bottom is raised up about a quarter inch, and the hide is only touching the ground around the edge. For those of you who dont know, air is an insulator. So this air pocket under the hide prevents the heat from the uth to travel up into the substrate (in my case i was using eco earth inside the hide). I liked the hide because it had such a big bowl that it could hold a lot of eco earth, which could hold more moisture so i didnt have to re-damp it every day. I could go every other day. My tile on the warm side was around 91-93, and i had a 100 watt CHE 12 inches from the ground. My warm air temps were 78 on average. With the CHE on, the top of the eco earth inside the hide were only reaching 75-80 degrees and there was no condensation being created on the inside walls of the hide, even if I poured water into the hide until it there was sitting water a quarter inch below the surface of the eco earth. My gecko was not having any problems shedding so I kind of over looked it. Now that it is getting warmer outside, I turned my CHE off because my room temps are warmer as well. This is what worried me, because now the CHE was not heating up the top of the hide and it was cool to the touch, about 74 degrees. The eco earth was only reaching about 70 and my gecko was no longer spending time in this hide (when the CHE was on this was the hide he used most). I switched this hide out for a different one that was flat on the bottom, but it doesnt have a bowl like area that you can fill with eco earth, so i am now using damp paper towels. It is creating condensation and I no longer have to worry about it. My 3 in 1 hide is now the cool hide. The 3 in 1 hide is a great hide and it is constructed well, but with the new design I would not recommend it as a humid/warm dry hide. If you can find the old style hide it would be a different story, but they no longer make them.
