[unbwogable]

I'm new to the scene. I've got a 30 gallon tank with two fire belly toads in it, and an abundance of plants. They're doing well, but during the winter months, I'm trying to increase the humidity to compensate for the forced-heat system in my house. What I've got is a small plexiglass container hanging on the back of the tank with an ultrasonic humidifier in it. It creates that little bit of fog that rolls down the back of the tank. Looks cool, works well. Problem is, I've got two humidifiers, and when they are running, after about 2-3 hours, the water inside get's so hot that I can't even stick my finger in it. I know this isn't normal. At this moment, I'm running just one, to see if that helps. I'll post results. Anyone else had this type of issue?

 

[unbwogable]

Ok, single humidifier makes the water hot, just not AS hot. What is this issue?

 

[Postal Penguin]

Probably, the ultrasonic mechanism itself is heating the water(like say a powerhead motor heating the water) or the friction of the water molecules moving back and forth is heating the water up. Perhaps try a timer that turns it on for an hour then off for an hour?

 

[JDowns]

Sounds as though the model you are using uses heat to generate the fog and the source of water is too small to dissipate that heat quickly. An ionic cool mist type humidifier would work better. Walgreens sells a model that is very easy to modifiy and DIY for about $30. They hold a gallon and a half of water and one would easily be enough for that size tank. You can either put it on a timer or use a ball valve to regulate the amount of fog that enters the tank. The rest will condensate in the line and return to the humidifier lessening the amount of water used. If you want I can take a few photos of how to DIY one of these.

 

[jflng]

Sounds as though the model you are using uses heat to generate the fog and the source of water is too small to dissipate that heat quickly. An ionic cool mist type humidifier would work better. Walgreens sells a model that is very easy to modifiy and DIY for about $30. They hold a gallon and a half of water and one would easily be enough for that size tank. You can either put it on a timer or use a ball valve to regulate the amount of fog that enters the tank. The rest will condensate in the line and return to the humidifier lessening the amount of water used. If you want I can take a few photos of how to DIY one of these.

I recently made one of these from a $25.00 cool mist dehumidifier from ebay, and about 2 dollars in parts from Lowe's. I gave it a few long test runs and it works perfectly. I too can give more details and pictures if you're interested.

 

[hydrophyte]

Have you considered just investing in a Mist King? I think the basic model is a hundred bucks and you could probably find one used too.