# vivarium air circulation



## CicoMico (Jul 12, 2007)

hello! i'm new in here. i was thinking about constructing my own vivarium. size should be 50x50x45cm. i have one question about ventilation. many vivariums use front side and top ventilation. i was thinking about doing only top 10-15cm ventilation. would it be enough? what about air circulation? i don't want to grow mould or have overheated vivarium. what are your suggestions?


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## jundox (Jul 5, 2007)

A lot of people rig computer case fans to their setups... Do max/min temperature and humidity tests to determine if it is even necessary first. 
Having a fan could greatly impact both temp and humidity. 

EDIT: Personally, I like the case fan idea as an intake when I need temps reduced but exhaust when I just want air flow. I've also noticed that I can reduce temps slighlty be repositioning the exhaust from the center (better for intake IMO) to a corner of the tank.

Other people just use a typical house fan across the room and have it blow toward the viv... while this won't impact the levels nearly as much as installing a fan directly, it will eliminate some of the condensation from building up on the glass.

As for your question on size of ventilation, the top only dimensions should be more than enough, since having front and side also wouldn't allow you to maintain a high level of humidity. 

Again make sure you run the temp/hum tests... depending on where you live & where the tank is, you might do more harm than good by unneccesarily modding it.


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## CicoMico (Jul 12, 2007)

jundox said:


> A lot of people rig computer case fans to their setups... Do max/min temperature and humidity tests to determine if it is even necessary first.
> Having an exhaust fan or intake could greatly impact both temp and humidity. Personally, I like the case fan idea as an intake since it doesn't drop my humidity as drastically as an exhaust fan.
> 
> Other people just use a typical house fan across the room and have it blow toward the viv... while this won't impact the levels nearly as much as installing a fan directly, it will eliminate some of the condensation from building up on the glass.
> ...


hmm... thank you. so with these dimensions and with one vent on the top, i will be fine? if so, where to put it? right above front door? 10 cm would be enough? but what about mold grow? wouldn't be a problem? and what about stagnant air? thanx for help.


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## jundox (Jul 5, 2007)

You should seed your tank with springtails so that they can help create a natural soil environment which should eliminate potential mold. Also flourecent lighting could help in keeping plants florishing, which will keep springtails alive longer, which will keep your tank cleaner.

As for fan placment, the more centered you have it, the more the tank will have air circulated evenly. I wouldn't put it next to the front door, since air will escape thru gaps fairly quickly and you'll miss the opportunity for circulation. 

If you are going with an intake fan, make sure you have some place for air to escape from the tank (small enough to prevent escapees and humidity drops)... I have a piece of acrylic that my fan sits on that has one hole cut to fit my 80mm fan, and another hole of equal size right next to it with no fan in it... that acrylic sits on half of my screen top. The other half is covered by an 18in canopy compact light.

If you are going with an exhaust fan, ventilation will not be an issue.

Edit:
As long as you have either a screen top and/or a fan circulating air, you wont have stagnant air.


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## CicoMico (Jul 12, 2007)

jundox said:


> You should seed your tank with springtails so that they can help create a natural soil environment which should eliminate potential mold. Also flourecent lighting could help in keeping plants florishing, which will keep springtails alive longer, which will keep your tank cleaner.
> 
> As for fan placment, the more centered you have it, the more the tank will have air circulated evenly. I wouldn't put it next to the front door, since air will escape thru gaps fairly quickly and you'll miss the opportunity for circulation.
> 
> ...


well, thanx. this is very informative. but, maybe i'm not very clear. i want to make viv with these dimensions 50x50x45cm (45 is height). front door will be one door, no sliding or similar. then on top (in the middle?) will be 10cm blank for ventilation (with mesh). i don't want to use any fans or so... will this work without problems? i mean without problems, which i was originaly asking about. thank you.


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## bstorm83 (Jul 16, 2007)

i thought for the most part you really dont need that much ventilation?


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## jundox (Jul 5, 2007)

Ahhh I see... I prefer to use fans as opposed to not, but check with others to see if they've had success with fanless enclosures.

In your situation with not needing an intake for cooler temps, I would still put an exhaust fan on their running on a timer (a half hour every few hours) just to circulate the air around once in a while... In the case of an exhaust fan, the middle of the top will not produce as much flow as a putting it in a corner (that the fan uses the sides and back of the tank to draw air better than in the open center). Also if you do this, you can keep the voltage higher on the fan than if it were an intake.

Again tho, your questions (and for that matter, my answers) greatly depend on your tank and the environment you live in. Hope that helps some what.


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## pl259 (Feb 27, 2006)

Not sure exactly what the dimensions are for your vent. 10cm x ???

I wouldn't expect a lot of difference in mold growth or condensation on the front glass with a vent that is only 1/5th the width(10cm/50cm). It seems small to me. 

A single vent on top will not create a big convective flow. Without a fan, you would need at least two vents and a difference in temp between them, to get any amount of air exchange. That's one reason why you see one at the hotter top and one near the cooler bottom of a viv. 

If there are big enough natural temp differences within the viv, there will be some natural convection going on, but not much. Many people add fan(s) internal to the viv to boost the natural convection and recirculate the air.

I would design a custom viv with a lot of ventilation. It's far easier to block it off, then to add it later.

EricG.NH


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## CicoMico (Jul 12, 2007)

pl259 said:


> Not sure exactly what the dimensions are for your vent. 10cm x ???
> 
> I wouldn't expect a lot of difference in mold growth or condensation on the front glass with a vent that is only 1/5th the width(10cm/50cm). It seems small to me.
> 
> ...


hmmm... i redesigned my plans. i will put 5x50cm in the front (bottom under the front door) and 5x50cm on the top. would it be enough?


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## pl259 (Feb 27, 2006)

> hmmm... i redesigned my plans. i will put 5x50cm in the front (bottom under the front door) and 5x50cm on the top. would it be enough?


Yea, now we're talkin! That sounds pretty good. A 5cm width is a good size too if you want to add a 40mmx40mm computer fan(s) later on.

Post some pics/drawings when you can.

EricG.NH


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## CicoMico (Jul 12, 2007)

pl259 said:


> > hmmm... i redesigned my plans. i will put 5x50cm in the front (bottom under the front door) and 5x50cm on the top. would it be enough?
> 
> 
> Yea, now we're talkin! That sounds pretty good. A 5cm width is a good size too if you want to add a 40mmx40mm computer fan(s) later on.
> ...


ok. thanx! so am i finally done with ventilation? can i start to make first one? i will do 3d model and post later.


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## Wusserton (Feb 21, 2014)

Correct me if Im wrong but with the use of springtails and the natural mosses and plants that create oxygen just open the front door, mist it lightly and then close it again, fresh air lol I mean everything should be somewhat mold resistant anyway if you use the correct building products and then throw springtails in there too, I personally ise LED lighting, they have the spectrums plants need and throw of virtually no heat, room temp is thriving for frogs and spring tails, my hpuse is at 67 but my office which is where the tank is, gets around 70 because of my computer equipment and other tanks (reptiles)


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## gturmindright (Mar 15, 2006)

It's not as simple as animals breathe oxygen and release CO2 and plants use CO2 and release oxygen like everyone thinks. Plants also perform respiration. Also, how many plants does it take to balance x amount of isopods, springtails frogs etc. Also, what about other gases that may be present due to microbial activity or other chemical reactions?
Air circulation also helps plants with transpiration which helps it assimilate water and nutrients by moving more water through the plant. It also helps prevent fungus (disease) from growing on plants by not allowing them to settle onto the leaves and become established. It also helps by keeping moisture off of the leaf tissue. Not just condensation water but guttation water which usually contains some sugar and is a lovely place for fungus to grow. 
Air circulation will help plants and animals cool themselves in case the temperatures ever get higher than the plant or animal prefers. You want the plants and animals to be able to "sweat" and have the "sweat" evaporate so that they can regulate their temperatures effectively.
Air circulation should help plants have stronger stems.
Air circulation will help the tank smell better.
Air circulation could help animals breathe better by moving the fresh air from the top of the tank to the bottom of the tank where they may be breathing their waste.
Air circulation may give your tank more usable space by eliminating extreme hot or cold spots, making temperatures more consistent throughout the tank. It's possible that frogs may utilize more of the tank instead of avoiding that hot or cold spot. 

These are the reasons I'll be using fans from now on. Some of these may not be fact. They are mostly based on my opinion and experience. The thing is that air circulation can only have positive effects if you are using fans that you can completely control. 
Recently I started a nursery tank that is almost completely sealed (sliding glass doors) and I have seen amazing growth. Like I've never seen before. You can almost do anything to a plant and it'll survive. The tank has ample lighting and has a small puddle of water at the bottom with plants sitting on a false bottom above the water. Usually 90+ humidity and 70-80 degrees and a fan on 24/7. I can't believe I haven't observed any disease yet. I have about 20+ plants in there and they are all thriving. I am sure without the fans I'd have things rotting and getting disease.


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