Items/Reviews for My New Setup

Humidifier

The best item I bought for my new setup (besides the air conditioner) was an Optimus U-31002 1.5-Gallon Cool Mist Ultrasonic Humidifier. I run this outside my tanks, to provide humidity for the highland and intermediate Nepenthes which are not in tanks. Considering how low the air conditioner drops the humidity (and how low the heat will this winter) it is great!

I have to fill the tank once a day, and adjust output during the day to offset the decrease in humidity due to the air conditioner. I do wish that it had a bigger reserve so I have to fill it less, but it was a better deal to buy the smaller one.

Humidity Gauge

Speaking of humidity, I picked up this AcuRite 00613A1 Indoor Humidity Monitor for the plant room so that I could gauge ambient humidity. It was definitely a good buy. I haven't had any problems with it and it seems to be accurate. Definitely worth the $10.

Tank Fan

Inside the tanks, I wanted some air movement. Previously, I had very little and I had a few issues with fungi. I had heard on Terraforums that a few people had modified computer fans to run inside their tanks. Since I don't have the technical know-how to convert a computer fan to run on AC power, I decided to buy a Coolerguys Quiet 120mm AC Powered Receiver/Component Cooling Fan. I'm now ordering my third one. It's quiet, works well, and is fairly large. I'm not sure what a DIY one would cost, but my guess is not a whole lot less than for what I purchased these (especially if you just need one).

Ice Pack

I was a bit concerned about the air conditioner and tank fan being enough to cool the highland/ultra-highland tank on their own. So, I opted to pick up a couple Rubbermaid Blue Ice Blocks which I throw in the empty space in the ultra highland tank at night to cool it down to below 50 degrees.

Thermometer

Lastly, I purchased a Zoo Med Digital Terrarium Thermometer for each tank. I've found that it's accurate and does exactly what I want it to do - tell me the temperature inside the tank. I opted to go with a digital thermometer because I'd read reviews that indicated the cheap analog ones were fairly universally unreliable and this one was the right price. It has a long cord to the probe which I like a lot since it allows me to put the probe in right around height of the plant foliage.