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[TheFreedomAngel]

Hi all,

I have a chinchilla cage that i used for about 6 months and my chins love it, it is a custom made cage using wood and metal that is about 200cm tall and has 2 sections (upper girls lower for boy) for my 3 chins. I've attached a photo of a cage similar to what i have, mine is much taller. 6 months ago I relocated from New York to Hong Kong, and the summer is coming. Currently the average temperature in HK is 27C or 80F, but for those who dont know, Hong Kong summers are scorching hot (up to ~38 CELSIUS any given day or 100F with up to 80% humidity). I bought a portable air conditioner that has its output from a duct, which I can connect to the cage from the top. If i install this the cage temperature would drop to around 16C or 60F, with air blowing directly into the interior. I want to know if this would be a feasible solution to the summer situation, and am seeking professionals for advise.

Thanks!

P.S. In terms of humidity, I have a dehumidifier that runs 24hrs a day and maintains around 50% level. And I also have central air conditioner which I turn on 24hr now to keep the room temperature fairly under 75F, however I am not sure how effective the unit will be when real summer comes in July/August.

[GrayRodent]

Although I'm not a professional I do think it's an interesting idea. You probably don't need to have all the air blowing into the cage so you might want to split the duct off and use it to cool the room. You'll need to configure the output going into the cage so the air is dispersed so the chinchilla does not feel air blowing directly onto it. A constant cold flow through the fur can can hypothermia which is one reason why you hear you shouldn't blow a fan into the cage. Chilled air from an air conditioner (which is usually around 4-10C or 40-50F) I imagine could be quite dangerous if you're not careful. Another thing to consider is that the thermostat is going to be inside the air conditioner. It will not shut off until the room reaches the set point so you'll need to plan for that as well.

I live in a place with very similar climate (Atlanta, GA) and I use a portable air conditioner in the same room, about 3m from the cage. It is sufficient to keep things cool enough, not always ideal, but good enough. The room my cage is in a particularly challenging room to cool and regulate for some reason.

[kathy5]

my sons chin is in his room which has it own ac I will also get zippy 2 marble slabs to put into the freezer & than put 1 in his cage & keep switching off when 1 gets cold this way zippy can sit on the marble slab to cool off if he needs to

[TheFreedomAngel]

thanks - the idea of dispersing the air flow is great, i think i will try to cut the duct in a way that it doesnt blow directly into the cage. as for the thermostat, not sure what you meant by plan for that, i have an external thermostat that sense the temperature inside the cage and is independent of the portable A/C

[GrayRodent]

What I mean by planning for that is to consider the mechanics of the operation and how you want to configure everything. Running the air conditioner effects the temperature of the room around the duct and the cage so the closer the condenser unit is to the duct exhaust the colder the air will be at the thermostat. Depending on how the room is furnished you'll want to locate the unit for the best results. If you measure the temperature inside the cage with a thermometer you can get a feel for what the best set point would be since the thermostat will be seeing higher temperatures than what is inside the cage.

[TheFreedomAngel]

got it. right now i added an extra buffer section to disperse air outwards between the A/C output duct and the vent to the cage, i feel less air flowing into the cage interior (like using my hand to wave air) so i think the chins will be less prone to sudden changes in temperature. the cage interior based on my thermostat remains b/t 20C to 22C. my exhaust pipe goes straight to outside. i think this setup should be good. thanks for your help!