Fla. King tank size?

Thinking ahead, what is a good tank size for a Florida King? I have a desk that would fit a 40 gal. breeder. Anything larger, and I'll have to come up with another idea. And pic of the little guy. I named him Freddie... (actually don't know the sex, but don't care). So far, he's been a great pet. Always looking around, very inquisitive. Been spending so much time w/ this one dude, I'm thinking of selling my two other snakes, as they will no doubt get less handling time...lol.

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A 40 gal. breeder is a very good bet- for a long time & maybe for life. Your snake may or may not eventually out-grow that, but it will take many years- a long healthy life- to do so.

Thanks.

Also, one thing you can do for a king snake in that size tank is to buy or make something (an oversized "hide") that creates a "basement" level on all or most of the tank floor. ;) Leave the water bowl at one end, not on the "hide", but other things (decor) CAN be on top of the "hide". When your king snake is an adult, making a permanent "2nd story" is another way of adding floor space.

Kings (& many other snakes) LOVE to burrow, & rather than anything permanent right away, you can experiment with clean cardboard boxes of the right size- cutting them down (be careful using a sharp boxcutter tool) to turn them into a large, low flat-topped "hide" with a doorway on one end (to the water bowl) & one or more holes on the top. It will quickly be obvious to you just how much your snake appreciates this- you'll see them using it a lot. Part of the "hide" should be over the UTH- & part of it should be unheated. This simulates their life in the wild, where they occupy rodent burrows, etc. You still want to cut the holes/doorways so they have plenty of privacy areas below, & their substrate offers a sense of security too.

Obviously, using anything made of cardboard is temporary- when it's soiled, it's trash. But small snakes even enjoy an empty Kleenex box when it's set up right. ;) I also think that it's good for a young snake to be able to explore things (cardboard rolls from paper towels, buried in substrate, for example) -it's like kindergarten only for snakes- good way to develop their brains & abilities. As long as your king snake is adapting well (good appetite & not bothered by handling), he won't mind some changes to explore in his tank either. They're more active & curious than BPs.

Oh, & by the way, regarding the large type of "hide" I described above, you can plan on feeding your king snake by leaving his f/t prey on top, near one of the holes, & as they grow & get braver, obviously you can leave prey further away, because they'll be associating that "top floor" with hunting for food. -You can also feed a king snake from tongs- either way. They're easy & fun snakes, & far less bothered by changes on their home turf than a BP. (you also don't need to warm their f/t prey- just thaw it thoroughly)

My Kings have a single hide, some clumps of moss, and thick cypress mulch substrate. They are currently in a rack system. I warm their food like I do my other snakes and feed with tongs.

They have not made me think of getting rid of any of my other snakes. I don't understand that. It's not like most snakes want to be handled so they're probably happier without it anyways.

To pursue the interesting tangent: I keep one BP (a normal male I've had for 13 years now), and it is by far the most boring snake I keep or ever have kept. I've often had the thought about many animals "this new species makes this other species so uninteresting/ugly/so 1990s and this species isn't in style anymore and what will my internet buddies think of me ;)? I should not keep this other species" and sometimes I've gone through with dropping a species.

But keeping a variety of species, some exciting some boring, some pretty some ugly, some easy to care for and some kind of a pain, is a very valuable experience IMO. I've come to see herp keeping as something more than 'bigger better faster more' or some pursuit of perfection (as in morph chasing), or a journey with a distinct goal (such as gradually working through more "advanced" species to some "dream animal"). Seeing the diversity between species is a trip, and I'm not thinking of the basic things like size color or pattern or activity level or apparent intelligence, but rather the fact that extended time with a species brings about a realization that the differences and similarities between a kingsnake and a BP is like the differences and similarities between a squirrel monkey and a human (which makes sense, as the evolutionary relationships are about the same in each pair). When I watch a monkey I learn something about myself, hopefully (usually something I'd rather ignore), and when I interact with one snake I learn things about the others, and in both cases I feel like I understand the world a little better.

TL;DR: you might keep them all, it'll be cool. :)

Congrats on your new critter! A 40g tank will be great for a king. It could possibly even be a lifelong enclosure. Kings are such cool snakes to keep. If I ever get another smaller snake it’ll definitely be a king. I really miss the pair I used to have. I will echo that keeping a variety of species is very rewarding so don’t limit yourself. You can learn something from all of them. I have arboreal/terrestrial, diurnal/nocturnal, s, m, l, and xl snakes. It’s amazing to see the similarities and differences between species and individuals.