New brazilian rainbow boa owner questions

[Orangephoner]

Just bought my first BRB from a breeder and should be here within the week. Trying to get everything figured out so I can be ready when he arrives. As for housing for now I'm thinking of a national geographic terrium. I am just planning on covering the top so it lowers humidity escaping.
For humidity I am looking at doing a reptifogger ( I have one for my Bp's and it works well) since I need to achieve high humidity.
As for substrate I haven't decided. I've heard reptibark ( microwaved to kill bugs) works.
My main question is heating. I was told to not do bulbs cause brb isn't a fan of light and it drys the air. Radiant panels was recommended but for the time being I'm tight on cash because of all the initial start up cost. Do you guys have any recommendations on heating or any of the above? Would a heating pad and night heating bulb do the trick until I have the panel funding?
Thanks for your help
Christian

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[Orangephoner]

Also for the terrium the baby I am getting isn't a year old yet so it's fairly small. Should I go with the 18.5 gal or jump straight to the 50 for future growth ?


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[colton62]

Ok I'm no expert but I'm going to try and offer some advice. If I'm wrong someone will hopefully chime in. You should use an appropriate heating pad on one side of the enclosure hooked up to thermostat or rheostat for now since you're a little tight on cash. I use the coco husk substrate. I don't know if that's what repti bark is or not but coco husk works very well for me at keeping humidity. A low wattage night light and a heating pad in my opinion should be enough to create the right temps. As for the tank question. A bare 50gal might be a little too big and stressful but filled with hides and stuff I think it should be fine. However it'll be more costly to get the proper heat (bigger heating pad etc) however it would last awhile and allow it room for growth. Hope I helped a lottle


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[KMG]

The way that cage goes together I think you are going to be battling to keep your humidity up. Plus its to big for a baby.

If you are getting a young one I would suggest getting a tub to raise it in until it is big enough for a large cage. Tubs are cheap, easy to clean, and easy to keep. A uth can be used and so can a heat lamp if necessary, just use a lamp stand and don't place the fixture on the tub. Place foil over the sticky side of the uth. This will allow you to remove and move it from tub to tub as your snake grows without damaging the uth by puling it off. Most use foil duct tape to attach the uth where they need it. I would say a tub with cypress mulch, a hide, and a nice pool would set you up well. Mine likes to burrow and the cypress mulch is great fun for that. Just make sure the water bowl sets on the tub floor so your snake will not burrow under it and flip it.

When its big enough I suggest a pvc cage. They hold humidity great. My BRB is in a 4ft by 2 ft pvc cage and it holds humidity well enough that I use newspaper substrate. I have two hides and a large soaking bowl and he is doing great. The room is heated to 78-80 and he has a hotspot of 85 which he hardly ever uses. I also have rhp in my cages but they did not heat the cage well enough so I turned them off and bought a oil heater for the room.

Also I case you have not seem the caresheet here it is. http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...ates-cenchria)

[bcr229]

My male BRB is coming up on two years old and is doing very well in a tub. Keeping his humidity high is very easy, and while his setup isn't terrarium-pretty, it is inexpensive and it works to keep him healthy. You are much better off starting with a tub, a heat pad, and a good thermostat than an expensive terrarium for your snake.

[Orangephoner]

Ok tub wise how do I go about that? I have only ever dealt with tanks. What kind of tub do I get? What do I use as a lid/cover. I have zoo med heating pads from the pet store. Will those work as heat?

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[rascal_rascal_99]

A 28qt tub with a locking lid would probably last it until it's two years old or older, you just need a heating pad to put under one end of it. Functionally it would be great and cheap, down side is it's not much to look at and doesn't put your brb on display where you can see it. I would suggest a 20 gallon aquarium with a secure lid, it's probably going to have a screen top so you'll want to cover that with either a towel or aluminum foil to cut down the air flow and keep humidity in. I would stay away from any kind of overhead heating and just go with a heating pad/under tank heating, it'll need to be hooked up to a thermostat to keep it from getting too hot, when you check inside the cage above where the heat pad is, you only want it to be about 82-84f.

[bcr229]

Ok tub wise how do I go about that? I have only ever dealt with tanks. What kind of tub do I get? What do I use as a lid/cover. I have zoo med heating pads from the pet store. Will those work as heat?

A 28 or 32 quart tub with a secure lid will work for a few years. In the meantime save up for a PVC enclosure.

The Zoo Med UTH's will work, just make sure they are on a t-stat. This species should run 75*F-85*F on the cool-hot sides, any hotter can cause health issues.

Youngsters need higher humidity than adults, 90% for hatchlings, 80% for juveniles, 70% for adults. Young BRB's, like other young snakes, spend most of their time hiding though I would occasionally see mine active at night.

[colton62]

So I'm thinking of moving my boa to a tub now. I saw a lot of people recommending 41qt sterlite tubs. I have a UTH that said it's good for 10-20 gallon. Should that be fine for a 41qt tub?


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[rascal_rascal_99]

So I'm thinking of moving my boa to a tub now. I saw a lot of people recommending 41qt sterlite tubs. I have a UTH that said it's good for 10-20 gallon. Should that be fine for a 41qt tub?


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I don't doubt that it can provide a large enough hot spot, make sure to use a thermostat with it to keep it from getting too warm though.