Hi guys,

I'm going to be getting my first Ball Python this year. It will actually be my first snake, but I have been involved with my friends keeping theres for years, so I'm not a total noob, plus I've always loved reptiles, I've read countless books and watched countless programs about them.

I have a few questions about setting things up for my snake though. The next clutches of babies will be available over here in about November/December, the breeder I'll be getting it from only lets them go at 2 months, so at least you can be sure they are eating and so on.

I'm going to build the cage myself, because the ones from the Pet stores are horrendously priced, and even getting it shipped from an on line seller is more expensive than I can make it myself!!

First I wanted to find out, should I build a small one for the baby, and upgrade it later, or build a big one, and put extra hides in for the baby snake. I thought it would be nice to build a cage that will be fine for her as an adult, but just put extra hides in so that the big cage doesn't scare her??

The dimensions I was planning on are 1200mmX500mmX500mm(LXBXH). I want to build it out of chipboard(very cheap), and then coat it in Polyurethane, since that dries like plastic and should help keep the wood safe. I could give it two coats of Marine Varnish and the the Polyurethane, that should be pretty good for sealing it.

Another thing that concerns me is heating. I know you need a heating pad that covers about a 1/3 of the tank, that's easy enough to get. I was just wondering weather it goes inside the wood tank, or underneath it. There seem to be two views here. I thought I could maybe build a frame on the floor of the tank, that the pad fits inside, then put the pad in, and silicone a ceramic tile over the frame. That way, the snake can't get to the pad, but the pad can still breath because the tile is not sitting directly on the pad. Then it could stay inside the tank, and I could be sure that the heat is getting into the wood enclosure???

Hides and things I will buy the right size for the snake, and just upgrade to bigger ones as she needs it. I want to start assembling the cage soon, so that I can have it up and running for a while before I get her, that way I can make sure my temp's are correct, and that the tank is working nicely, before I bring the snake home!

What do you guys think, will this set up work, or is there something I should change??

By the way, I'll be getting a normal female!!!

Thanks Guys
Jared