Proud new owner of a.....

[OreoGaborio]

.... tank 8)

Hopfully in the next couple of weeks that tank will have a nice new BP to keep it company (heh... "BP"... that's my first use of snake lingo in a public forum). It'll be my first pet in like... 6 years and first snake as well. Definitely lookin forward to it & WITHOUT A DOUBT have been doing my research. hell, i've been reading stuff all over the internet for the past three weeks in anticipation for this x-mas present to myself

I still gotta get stuff to keep it clean, warm, humid etc. to keep it comfortable & fed.

speaking of fed, too bad i can't feed it the rats that live behind the appartment i'm about to move in... free & plentiful those bastards are :wink:

What i would like to see though, are pictures of your little snake worlds... i'd like to see how you guys set up, heat/humidify your tanks. That would help me out some. Tryin to make some decisions on stuff i'm gonna need... for example, if i go w/ a under tank heat source, will i still need a lamp for basking? my guess is yes?

if you guys have any tips on getting all the supplies for as inexpensive as possible, fire away

[Cody]

Sadly, I currently don't have a digital camera, but I can describe my setup.
It's a 20 gallon tank(in the coming weeks I hope to upgrade to a nice sized rubbermaid) with reptibark for substrate. Two clay pot bottoms for hides. One on the warm side, and one on the cool side. A branch with fake vines wrapped around it to provide cover. A big ceramic water dish for drinking/soaking. A big long fake vine bundle thing. I have the base of it tucked in the corner by the water dish, and the long vines are flowing around to the front of the tank, to provide cover. Then I have two strips of fake vines criss crossing half way up the cage, attached to the sides by suction cups. Looks pretty cool. Hopefully I can get some pics before I get the new cage, cuz I like how the current one looks.
Oh, and for heating I currently have a human heat pad tucked under the warm side. After the X-mas holidays I'm gonna get a nice thermostat and some flexwatt heat tape so I won't have to worry about keeping the temps from fluctuating.
Oh, and two digital thermometers/hygrometer to accurately measure temperatures.

As for needing a lamp, I don't think you need one if you can get the temperatures correct with just an under tank heater. I myself don't like lamps, as they tend to dry out your tank, which isn't good when you need a humid environment.
If you do go with a heat pad(which is recommended since belly heat is essential), I also recommend running it with a thermostat. I've had my heat pad running perfectly fine from August till now, and just the other week I went to check on my bp, and discovered that the heating pad had malfunctioned, causing the temperatures to skyrocket from the usual 92 to 125. I quickly got my bp out, put her in her water dish to cool down her core temperature, and checked her over. She's been fine, but it's definitely an experience I wouldn't want to repeat.

Good luck with getting your "christmas present". Oh, and welcome to the site!

[lucky8926]

First off, welcome to the site and on your future BP!!

Here is my set up. It is a 29 gal sitting on it's side, which I highly recommend. That way you have more floorspace and it's easier to keep heat/humidity in the tank. My door is kind of elaborate with hinges, and slides but you could just use a regular screen top with lid locks.





I recommend the accurite thermometer/hygrometer that you can get from wal mart. As mentioned you can use clay pot bottoms for hides. The ones that I got are actually plastic not clay.

[Cody]

Cool! I like the modification on the front. And the bamboo to cover the sides is very nice looking. It's a simple enough setup, but nice. 8)

[lucky8926]

yep simple, yet very effective. The bamboo stuff is actually just place mats I picked up for a dollar a piece. I've been meaning to pick up some more stuff for the inside but with the holidays i've been kind of busy.

[Smulkin]

Congratulations and welcome to the site! I never tire of seeing people actually put the effort into researching proactively and making all the preparations for thier incoming snake. Lots of resources here to dig around in but never hesitate to ask anything needed.

[OreoGaborio]

ohhh, good idea Lucky... My tank IS kinda taller that i wanted, but i can't complain, i got it and the oak cabinet stand for 50 bucks if i can find a way to use the tank stand and get the tank on it's side i'll have to give that a try.

and what the hell is that on the top?

Cody, thanks for the discription & answer to my lap Q - Smulkin, thanks for the welcome

[Ginevive]

Oreo, welcome to the forum. Getting your first BP (or any new herp, really) is always an awesome experience; reminds me of when I got my first one years ago. The preparation of the cage, even the research was fun, and getting the snake itself was even better. Have you ever kept reptiles before?


Lucky, that is an awesome idea. I think I'll do that with my 20l tank when the BP in it grows a bit more. I really do prefer snake cages that open from the front; much easier to put snakes back in after handling.

[OreoGaborio]

Nope, never kept a rep. Never really given it much though before till now, but I'm lookin forward to it & tryin somethin a little different. The interesting part will come if i end up getting back together w/ my Ex gf who's TERRIFIED just at the sight of a snake on TV :lol:

[lucky8926]

and what the heck is that on the top?

well there is a speaker and a blanket (used to cover up tank to get 50/50 day/night hours)