I set up an enclosure; do these numbers sound right?

[FaulerHund]

I set up an enclosure which is a 16 quart container. I drilled some holes in it for air, and sanded the inside parts of the holes smooth. I also sanded the entire inside surface with heavy grain sandpaper to make it opaque. Then I put a paper towel substrate inside, two hides, a water bowl, and some artificial leaves. I set up a thermometer inside as well, which is measuring the temperature of the warm side under the substrate. I have a UTH taped to the bottom of the outside of the enclosure, which takes up approximately half of the bottom surface, and which has a thermostat controlling it.

The numbers are as follows:
Ambient temperature: 76-79 degrees Fahrenheit
Hot side surface temperature below the substrate: 91-94 degrees Fahrenheit
Hot side surface temperature above the substrate: 88 degrees Fahrenheit
Humidity: 55%, but I sprayed the inside to see the effect of that, and it shot up to 80%, where it still is now (with no condensation, though the paper towel is very slightly damp now)
Cool side surface temperature: about 80 degrees Fahrenheit
Temperature of the outside room: 74.5 degrees Fahrenheit

Is all of this acceptable? Here is a picture:
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/...2/IMG_1300.JPG

In this picture, the ambient temperature is 78.8, the surface of the hot side is 92.7, and the humidity is 77%. I'm basically wondering if I am ready to put a snake inside it yet, or if I still have adjustments to make.

[PitOnTheProwl]

My only issue is with sanding the inside of the tub.
This now creates a tooth for the poo to stick to and make cleaning a lot harder.

[FaulerHund]

Is that something you think I can wait and see about, and buy a new container if need be, or do you think it would be better to just buy a new one outright and set it up again? I thought about that when I was sanding it, but my intuition was that the lines aren't deep enough to make it very difficult; they're pretty shallow

[Regius_049]

It looks really nice, but as the above posted said, I think you are going to regret sanding the bottom of the enclosure. I have IRIS tubs for my baby bally pythons and they are amazing for two reasons: (1) Very little sticks to polypropylene, and (2) the bottom is completely smooth with rounded corners and no divots. This makes cleaning incredibly easy. They also have very secure locking lids.

My other suggestion is to alter humidity in another way rather than misting. There is nothing inherently wrong with misting to increase humidity, but damp paper towels can lead to mold or bacterial growth if they are left in the enclosure too long. I have never personally encountered scale rot (which is what some say damp substrates can help cause), but I did lose a Colombian rainbow boa to wet substrate when I was younger. It was apparently due to fungal growth that wasn't easily visible to the naked eye. This is not meant to say you are doing something wrong, just a heads up that damp substrates should be changed often if you have them.

Should you change enclosures? A smooth bottom tub will make your life easier, but seeing as it is only 16 qt tub, your snake will outgrow is semi-quickly and you can get a smooth tub at that time. Until then, the paper towels should catch most of your snake mess and you can just clean a little more thoroughly.

Hope this was somewhat helpful.

[FaulerHund]

That was helpful! As a note though, I didn't sand the bottom, just the sides. The reason I sanded it in the first place was to make the holes I poked smoother, but also to make it opaque so the snake won't be scared. But, seeing as the bottom always has the surface of the table on it, there's no reason to make it opaque.

How often would you consider sufficient for replacing damp substrate? The damp paper towel has been in the enclosure for two days. Should I change it?

[Regius_049]

Personally I would change it every day or two to be safest. A damp and warm environment is pretty close to idea for bacterial or fungal growth, which (very generally speaking) tends take roughly 24-48 hours in laboratory settings, thus my rationale.

[FaulerHund]

Well, I have purchased the snake since making this post. It is a nice little baby pastel ball python. I haven't weighed it yet, because I am waiting until two days after the feeding tomorrow to handle it, but I nonetheless replaced the damp paper towels in the enclosure. The paper towels now are perfectly dry, but the humidity is still hovering around 70-75% in the enclosure. A lot of care sheets say it is better to have humidity between 50-60%, but really, I looked up the humidity of the west-central African countries where ball pythons live naturally, and the humidity in those countries is generally even higher than 70-75%, so I feel okay keeping the humidity like this.

[Regius_049]

I also keep my humidity high and have had zero problems (in fact, just had a lovely shed today from my big male). You should have no problems in the 70-75% range, as you state, humidity in their native areas is usually around 78-84%.

[ediddy70]

I'd lose the veins and keep it simple, less to clean.

[Ba11er]

when i mist my cages, which i rarely have to do, i dont directly spray the paper towel i spray the top of the hides at each side and that does the trick.