Question about my BP and setup....

[Phobiaz]

In February I decided to take a BP off this ladies hands....
Her kids couldn't take care of it because they couldn't stand to watch it eat (it made them cry) and it wouldn't eat frozen mice(dead food). She told me she bought it in december from a reptile show so it was fairly young. She gave me a 7 gallon tank to go along with it, a hide and some aspen bedding. I noticed the BP's skin was really dry( it was not shedding time yet) she had no way of keeping the humidity and she had the smallest dish for water I had ever seen someone use for a snake. I quickly replaced the 7 gallon with a 35 gallon, screen top. I covered half the screen in plastic wrap to help preserve humidity, I bought a humidifier and now run the tube through the screen top and mount the tube in there with suction cups. I switched him from aspen bedding to Eco-earth, I gave him a log on one end, and a coconut hide on the other. and in the middle near the water bowl I have a nice size rock hide that has a removable top. I stuff it with Eco-earth mixed with sphagnum moss and spray it to keep it moist, I also clean it out once a week because he likes to poop/pee in there. The heating source consists of a 75 watt heatlamp on top with 2 UTH's on each side(I only had one UTH on the opposite side of the heatlamp to begin with but I plugged the other one into today. The UTH are plugged into a repti-temp rheostat. Day time heat levels are roughly 85 degrees with 60% humidity. Night time I turn off the heat lamp so it drops to about 70 degrees, the humidity however shoots up to around 80%(kinda worries me)

He's been doing great in his new home for the past few months I've had him. His skin isn't dry, he's had great sheds(no pieces still on him when he sheds) he looks very healthy, I feed him two adult size mice every week and a 1/2. He eats them NO problem. However lately he's been roaming around his cage ALOT at random, like he's lookin for a way out, I've noticed his activity levels go up alot and from what I've read that's not normal for BP's. I picked him up this morning because I saw him movin around, and this was right before I switched his heat lamp on and I noticed he was rather cold to the touch, which kinda shocked me. I decided to turn on the UTH on the other side of his tank because I know he's not suppose to be cold like that. After I held him for a while, and let the UTH get heated up I put him back in the tank turned the heatlamp on and he seems to be doing fine now(he's wrapped up in his coconut hide).

I've posted this... to let you know my basic set up. I was wondering if someone could give me tips/advice and if an active BP is a bad thing.

[Gloryhound]

I would cover more of the top with Aluminum foil and leave an opening just slightly larger than the lamp. Cover 3 sides of the tank with some foam to help it hold heat better, possibly even cover some of the top as long as it does not get to close to the lamp. If you can afford it get a thermostat to run your heating elements. The overall goal is to get one spot on the floor in the tank to around 90 degrees day and night and the ambient air to around 80 degrees. With the range from hot side to cool side of 80-90 degrees he will pick the temp the best suits him at any given time. Ball pythons are pretty tough and will survive just fine going down to 70 degrees at night, but that is not a condition they will thrive in. That kind of temp drop is what is used by breeders to simulate breeding season and a lot of ball pythons will stop eating if they think it is breeding season.

[littleindiangirl]

I quickly replaced the 7 gallon with a 35 gallon, screen top.
I covered half the screen in plastic wrap to help preserve humidity,
I bought a humidifier and now run the tube through the screen top and mount the tube in there with suction cups.

I have to caution, humidifiers are notorious in the retail world for breeding loads of bacteria. They even make special add ons to limit the growth of bacteria through regular cleanings, UV light bulbs, and types of sponges. I would advise to remove the tube, and if your having trouble, use the humidifier like it's intended for the room to help raise the humidity. There are other ways that are less risky to raise humidity.

Also, noticed you didnt say how your measuring humidity...

I switched him from aspen bedding to Eco-earth,
I gave him a log on one end, and a coconut hide on the other. and in the middle near the water bowl
I have a nice size rock hide that has a removable top. I stuff it with Eco-earth mixed with sphagnum moss and spray it to keep it moist,
I also clean it out once a week because he likes to poop/pee in there.

A moist, warm dark place. Again, another breeding ground for bacteria and fungi. A humid hide is beneficial during shedding, but can quickly spawn all kinds of nasties if not changed regularly. I noticed you said you change it once a week, but I see no reason to need it constantly once we get your humidity settled.

The heating source consists of a 75 watt heatlamp on top with 2 UTH's on each side(I only had one UTH on the opposite side of the heatlamp to begin with but I plugged the other one into today.

The UTH are plugged into a repti-temp rheostat. Day time heat levels are roughly 85 degrees with 60% humidity. Night time I turn off the heat lamp so it drops to about 70 degrees, the humidity however shoots up to around 80%(kinda worries me)

However lately he's been roaming around his cage ALOT at random, like he's lookin for a way out, I've noticed his activity levels go up alot and from what I've read that's not normal for BP's.

It's cold and a bit humid in there, how do you measure the hot spots and humidity?

It's always a good idea to offer a nice hot spot of 90-95, and an ambient air temp in the lower 80's. No need to drop the night time temps

This is easily controlled with a thermostat, and I recommend reading the "Glass Vivarium" setup in BP husbandry. It's a great read on how to set up those hard to handle glass tanks to meet the humidity and heating requirements for BP's.

The stressful movement could be from the husbandry, and most likely the enclosure size itself. If it's just a baby, how have you managed filling up that empty space to give her a sense of security while moving around? Lots of leaf cover, or places to hide while moving about. Bp's are secretive, and are really content when hiding.

Hope this helps you some!