A few questions that need to be answered

Hello guys.
As you can tell, I am new here and need some advice.
I adopted a ball yesterday and named her Mangle. She is smaller, and I think she's about a year old. She was probed and confirmed to be a female.
Her cage is tall. two of the walls are covered with stringy plants that act like vines. There is a fake flower like plant on the bottom. She cradles around it constantly. Her water dish is about 2 inches deep and is quite big. She loves to swim in it. The bottom is lined with aspen shavings. There is a drip system to maintain moisture. The temperature is on average 81 degrees (F). There is a heating pad on the bottom and one on top. She is very calm. She has not bit me yet. She is very active. I have not handled her more than I need to, she was only handled when I put her in her new cage. She is about 3 feet long. The tank is 12x12x18. It is eleven gallons big.
So, here are my questions-
Is it safe to have damp aspen?
How can I tell if she's stressed?
How can I tell if she's happy?
How long should I wait to feed her?
How long should I wait before I start to handle her?
Should I take her to the vet for a check up?
What should I watch for?
Is it formal to have little patches of scales come off once in awhile?
Is there anything else I need to do for her?
http://thatfreakyzephyr.deviantart.c...ngle-512265248
That is a picture I took of her yesterday.

Nice looking snake :)

The aspen being a bit damp won't hurt anything, so long as it's not constantly damp/wet. You want the humidity in the tank to stay about 50-60%. Putting cling-wrap or a damp towel over about half the top of the tank will help keeping the humidity constant.
Also, if you don't want to spray the aspen, a humid hide (hide filled with damp sphagnum moss) is a good idea.

As to telling whether she's stressed; a hiding BP is a happy BP. Do you have multiple snug hides (One on the warm side and one on the cool side)? If not, place the two hides in there and she'll probably find one and hide under it until it's feeding time.

As far as handling, leave her completely alone for a week aside from tank maintenance. Let her settle in before handling her.

Sometimes if their last shed wasn't perfect they'll have little patches of skin that flake off after the main shed. I feel like that's probably what you're seeing. Nothing to worry about though (if they have a humid hide or shed box they'll usually get those off on their own)

As for a vet visit, I don't. Usually I just do a 90 quarantine/observational period for my new snakes. If no health issues crop up, they can come into the reptile room. If you don't have any other snakes, I'd recommend just keeping a close eye on her for a couple months.

EDIT: Just saw that you said you had heating pads. Do you have them on thermostats? If not, that is important because they can easily get hot enough to burn a BP. Hot spot shouldn't stray far above 90 F.

She's not really hiding, but she usually just stays under her plant. The current tank is not very big on the bottom. It is soaked on the bottom with a thin layer of water. However, the humidity is only about 40-50%.

I did join this herpetological society and won a huge tank in this raffle they had. That tank is about 50 gallons. It has a top heater but lacks a bottom one. It has a few water bowls too. The
I am still a bit new when it comes to caring for ball, so I am getting help from places like here or the Minnesota herp society.

Awesome, You must be living right!

If anyone needed THAT tank right now, you did. :)