BP viv project - and other questions

I know this is an unpopular opinion from most ball python keepers, but you can make that 55 gallon work.

My suggestions for you, however: No pond area at all. Stick to a water dish you can remove and sterilize from time to time. The pond idea is cool, but for practicality's sake (and cleanliness when dealing with a snake), a water bowl is more suitable.

For substrate, I'd say instead of mixing in salt (although that is an interesting idea that I'll probably test out myself ;) ), mix in orchid bark or cypress mulch with the eco earth. The eco earth itself tends to get into the snake's mouth, nose, and heat pits, and can cause issues that way. However, mixed with a type of chipped bark bedding, the texture and consistency is often much more ideal and aesthetically pleasing. I've used the eco earth/bark mix myself both in the store and with my own animals at home, and like it very much. If mold is developing in your substrate, you're keeping the substrate too moist, so that should not be an issue.

The bark issue that you were talking about with the douglas fir is a non-issue; in fact, most bark substrates (including the orchid bark I just recommended) is made with douglas fir. It has minimal to no oils in it at all, making it perfect for reptiles. The pine hides you're talking about from the rodents are much more of an issue, and actually shouldn't even be used for rodents - from my time breeding fancy rats, I can tell you that just using pine as a substrate for rodents can and often does result in tumors developing, and the tumors often stop growing once you put them on a different substrate.

The biggest thing with putting a little snake in a big cage like that is that you'll really need to amp up hiding places. You can keep small ball pythons in big cages - but you HAVE to give them tons of hiding spots to choose from.
For example, here's a video I made to show how you can create a display cage (the cage in this video is a 20 long, so 30" x 12" x 12"). Hopefully this helps you out and gives you some ideas! YouTube video!

Hope that was helpful for you. Good luck! I love setting up pet snakes with nice cages, and find it to be one of the more enjoyable aspects of keeping reptiles.

-Jen

Totally forgot about the cork hides. Saw a few at Repticon, defiantly should have passed them up...damn. They were like 3 for $10, half logs similar to what you used in the video, and full round logs...damn.

Defiantly not going to stick with the fixed pond segment, though I still want to create a waterfall. Even if it's as simple as a plexiglas water dish with one wall taller than the others for the pump/filter to suction to. Or as elaborate as a foam sculpture that's painted and sealed(with non-toxic products), that will be more aesthetically pleasing.

I was planning on soaking the eco earth slightly so that it wasn't in it's powdery dry state, but I didn't even consider the damp effect on the scales. I do like the idea of mixing the eco earth with something though, as well as adding the moss for humidity.

Thank you for the help. Has given me more ideas to consider.