Spunky or Cranky?

I'm just going to address your tank issues. I also use a glass tank with screen lid. Here's what is working well for me. I use the forest floor cyprus mulch for substrate (ditch the aspen). It's really moist at first then dries out nicely. I covered the back and sides of the tank with insulation from home depot. I also put this on 1/2 of the screen lid. It's called Reflectix insulation and comes in a roll. It's very easy to cut to fit. all this keeps my humidity at 40-60%. When he went into shed, I put a wet towel on the screen portion which bumped the humidity up to 80%. He had a perfect shed. The insulation darkens the tank and makes them feel secure as well as keep it warmer. (It's pretty cool right now in my house). I'm doing this until he's big enough to move into a permanent PVC enclosure. I also use the accurite thermometer mentioned above and it works perfectly. Hope this helps some

I'll admit, I did end up moving a couple of my BPs from my original glass tank (a huge Exo-Terra) to tubs, and now keep most in a rack. This was more for their sanity (they were extremely nervous) than the humidity. For the most part, I stabilized the humidity by putting a moist towel over the top when I left and not using any heat lamps, only a ceramic heat bulb and a heat mat.

The big key to getting my temps right was getting a good thermostat. I now have 3 of the Herpstats (two Herpstat 2s and one Herpstat 4). These thermostats will actively monitor the temperature and provide proportional power to your heating elements to maintain temps. This is a no brainer compared to thermostats that just turn elements on or off. My CHE gets to 126 degrees at full power and the heat tape gets to 120, both too hot for my snake, which means that an on/off themostat will just have to turn them off pretty rapidly after turning them on, leading to fluctuating temperatures. The Herpstat (or any proportional thermostat) can apply anywhere from 0-100% power and keep giving maintenance power to maintain the correct temperature. They also happen to be on sale right now until December 11th (I just got the Herpstat 4 and love it!). The only difference between the models is how many "channels" it has. If you have an overhead heat element and an UTH, you'd need the Herpstat 2. If you plan on getting more snakes, just spend the money now and get the Herpstat 4 for room to expand (wish I had done that from the start). I got mine from GLKHerp as they charge the least shipping: http://www.glkherp.com/

Anyways, you don't need to give up on your enclosure if you like watching your snake. Eventually you may want to move to a PVC enclosure which will make it much easier to maintain the temps and humidity while still having a nice large environment with good viewing. There are lots of options when it comes to PVC enclosures, but the least expensive seem to run around $200.

Also, as far as heat mats go, for glass enclosures I like to use the Ultratherm pads as they have more even heat than the heat tape (flexwatt) and don't get as hot as the zoo med pads (which if yours is not reaching 90, something is wrong with it or the thermostat. Mine reaches well over 100 degrees). The Ultratherm pads can be found here: http://www.reptilebasics.com/ultratherm-heat-pads

So I know it sounds like a lot of expensive options. Herpstat 2 is $176 and I think would be the most useful thing for making your life easier and your snake happier. If you don't want to spend that much money, I'd order the Ultratherm pad for $15 and use that with your on/off thermostat and get a ceramic heating element if you haven't already and also use that with an on/off thermostat. I have been able to get a glass tank stabilized with that method as well, it's just not quite as easy.

As far as feeding goes, try out a rat as they will be much more useful in the long run instead of feeding multiple mice. My coral glow is about 188 grams and easily eats rat pups all day.

I'm by no means an expert but you could try a thermometer with probe, I use acurite thermometer/hygro combo(you can find at any Walmart in the home/garden area for 12ish dollars) with a probe that's placed right above the under the tank heater. Uth's won't really raise the ambient temp in the tank they just give the snakes belly heat and with the probe you'll be more able to monitor the hot spot temp right above the uth and then regulate it with a thermostat or even a lamp dimmer(still need to keep an eye on the temp and adjust accordingly but it still works). Covering the screen with tin foil like mentioned above works great to keep in humidity and then use a spray bottle to mist the substrate inside to raise it to the desired amount. I usually have to mist once every day or two to keep it up in my tank. I use a a ceramic heat emitter to keep up my ambient temps around 80 and it works well with my uth keeping the hotspot on the floor at about 91-92.

We mixed Cypress and aspen together for our glass tank and it worked wonders for humidity, if you're still looking to keep the glass cage~

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dr del - Chompy was just a little defensive, definitely being careful about us, but not aggressive like he had been so I explained he is very much still a baby but even so my son was completely freaked sticking his hand in so I did the pick up but aside from a couple times they startled each other like the snake wedging his head between fingers then deciding to panic or a random sneeze from the kid. Over all it went smooth til the end there was a minor event (read next paragraph haha) but no damage done to anyone and despite that I got the vibe that they both parted on pretty good terms!

Yeah the dial one really ticked me off when it was reading between 60% and 80% with my hyperactive micro management but Chompy still shed in chunks and strips. Dang, I just finished a major clean too, I'll take out some litter and the mat later tonight since right now Chompy is feeling stressed from my son holding him while I worked: he peed all over my bed and not just a little, if I hadn't seen it happen as I walked in I would have accused my son of blaming the snake! It looked so weird and intense I actually told my son to stop squeezing him lol I guess I should be grateful it wasn't a turd!

No regulation on the heat mat yet, it's been so chilly in the tank that I blew off buying the item that might turn off the much needed heat. Just to give you an idea of my technical handicap, my husband just checked and ALL the outlet/timer switches I bought yesterday are all DOA today, I'll just keep at it lol eventually something falls through the cracks and works! But more seriously I am taking your suggestion to heart and I am putting in an order for a temp regulator so cross your fingers the package doesn't arrive on fire haha if it does I'll have someone else order it because I did notice cleaning that under the shavings and carpet the pad does get very hot on the glass even if it is barely getting through right now. I have foil on the screen and it seems to be holding humidity really well so that is great news, crossing my fingers and holding my breath for a good solid shed next time around.

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Omg I have more wires and wet towels hanging off Chompy's damp/drippy tank than dead mice in my freezer, what has my life turned into? You guys make it look so simple and tidy on YouTube videos and the posted pics!

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As for wires and such, I know what you mean. I also went with a glass tank with a screen lid, (I hadn't found this forum yet), but I have everything stable and working. Here's a pic:

http://ball-pythons.net/gallery/file...1379_thumb.jpg

Starting in the left side of the wall:
Thermostat that regulates ceramic heater, thermometer/hygrometer combo monitoring the hot side, thermometer for just the hot hide, the two in the middle are both ambient, then another hygrometer for the cool side, and finally the thermometer for the cool hide.

In the tank:
The two flower pots are on the warm side, one is dry and one is filled with moist sphagnum moss, there is a hollow u-shaped log that only has 1 opening behind the water dish and fake plant, then on the right side there is one of those zoo med rock caves for a hide and another hollow log behind that. The branches let him get closer to the light to bask if he wants, and also clutters up the empty air above him so he feels more secure. The sides are also covered with black craft foam-board on the outside, and he has a LED strip that is not too bright and on a kitchen timer so he has some sort of photo-period (but this is more for me than him).

To help with humidity:
I use forest floor cypress bedding, a large water bowl, and if you look closely, there is a much smaller plastic container hiding in the 'root' decoration that is full of water. It is under his other heat lamp and the evaporation helps with humidity. The top is covered in foil with two 10 inch holes for the lights. Whenever she starts to shed, I'll add a damp towel under the foil (he hasn't shed yet).

Now that you mention it I did mess up a bit getting him mice instead of rats, I was too focused on the size rather than the type ~sigh~ two steps forward one step back! Np I'll get it right next time :) My husband has been super tolerant of my frivolous spending so even though it's on sale I am going to wait til after Christmas and go for a Herpstat 4, he hasn't said anything because I am having fun with this project but I should chill a bit before it breeds bad feelings. Thanks for that suggestion I am going to take it at a slightly later date anything to cut down on my worry time and up my sleep time is a good thing, no more sneaking around and checking the numbers.

Definitely ordering some Cypress! I am going to get some Reflectix tomorrow morning first thing when Home Depot opens, I would love to keep him in this set up because this guy is super entertaining to watch and I don't think he has a shy bone in his body which is nice because nothing is worse than an animal constantly terrified of you. My son jokes that he is like a Honey Badger - Chompy don't care! Oh I stick it to the outside right? Does the lining have to be facing in because my son picked out a background image he would like to use, so could we do glass/picture/Reflactix?

I think I am going to do what you do Crowfingers with the multiple water dishes, I saw corner ones and remember wondering if I should do one on each side and I shook it off teasing myself for trying to Feng Shui a snake habitat, apparently it wasn't such a dumb idea! And that is a ton of gauges and meters on your wall, if I had seen that before getting this BP.. we wouldn't have a BP we'd have a goofy parakeet! What I really want to know is which one fires the Death Star, sorry couldn't resist because it truly does look formidable to a newbie :)

Oh yeah I was snooping on a Tarantula forum (I really wander in my reading!) about acrylic builds because I suck at carpentry and the guy said something about 5mm thickness minimum or the undermount heating will melt and warp.. well cross that bridge if I ever get to it but yeah cool stuff!

I thought you may find this useful for future reference. For regulating the heat mat - a light dimmer switch is an adequate stop gap until a thermostat can get there. They usually run 15$ at lowes. You'll need to dial them in so to speak to get the temps in an acceptable range if you choose to use one. If you're not looking to spend a ton on a thermostat off the bat there is a 30$ one you could order through Amazon.com from hydrofarm. They are pretty reliable.

Cypress mulch was mention - I personally don't have any experience using it, but have heard good things. I imagine before making any switches you'd want to use what you've currently bought and aspen works well and is something I have experience with. As someone mentioned earlier, now that you've got it holding humidity better if you start seeing it drop because the wood is getting dry you can spritz it with some clean water. When you do start seeing temps go up, remember the snakes can burrow and will sometimes. The thermostat probe needs to be between the uth and the tank so moisture doesn't mess with the reading but an internal tank reading with a thermometer will help you dial in the internal tank temp. At the glass on the inside should never get hit enough for your little guy to burn himself, while enough heat needs to come through for the surface of his substrate to reach high enough for a good basking spot temp at the hot spot. A lot of info to take in, I know, but once you've got it all down it will be worth it. http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/12...2d515ec8e4.jpg

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I think I am going to do what you do Crowfingers with the multiple water dishes, I saw corner ones and remember wondering if I should do one on each side and I shook it off teasing myself for trying to Feng Shui a snake habitat, apparently it wasn't such a dumb idea! And that is a ton of gauges and meters on your wall, if I had seen that before getting this BP.. we wouldn't have a BP we'd have a goofy parakeet! What I really want to know is which one fires the Death Star, sorry couldn't resist because it truly does look formidable to a newbie :)

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Lol that death star comment made me chuckle - The reason for all of this; I'm a newbie too ! I've only had Mashadar since the 24th of October. He's my first snake ever :)
After finding this forum, I realized that the snake I wanted so badly came with a lot of very specific things, sooo I figured when I have a problem I'd need to know why... now I can say exactly what every corner of his cage is reading. This is far more monitoring than the long-term people worry with, I even have a clip board under the tank that I record everything down on then enter into spread sheet later ;)