New to the forums, and BPs, help please!

Don't feel bad about asking questions. The people on this site are really wonderfully supportive and helpful people. They'd much rather answer lots of questions (including the same ones over and over) and help everyone become better snake keepers than have an important question go unasked.

I asked about stargazing when I first got my BP too. The concensus was that it was just normal BP behavior checking our her new home. Here is the thread if you want to read it:
http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/s...ad.php?t=53361

I would be really careful about tape inside the enclosure though. Can you take it off and put it back on the outside of the lid?

Also I just skimmed your whole thread real quick, and I don't see if you have mentioned putting any insulation on 3 sides of your tank. That will help stabilize the temps inside a lot. See if that helps get your temps a little closer to ideal.

How would I do that? Putting up a background picture wouldnt help I dont think, so would I just do it by putting up like 3 layers of foil on the outside glass?

Foil would be a start. I've seen people recommend lots of things. "Reflectix" is a brand name that gets mentioned a lot. I haven't seen it in person but I did a search for it online and it appears to be something along the lines of bubblewrap made out of aluminum foil. Other people use foam board or cork board. I used regular cardboard, which worked ok at first but I think I will need something better now that the weather is starting to get colder.

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Originally Posted by kc261

Foil would be a start. I've seen people recommend lots of things. "Reflectix" is a brand name that gets mentioned a lot. I haven't seen it in person but I did a search for it online and it appears to be something along the lines of bubblewrap made out of aluminum foil. Other people use foam board or cork board. I used regular cardboard, which worked ok at first but I think I will need something better now that the weather is starting to get colder.

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You can get reflectix at any ace harder for less than a dollar per ft. Reflectix is awesome. I have some on hand 24-7, not only for my snakes but in general.

BTW, if you don't like the look of whatever insulation you decide to use, you can put up a background picture right on the glass, and the insulation around the whole thing.

Insulation is key to keeping a glass tank warm in colder weather. I have a nice background pic on the back and black pained cork board on the sides, then outside that is 3/4" foam insulation board (quite cheap from Lowes, one piece cut down into enough for both my 20L and 10 with pieces left over).
So far, those temps in both tanks are spot on and haven't shifted (except when I clean) and the temps here in CO are really starting to drop down.

I'm definitely new at all of this too, but I use a blanket - cotton, quilted on my cool side if it's too cool. It seems to hold the heat down and it can be wrapped around the tank if it's very cool. Also I use lighting and have various wattages on hand to switch off depending on weather and my house temps. It seems to work well for me.

Just be careful with the blanket, as it is flammable and a potential fire hazard.