Wednesday is the day!

My new bp will be shipped to me on Wednesday. I'm so excited! I can't wait to get him and see what he's like. I've got his enclosure all ready.

Speaking of his enclosure, I posted a couple days ago having frustrations with my temps and humidity in my glass tank. It just got to be too much work to keep the temps and humidities right all the time, and I'm going out of town this weekend and I wanted to be able to leave and not worry about the temps getting too cold or the humidity dropping.

So I decided to try out a rubbermaid. They're so cheap and I figured if I didn't end up using it for my snake, I could always use it as storage in my classroom.

Anyway, it seems to be working out great! The temps and humidity are fine, with the warm side at currently 90.3 and the cool side at 79.5, . Humidity is 62%.

Here is what it looks like. Let me know if anything doesn't look right or if I'm missing something.

https://ball-pythons.net/modules/cop...rubbermaid.jpg

https://ball-pythons.net/modules/cop...ubbermaid2.jpg

Way to go Gen! Im very excited for you and the set up looks very nice. At least youll be away while he/she settles in a nice quiet enviorement and you wont be worried about temps and humidity.

One tiny suggestion IF you havent gotten that setup escape proof yet, you can drill 3 holes through the lip and lid of the rubbermaid. 3 on each long end say 1/8" holes than buy 6 screws and six wingnuts to basicaly lock that lid on. Beleive me unless hes got help on the outside he aint gettin out. Everything looks great though.

It looks great, Gen! Seriously. I'd also echo Paul's concern with escape-proofing the enclosure, though. As he said, bolts and wingnuts are one pretty easy way to go about it. Another is to make holes with a soldering iron or drill and use bungee cords to secure it. Another way you can do it without needing to make more holes is to buy clamps in the hardware section and use them around the edges.

I think you'll be really happy with your new enclosure. You may have to do a bit of tweaking to keep your temps and humidity in range, but it shouldn't require nearly as much as an aquarium, and now you can use that aquarium for either something aquatic or something that doesn't require as much monitoring.

Hmmm, thanks for the suggestion, beaglegod. The rubbermaid container I got is one of those "Latchables". So it's got a latch on each side and you have to pull the latches out in order to take the top off and you snap them back closed when you put the top back on. It seemed pretty secure to me. Do you still think I need to take any extra measures? I definitely don't want to take any chances.

gen, i tried those "Latchables" at the store. You definitely want to secure it. ;)

Also, I've got the heating pad hooked up to a thermostat, so hopefully the temperature in there will stay pretty constant, and I'll mostly just have to watch the humidity.

As far as the tank, will it hold water? Some fish would be cool. Otherwise I'm not sure what I'll do with it. And I guess I'll have to get a different top for it.

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Originally Posted by Marla

gen, i tried those "Latchables" at the store. You definitely want to secure it. ;)

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Thanks, I'll get to work on that.

There's one way to find out if it will hold water. ;) Glad to hear you have a thermostat in place. That should make temps nearly a no-brainer (though changes in ambient temp may still affect your gradient).

So clamps should do the trick? How many do you think I need?

Rubbermaids rule!
Since it has a latch top, I would just secure the middle on the two sides with clamps or whatever you decide to use.

I AM EXCITED FOR YOU!!!!!! VERY VERY excited! Can't wait to see pics and hear more! Congrats!!

Wow...what an impressive DIY rubbermaid.

Good Looking set up!
Can't wait to see pics of your bp in the new home.

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Originally Posted by The_Godfather

Wow...what an impressive DIY rubbermaid.

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Thank you! :D I did my best. I will hopefully post pics of my new guy on Wednesday. I can barely wait!

Gen, i am SO excited for you! I know that you have been anxiously awaiting your new friend. I think that I speak for all of us here when I say that we have complete confidence in your ability to care for your pet. It won't take long for you to have that same confidence in yourself! GO GENNA GO GENNA GO! GO GENNA GO GENNA GO! :)

By the way Gen, I think that I am willing to fly you out here to be the interior decorator on any of my future herp enclosures! That is one sweet lookin set-up ya got there!

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Originally Posted by Eddie_Z

Gen, i am SO excited for you! I know that you have been anxiously awaiting your new friend. I think that I speak for all of us here when I say that we have complete confidence in your ability to care for your pet. It won't take long for you to have that same confidence in yourself! GO GENNA GO GENNA GO! GO GENNA GO GENNA GO! :)

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That is so nice Eddie. Thanks for the encouragement. :)

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As far as the tank, will it hold water?

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That depends on if it is an actual aquarium, or a "critter keeper" designed to hold reptiles. If it's the latter, then filling it with water could be risky! The seals weren't made to support that kind of weight and pressure.

Your enclosure looks wonderful!! Looks like a very happy snakie home to me!

If you're wondering what to do with an empty tank...gopher snakes do VERY well in glass tanks without all the humidity fuss. :wink: They're wonderful little snakes!

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Originally Posted by Eddie_Z

By the way Gen, I think that I am willing to fly you out here to be the interior decorator on any of my future herp enclosures! That is one sweet lookin set-up ya got there!

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LOL! Thanks!

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Originally Posted by JLC

If you're wondering what to do with an empty tank...gopher snakes do VERY well in glass tanks without all the humidity fuss. They're wonderful little snakes!

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Thanks for the suggestion, I'll keep that in mind. There's a reptile show coming to my area in September, I figure by then I'll be ready for another snake. I"ll probably just hang on to the tank in the meantime.

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Originally Posted by Eddie_Z

I think that I speak for all of us here when I say that we have complete confidence in your ability to care for your pet.

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Eddie definately speaks for all of us (in this regard :P )

Use the tank for a nice colubrid! or maybe some Leos!

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Originally Posted by beaglegod

Use the tank for a nice colubrid!

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A gopher snake IS a nice colubrid! :P :wink:

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Originally Posted by RPlank

Rubbermaids rule!
Since it has a latch top, I would just secure the middle on the two sides with clamps or whatever you decide to use.

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Randy, if you check out those particular Rubbermaids, you'll see that any decent-sized bp can get out with one hand tied behind its back. ;) That's why I bypassed those and went for the Sterilite lock-tops instead, because they don't really require any additional security.

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Originally Posted by gen

So clamps should do the trick? How many do you think I need?

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Yes, if you get clamps that fit, I think they will do the trick just fine. If they're good clamps, two on each long side ought to do it.

screws and wing nuts!!! (had to plug that idea ) :twisted:

gen, i use latchable rubbermaids. just throw some weight in the middle and you shouldn't have any escapes.

you guys are making this to hard. bungy cords and clamps...just put some books(or anything slightly heavy) on top! then you dont have to go out and buy something esle.

I am so excited for you gen can't wait to see pics. Dan and I where laying in bed last night about how excited we were for you. I hope all goes well, waiting for tomorrow. I am off of work so will be checking in just to see what happens. I am so happy for you, you deserve the best!

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Originally Posted by MrsMacWin

I am so excited for you gen can't wait to see pics. Dan and I where laying in bed last night about how excited we were for you. I hope all goes well, waiting for tomorrow. I am off of work so will be checking in just to see what happens. I am so happy for you, you deserve the best!

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Thank you thank you! I will definitely keep you guys posted tomorrow and let you know how it goes. I'll also try post pictures and tell you guys what I name him as soon as I can.

Just an update on how I decided to secure my snake's enclosure. I fooled around with some different clamps and they were really awkward. I wanted something with less hassle, but more security than putting books on top. I was about to go to the hardware store to try to find some smaller clamps when my boyfriend got a bright idea. Why not use those window security locks? You know, the little metal things you screw in so the window won't slide open? I happened to have 4 of them so I put on at each corner of the rubbermaid, and that lid will NOT budge. I didn't have to buy anything (Well, I'm going to return the clamps), I didn't have to drill anymore holes, and they're really easy to get on and off. I'm confident that my snake won't get out. :)

Excellent! Ingenuity saves the day again, and we now have another security device to add to our arsenal.