What type of 30 gallon?

I've heard that a 30g is recommended for adult bp's. I'm considering downgrading from my 40 breeder to a 30 due to some stress issues. Which 30g is the better one?

30 Gallon 36 x 12 x 16 (LxWxH)
30 Breeder 36 x 18 x 12

These are my current tank dimensions:
40 Breeder 36 x 18 x 16

Thanks!

(I forgot to mention: I would prefer not to go to a 20, as I think I would need to upgrade again in the future. Plus, most of my current stuff would not fit in a 20.)

The regular 30g is the same width as a 20 long it appears, which would mean all my stuff would be cramped. But, a 30 breeder is just 4in shorter than my 40g. Does anyone have any experience with this?

Another option would be to cram more plants in my current setup haha. Bad idea?
Here's my setup now. Critique as necessary.
http://img41.imageshack.us/my.php?image=0523091530a.jpg

http://img41.imageshack.us/img41/2503/0523091530a.jpg

Your tank looks good...very nice decor. I think I have the same water-dish, it looks nice, but is super heavy and I find a pain to change (have to take the whole huge top off to fit. My only recommendation would be thermometers, I'm sure you have some that aren't visible in the pictures but just checking in case not. I keep a couple in each, one for ambient and humidity and another for the hot spot.


Balls aren't climbers so more floor space is better than height. I would go for a 30 gallon breeder over a regular tank.

Really the only difference is the height, and I would say the lower the better. But then again, I would only put a very large female (2,000g+) in a 30g breeder. Everyone else from 700-2,000g would go in a 20L.

If your snake is stressing in the 40, I would downsize to a 20long. Every snake has preferences, and it looks like yours likes to be snug. :)

I had a 2000g+ female that was still looking for more room in a 40g breeder tank. :) On the other side, I have a young female pastel that prefers smaller spaces. To each their own.

is the snake about to touch all the sides of the hide when hes in it? That was the problem i had i upgraded to a bigger hide because the ones i had were too small and they would be lifted up when he was inside them.

The new ones were too big and he stopped eating, bought new ones that were smaller and bam... just like before

She seems to be acting normal recently: sleep all day, come out at night. She still goes up to the top of the tank at night as if she's trying to escape, but I'm not sure if that's normal or not.
I guess I'll have to see this Friday if she eats. If not, I may have to downgrade.

The thing about a 20g is that my current stuff would barely fit in there. My two hides would take up pretty much the whole tank. :(

To Calift: I have three thermometers; one for each hide and one for the ambient/humidity that the lock is blocking.

How big is your snake?
Those hides are pretty big hides, does he fit super snug in them? That could be causing the stress issue too if he doesn't feel secure in the hides.

She's a little over 1200g. The hides could be more snug for her.

Here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to set up the 20L this week to stabilize temps and figure out what I need for heating. I'll make new hides using the current ones as molds using this idea:
DIY hides

Then, if she doesn't eat in the 40 come Friday, she's going to the 20L. If she does eat and I'm satisfied with the 20L, I switch anyways. The 20L is by far so much easier to travel with and maintain temps/humidity.

Not meaning to thread jack here but, is it a problem if they don't use their hides? I've had my snake since saturday and he/she has not been staying in the hides I have? She stays tucked in the corner behind the warm side hide and under some fake plants I have around it. She stays there during the day and then comes out at night for a few hours checking things out and goes right back to the same spot. She has gone into the hides but never stays in them. The do have some extra room in them but if it's not hurting anything can I keep them in there until they are snug enough if she seems ok without using them?

How many UTHs do those of you with 20L setups use? My house temps are not so stable and can range from 70-80. I'm thinking two small size UTHs, is that ok?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mrshawt

How many UTHs do those of you with 20L setups use? My house temps are not so stable and can range from 70-80. I'm thinking two small size UTHs, is that ok?

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If you get two UTH's you need to thermostats, remember that.

I don't know if the smaller ones even reach levels of 95F.

I have three rheostats for the time being. I'm just worried about one UTH not being enough to raise the ambient. I do have two med size UTHs on the 40g right now, but I have a feeling those would be too big for the 20L.

My house stays around 70 and I'm using one medium for the warm side and one small for the cool side on my 20gal. long. I still had to use a che to get my ambient up to about 80-82 with this setup. I am using about 1-2 inches of aspen substrate so I don't know how much that is affecting me right now. Hope this helps.