New family member will arrive soon

[mcamnl]

I have been wanting a ball python for about 25 years now and life has finally gotten to the point where I can.
We will be picking up this little lady in a couple of days.



So far this is my setup. Basic for now.



I have an under tank heater on the right. There is a temp probe on the bottom of the tank right in the middle of the pad to a temp controller that is turning the pad on and off. It is set at 95deg at the moment. Slowly making adjustments to see how it affects the temp in that hide.
The lamp holder on the top currently has a 100 watt ceramic heater. Cypress mulch. I have a digital thermometer/hydrometer and it shows 55% humidity and 85deg sitting right in front of the right side hide. I am going to put it in the hide here shortly and see what it reads.
Since the photo I have added some fake vines in the back middle. I am also going to pick up another light fixture and use the blue light that came with the kit. Try and get the heat up a little on the left side of the tank.
I still have to cover half the screen and start working on maintaining the humidity.
How does this look for a start? I have been doing a lot or reading and learning a lot. Looking forward to learning more.

[hazzaram]

Hi! Welcome. It looks like you've done pretty well! A couple of notes...

1. Those hides aren't secure enough. You want something that's almost fully enclosed and that touches the snake on all sides. They really like to be hidden and they like spots that they can barely fit into.

2. Heat lights kill humidity. You'll have to do some experimenting to see how you can keep the humidity in. Covering most of the screen lid and misting will help. So will placing the water dish partially onto the uth.

3. I would cover 3 sides of the tank to make the snake feel more secure

But you've done pretty well so far! I'm impressed and glad to see that you have a thermostat for that uth

[mcamnl]

With the furnace running more now I figured humidity would be an issue. I will start misting it and see how that works.

I think the kids have some black construction paper somewhere for the back and sides. Maybe when I get back to work after this weeks vacation I will come up with some kind of image and run it off on our plotter.

The kit came with a blue light bulb. Would this be ok for adding some more light and heat?

Thank you for the feedback. I have a few days before I go and pick her up and am trying to get the environment as stable as I can before she gets here.

[LittleTreeGuy]

I wouldn't fool with the blue light... but that's just me. If you want to add some lights for day viewing, get some LED's. They cost nothing to run, are small, and look nice. Just don't run them at night, as the snake will need a daytime/nighttime light cycle (they like/need some darktime).

That is a good size ceramic heater on top, so you should be able to move it around if needed to get the ambient temps in a good spot and hold them there. If it gets too hot, you can get a lamp dimmer switch at Lowes or Home Depot for about $10. This will allow you to control how much power it gets and in turn, how much heat it puts out, controlling the temp. Also, one of those places can probably cut a piece of plexiglass for you that will fit the top of that tank and that will greatly assist with your humidity levels.

I agree with hazzaram about the hides. You can use something simple, like plastic bowls with holes cut in the sides, or you can order some fancier ones. Just make sure the bottom is open, don't get stuff for fish or you snake could get stuck. People use Tupperware, to-go containers, etc... plenty of ways to do it without spending much money. They're not as pretty, but the snakes don't care what it look like.


Looks great though.. .and congratulations on your little lady!!!

[PitOnTheProwl]

Welcome and congrats!!

Remember you need to be more worried about the temperature of the glass under the substrate.
Your snake can and will burrow so you don't want any burns.

[mcamnl]

I have black construction paper around it now and some foil wrapped around about 3/4 of the screen top. When I get back to work next week I will change that out for a scrap piece of Plexiglas so my little LED light will shine through.
My temp probe on the hot side sitting on top of the substrate is about 84. I have the thermostat for the heat pad set at 89.
On the cool side sitting on top of the substrate is around 78.
Humidity is starting to stabilize a little but still drops pretty fast.
2 new hides are on order. Just basic plastic guys.



Kind of impatient. Waiting till Saturday to pick her up is making for a long week. haha

[Eric Alan]

As Pit already said, make sure you take temps on the floor beneath the substrate. They can, and will, find a way to end up on the there and you need to make sure they'll be safe there when they do. From there, just make sure you only have a limited amount of substrate covering the floor so it doesn't trap the heat beneath it.