Paper Towel Substrate?

[Florence_Bones]

I was chatting with the gal in the reptile store today and she told me that she uses a 50/50 mix of pine bark and plantation soil for her substrate. She said that her snakes always have a good shed, as the substrate retains the right amount of moisture to keep the humidity balanced, and the snakes can really drag their body around to successfully remove the skin.

Obviously I want my snake to have a good shed every time, but I also really prefer the paper towel substrate. It is very easy to clean. I'm hoping people who use a paper towel substrate can share their experiences with me and we can have a conversation around how to ensure my gal has a good shed given my choice of substrate for her.

[purpleroan]

I have used paper towel or newspaper since I got my snake in February. Like you I enjoy the cleaning aspect, as well as the price and universal availability. Can't say I've ever had a bad shed, my tub usually maintains humidity between 50-60% naturally and when I know she's getting ready to shed I'll mist it once or twice a day. It's definitely not as visually appealing as some substrates but theres also almost zero risk of ingestion, and like I said every skin as always come off as a single piece so it's perfectly fine to use if thats your preference! If you're having trouble keeping the humidity up you may have to cover some holes/mesh in your cage until the % sits just right, it took me some trial and error.

[Bogertophis]

If you prefer paper towels, all you need to do is add a humid hide to her cage: you'll want to use a large enough new plastic food container, the kind with a top
on it; cut a doorway big enough for your snake (with a meal) to easily go in & out, and fill it halfway with sphagnum moss that has been soaked & mostly drained.
You'll need to re-hydrate the moss periodically, but unless your snake uses it for a bathroom, you can re-soak & re-use it for quite a while before replacing.
Having a humid hide in the cage at all times will add to the over-all humidity in the cage, but snakes that like humidity will often seek it out as their favorite hang-out.