I am new to the pet snake world and had a couple questions that I am sure you all see a lot. So I recently got a new pastel male from Garrick Demeyer and he is awesome! He is 2 months old tomorrow and he is about 22 inches. I know the trip here to VA was stressful for him so I got everything set up and tested out before he arrived and transitioned him into his new home as soon as he arrived. I understand you are suppose to let them get used to their new environment and typically not mess with them for a week or so; however, I attempted to feed him the same night and he didn't hesitate at all (atm on small live mice, but will transition him to frozen soon). He ate and I left him alone for two days. So since he arrived he has eaten two good meals with 0 hesitation. I even had a chance to start bonding with him a bit about 5 days after he arrived. He was a bit timid but within the 5-10 min handling session he came out of his ball and was moving around my hands (pic enclosed). He is eating well but is still very timid with me handling him and has struck at me a couple of times. I know that he is still getting used to me but are there anythings that I can do other than continuing to handle him in order to reduce his stress level and understand that I am his caregiver?

I currently have him in about a 35qt rubbermaid and using reptibark substrate. The humidity level is 80-90% which might be a bit too high? As of now one side of his enclosure is about 72-74F while the opposite side is around 94-100F. He stays on the warm side quite a bit which leads me to believe that the opposing side ambient is too cool for him. I am using a large UTH on one side and since his enclosure is clear I cover it with a towel which seems to help heat the other side up. Should I get a heat lamp (suspended over the tub) or would it be better to maybe get the mini heat pad for the opposing side to increase the ambient?

Since his enclosure is prob a bit bit for a small ball like this I bought another enclosure that's a bit smaller with a solid colored lid to let him feel a bit more secure; however, I don't want to move him into a new enclosure until he is a bit more comfortable (or should I just move him now?). I have read that you should cover the backs and side of clear enclosures with black construction paper, but would it be ok to spray these sides with black spray paint?

Sorry for the long post and I appreciate all of the advice.