First Post, Be Gentle Also First Snake

[Duardo]

Hello everyone!

As the title reads I just recently got a ball python. And I have been browsing the site for a while but I still have some questions, any and all responses are very much appreciated as I love to hear from everyone and learn a thing or two.

Sorry for the long post, ill Bold my main concerns, thank you all.

Well first thing first,Tank size is something that seems to be debated about a lot. My BP is a juvenile, maybe about 1 year old or a little more and I have her in a 40 gal. It was a starter kit (I know, i know those kits arent the best but i got her with the tank for a deal). She has the little log hide and I also bought some wood that she tends to go inside of. I also added a little vine around the hide so it seems more hidden and I added a fake log that she can kind of climb to the top of and be a couple inches off the top of the cage lid.What I was wondering was if this is ok or should I make it feel more crowded so she has more space to hide and explore. This leads me to my next question about a bioactive vivarium...Are they worth it? Is it beneficial?

I've seen a lot of debate on this and I know breeders and such keep them in bins with nothing but a water bowl and paper towels and it works. But I like aesthetic looks as well as functionality. I know with a bioactive vivarium the "clean up crew", consisting of isopods and springtails, would clean the cage and I'd only really have to worry about doing a monthly clean up. But some people say this isn't worth it in the end. So I am torn.
Speaking of keeping a bioactive vivarium I know I should have a mix for the plants to grow in, but I was wondering whats a good mix? I've seen part top soil, part coconut fiber and reptibark and was wondering if thats good? And if so how much of each? And if it isnt good what would be a good substrate? Since I have a starter kit I used the aspen shavings, which is 50/50 I heard. What has me concerned is that I got my BP friday (7/13/18) and I got her from petsmart--now before you get mad at me my petsmart tends to take relatively good care of its pets, so I somewhat trust them even though I saw she had a little bit of a stick shed (she had some skin that hasnt shedded off)--so, she seems to have some rough spots on her that arent smooth, and kind of rough. Now I dont know if this is her scales popping off due to the aspen, or scale rot (but I dont see blisters) but I want to change the substrate but I want to know what would be a good mix?

Apart from this issue,my tank doesn't get warm enough on one side with only the heat pad. The aspen is 2-3 inches thick on the cooler part and 1-2 inches thick on the heat mat, since I was afraid she'd burn herself. Is this too much substrate or what? I have a heat lamp in between the two spots so it keeps it warm in the middle and hotter on the basking area, which reaches a max of 87 F (30.5 C) and the cool side at 75 F (23.8 C). But the thing is I have to have the heat lamp on or else at night with it off the hottest it gets is 80F (26.6C), so I bought a zoomed nightlight red reptile bulb thats 100w but apparently I heard snakes are still bothered by this and its like still light for them. So do I have less substrate or will changing it help insulate heat better? Or what should I do?

Last thing In was confused about, was feeding my snake. I know in petsmart they took her out her enclosure to put her in a separate tank , that was heated, to eat. Ive seen people say that feeding in an enclosure can make snakes more likely (not by a lot) to bite, but some are saying there isnt evidence to prove this. I know when they eat they shouldn't be handled right away or for 48 hours, but since my BP was at petsmart theyd handle her a couple hours after eating and put her back in her enclosure, and she never regurgitated. So I figured she somewhat became accustomed to this, but if it stresses her then I don't want to continue doing it. She doesn't seem to be bothered by being handled either and has opened up really quick since 2 days after I got her she knew it was feeding time and let me pick her up to go to another tank (it was right above her enclosure so she moved less than 2 feet.Should I just feed in enclosure or continue moving her every weekend to a smaller enclosure right above her cage to feed her?

Thanks in advanced for any and all responses and sorry that I seem like I'm clueless.