Thanks for the feedback!

Of course, my priority will be to do right by the snake, not to spend as little money as possible; I just don't want to waste money, either, if I can avoid it.

Since I have no experience with this, I'm not really sure what would be involved...I figured that I'd set up the heating elements in the final space, and essentially fill in the floor space with fake plants, rocks, anything to occupy a large amount of it, leaving appropriate space to get to the hides, water, basking area, warm/cool areas...say, by filling in around the sides and back with the extra material, leaving the front & center area for use initially. How high would I need to fill the tank for the snake to feel enclosed? all the way to the top? A few inches? I realize that I can't fill in around the sides too much without covering the undertank heating pads...I was going to follow this plan since it is very detailed and seems to fit with the kind of tank I plan to use: http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/s...ad.php?t=56846

What exactly (in your opinion) would be necessary to do it right? I have no problems putting in the effort to get it that way, or at least, assessing the effort vs 2-tank expense to come to the best decision.