Soon to Shed or Bacteria? Sorry, im totally new! :X

[rattlehead07]

wow.. i scavenged the isles of my home depot to no avail.. im gona call around right now and ask some more. how would you suggest i raise the humidity?

i got a 40 gallon tank, layer of astro turf with fir bark substrate covering half of it, have most of the top covered with foil and a black 50 watt bulb... what am i missing?

[Lolo76]

wow.. i scavenged the isles of my home depot to no avail.. im gona call around right now and ask some more. how would you suggest i raise the humidity?

You can order one online: http://weatherconnection.com/product...curite0&page=3
And do you have something to control the temperatures? If not, go get a Lutron dimmer at Home Depot or Lowes... although a thermostat (ZooMed, Helix, etc) is better, the dimmer will do for now.

If you do need to raise humidity, add another water bowl & put it under/over the heat source... you can also mist with a water bottle, throw in some damp sphagnum moss, or a moist paper towel. Just make sure it doesn't get too humid, or you could give him a respiratory infection.

i got a 40 gallon tank, layer of astro turf with fir bark substrate covering half of it, have most of the top covered with foil and a black 50 watt bulb... what am i missing?

A few problems here, which will definitely affect your humidity... tank is pretty big (they only need 20gal as adults), the heat lamp will suck out your humidity, and glass tanks in general are difficult to maintain. I'd suggest converting to a tub setup, but if you want a tank do the following - switch to one of the substrates I mentioned above, ditch the heat lamp, and use only the UTH (once you have something to control/measure it) for heat.

[rattlehead07]

You can order one online: http://weatherconnection.com/product...curite0&page=3

And do you have something to control the temperatures? If not, go get a Lutron dimmer at Home Depot or Lowes... although a thermostat (ZooMed, Helix, etc) is better, the dimmer will do for now.



A few problems here, which will definitely affect your humidity... tank is pretty big (they only need 20gal as adults), the heat lamp will suck out your humidity, and glass tanks in general are difficult to maintain. I'd suggest converting to a tub setup, but if you want a tank do the following - switch to one of the substrates I mentioned above, ditch the heat lamp, and use only the UTH (once you have something to control/measure it) for heat.

advice taken. i cant really get rid of the tank cause i got it with the snake as a gift, and cant afford much else. would it be legitimate if i stuck a UTH under the water dish? in theory that should cause the water to evaporate and put out moisture into the air..?

[zantedeschia]

would it be legitimate if i stuck a UTH under the water dish? in theory that should cause the water to evaporate and put out moisture into the air..?

Will heat the water in the dish and promote the growth of bacteria. Why not slap it on the side of the tank until you get your rheostat?

[rattlehead07]

sounds like my next move, thanks!

by the way, ive been on different forums for all of my life, and never have i gotten this much help at this incredible of a rate thanks to everyone for the warm welcome and the awesome advice.

[Lolo76]

Thanks, we try! I'm still fairly new to snakes myself, as I just got my first BP a year ago... and I must say, about 98% of what I've learned has come from this forum.

[Lolo76]

P.S. Welcome to the addiction, LOL... if you look at my signature, you can see how my collection has grown in one year.

[CRAZY]

That's the same type of substrate I use. My guy has swallowed it a couple times but is fine. I was worried at first. I'm ditching it soon, because it scares me. If it is changed every few months it can promote bacteria. It hides everywhere.

[Lolo76]

That's the same type of substrate I use. My guy has swallowed it a couple times but is fine. I was worried at first. I'm ditching it soon, because it scares me. If it is changed every few months it can promote bacteria. It hides everywhere.

That's one reason I prefer to use newspaper or paper towels for my BPs... I only use real substrate (carefresh, since I'm allergic to aspen) in the corn snake tubs, since they like to burrow. But with the pythons, paper is the way to go!! It's so easy to clean, and no risk of them swallowing the bedding.