waterfall?

[magicmed]

Hello all, I'm new to the forum here and I apologize if this has been discussed before. I am adopting a 2 year old ball python from someone who can no longer take care of him. now I'm not an expert by any means, but I have owned one bp. I got her as a hatchling, and had her for 10 years. Sadly a few years ago a horrible freak ice storm ravaged my area and the entire town was without power and water for 2 weeks. I did everything I possibly could but she did not make it. It's Been a few years and for the last few months I've Been really considering another ball python, and found this little fellow that needs a home. I've been kicking around making a small waterfall in his tank. Not only for looks, but filtered water is always better right? And my old python absolutely loved to soak in her water dish. My idea was to have a relatively large water dish (possibly one gallon?) with a stone structure (safely aquarium siliconed) built up the back side of the tank. a small water pump with built in filter from harbor freight would pump water from the bowl and slowly trickle it down the stone path back to the dish. My concern is do you think this would cause too high humidity? And do you think the surface disruption on the water, even being minimal, would shy him from drinking/soaking in the water? Thank you all

[DVirginiana]

My main concern whenever people talk about water features of any sort is cleanliness; like, how easy will it be for you to take the water dish out and clean it when the snake goes to the bathroom. Another concern is whether the snake will be able to get near any of the equipment (pumps or anything) or any holes leading to the equipment since they are definitely strong enough to break and knock down most stuff like that.

If both of those issues are taken care of, I doubt it'll push your humidity above about 60%. I doubt surface disturbance would scare them off from drinking, but I would wonder if the vibration from the pump/filter running would bother them.

All that aside, one gallon is a very large water dish. How big is the whole enclosure?

[magicmed]

I haven't picked him up yet, I'm going in a few days, she's including the current fully set up 35 Aquarium. I figured it would be less stressful if I kept him in there for a while at first. But at some point I would like to build a custome Enclosure for him that's only viewable from one side. ( my 5 foot female lived in a 55 inch wooden TV that I gutted and plexiglassed, and installed some lighting/access and cleaning hatches. I know smaller is better, but she really seemed to enjoy exploring every inch on that tank. I did have plenty of hides and plants though.She had a large water dish as well, it was a plastic oil pan you would buy at oreileys when doing an oil change) I would like to at some point make something along the same lines, and see if he likes it as much as my old python did.

[magicmed]

As far as clenliness, I figured as long as the entire structure can be lifted from the enclosure I could keep it clean. I did not consider the vibrations from the pump, thats a very good point. so a exterior mounted design may be more appropriate?

[kitedemon]

I also have some reservations of a water fall. They can be complex to keep clean. I think I would use a proper filter rather than a pump, something like a small canister filter (turtle tank filter? perhaps) and absolutely external mounted. Hard to say what the snake will respond to running water, so i would have a small bowl as well. Things I would keep in mind, what would happen if the snake was able to divert the pump out flow to outside the return water system? Can you really keep it clean, hoses, cracks and corners? Does the foot print of water feature remove space for essentials (hides etc.)? Can you balance a water feature in the heating and humidity of the enclosure.

No one can answer these things for you there are too many variables. I see the attraction and the esthetics of it. I think the singular most important thing for you to be ready to do is be ready to give up. Try it, if it smells swampy you know it is not clean enough, if the balance goes haywire, if it is too big, if the snake reacts poorly to it, you need to be ready to say, "oh well I better remove it." If you get so hung up on the idea or invest so much time / money to it you are unwilling to part with it, this is a terrible idea. If you can and will decide that if an issue develops you will remove it with out a second though there is no harm it trying.