Quote Originally Posted by Mindibun
Ok, feel free to correct me if I'm wrong everyone, but here's my take.

Yes, that's too much water. You would just want moisture in the air, not a swimming pool for the snake. -lol- I usually mist my girls if the humidity is low. Too much water sitting in the bedding is likely to cause all kinds of mold and fungus, etc. You may also want to consider taking some bedding out. 3" is really a lot. My cocobark substrate is only an inch thick. They dont dig in it, and if you decide to put an under-tank heater (UTH) on it, that much substrate would block some heat.

Wait for someone else's response on the UTH matter, but I would say that if the hot spot is only 80 with the heat lamp, it's something to look into. They like it at about 91 on the hot side.

If the snake is really young, which, I'm assuming it is, you should feed it a hopper every week. I believe when they get older most people only feed once every two weeks, but when they're young they need a little more food. I usually give mine live but tonight I'm going to try frozen. (FT=frozen/thawed). Frozen is better because it minimizes the risk of the snake getting injured.

A 30 long is a little big for the size that I'm assuming the snake is so you ought to consider some more fake plants to make her feel more secure and "scrunched in". It's also more difficult to heat the larger tanks. I know it'd be an issue since you just got the tank, but you should consider switching her over to a sterillite tub from walmart. Most people on this site have them as set-ups, and I just recently got my little girl into one. I have to admit, I prefer it. It's much easier to deal with and keeps the heat/humidity in better. You should also have 2 hides for her, not just one. One on the hot side, one on the cold side. That way, regardless of the temperature they prefer, they can still be hidden, which is a big deal for BPs.

Well, I think I covered everything. But, like I said, I'm rather a newbie myself so anyone can feel free to correct me.
That about sums it all up, you should also look into a outdoor/indoor thermometer instead of the strip. For a UTH I would get a thermostat or a rheostat and use that for the hot side *92-94F* and use that heat lamp for the cool side 81-84. Also a 30 long is HUGE TANK, you should either get a smaller tank for now or like metioned above put tons of plants etc. Only downfall to tons of plants is... you have to clean them every month and im sure that will get old. I'm sure others will chime in to tell you more but thats my opinion on it all.