I've got a beautiful normal BP male, Nim, that I picked up at Repticon from a local breeder. His current tank set-up is pretty ghetto. I didn't do as much research as I should have(didn't know they needed belly heat vs. ambient).
He's currently in a standard 10 gallon screen top aquarium tank. An insufficient water dish(big enough for him to lay in....but not without spilling most of the water). Two hides, a half log that's a smidge too big for him that he never uses, and a half length paper-towel tube that he loves. I've covered the top screen to hold humidity, 1/2 taped with foil, and 1/4 covered with a folded towel that I have to soak daily. For heat...the tank is sitting on-top of an old home entertainment system tuner(that supplies sound from my computer or the radio, hehe), I do have the tank sitting ~1/4 off of the tuner to give it a cool area. I also have a Night Red heat lamp that is heating up the basking surfaces and ambient temperature, as well as providing nocturnal light at all times.
To keep the humidity up I've also got a makeshift humidifier cup(little tumbler full of water, covered in plastic wrap with a hole in it, held in place with a rubber band) under the heat lamp, to keep the humidity at 50%+ according to my cheap Petco brand sticky hydrometer.
He is eating regularly each week when I feed him. Hides often in his paper-towel tube(which I gather is a healthy and happy behavior). He actively "explores" his tank at least twice a day. I've only had him for a month now(today will be his 4th feeding, under my care), so I'm not sure how regular his waste secretion should be, but I have "cleaned up" after him a couple times. He is even getting used to handling, kinda restless and likes to wander but not as skiddish as when I first started picking him up. Even with all this good behavior, I know that the living situation isn't ideal and needs to change.
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I just recently purchased a 55 gallon long aquarium tank(standard 4' x 1' x 2'), and I'm currently cleaning it. It only cost me $50 for the tank with a stand, but it had some major hard water stains and it looks like there is mold creeping under the silicone. With most of the hard water stains gone, I'm getting ready to re-silicone it. Before I do that I'm wanting to section off a 1' x 1' area with a piece of plexi-glass to use as a pond(for humidity and drinking water), I've already got a filter/pump to circulate the water(standard standing pump for turtles or DIY waterfalls). I'm currently debating on how "big" to make the pond. I've calculated it out a 12" x 12" x 4" area to be roughly 2.5 gallons, that should be more than plenty to keep the snake hydrated, humidity in the air, and soaking room...but is it too much, or plenty of room that the snake can grow into. Do I have to worry about drowning? Maybe adding some pebble/river-stone type ground cover to raise the surface level of the bottom?
One change that I know I'd like to make is switching from aspen bedding to eco earth. Main reasons being less risk of impaction during feeding and humidity retention. One tip I read about, that I'd like to explore is adding salt to the eco earth when hydrating it to prevent mold/mildew growth(I don't plan on using live plants so that won't be an issue), but I'm curious if it'll effect the snake any or what a safe ratio of salt to eco earth would be?
I think my biggest question about the eco earth is heat retention. Do UTH's need to be set higher for the heat to transfer through, based on the thickness? Or would UTH + Overhead heat be enough? I plan on getting a UTH that can cover at least 1/2 if not 3/4 of the bottom surface area, as well as still using the Night Red light I have. I'd also like to setup a day light that's on a timer to simulate regular day/night cycles.
I've been having trouble deciding on what type of hides to use though.
/rant on
After some research into the natural hides that are sold by most retail stores(PetCo/PetSmart), they're not actually safe for most of not all animals not just reptiles. The half log that I have is made of Douglas Fir which is in the pine family(if I'm not mistaken). Before buying the half log, I purchased a small hide meant for small rodents, perfect size for my snake...it's made of untreated pine. All "pine" woods contain phenols that are toxic, and prolonged exposure can cause brain damage and respiratory issues(in all animals, not just reptiles and rodents). You can test to see if the wood has been kiln dried or not by taking a few drops of water to a section of the wood, letting is soak in, and then sniff it...if it has that distinct pungent "piney" smell, its toxic to your animal.
/rant off
That being the case, with the exception of drift wood or real stone/rock, I haven't been able to find any "natural" hides. Currently Nim is loving the cardboard paper-towel tubes, but if I'm going to switch to eco earth I'm assuming they will get soggy real quick. Trying to think of an alternative, but the only thing that comes to mind is PVC, full cylinder sections or "half-log" type sections. Any thoughts on that?
Still not sure on how I will setup the lids, the tank didn't come with one when I purchased it(I did get it off of craigslist, not surprised there though). I'm perfectly fine with DIY solutions, and/or store bought, but I don't want it to cost an arm and a leg.
I found some great online resources for supplies, and I'll add a list of links for a few of the things I'm planning on picking up for this project below.
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$15-35 -
Ultratherm UTH(they're out of the 11" x 23" one that I want, but they're cheaper and come in different sizes than the ZooMed/Zilla ones)
$32 -
Zilla Reptile Electronic Temperature Controller
$9 -
AcuRite Digital Humidity and Temperature Monitor(I'm not sure if this will be sufficient, but I plan on getting at least two) **Edit**URL limit reached? Heh...Located at Walmart
$5 -
Zoo Med Eco Earth® Coconut Substrate 3-pk(just because it's three for the price that I can get one for in a store)
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Any and all help would be much appreciated, thank you in advance.
**Also, sorry about the wall of text. I have been trying to do as much reading and research before posting something, and I'm starting to become really passionate about it...
BP viv project - and other questions
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