First time snake owner! Need advice/questions

[runs]

Hello, everyone my name is Caleb and I came across this fourm browsing on google. I'm glad to be here and have some questions/advice,

My main goal is too have a health snake and provide it with everything it needs.

I guess I will start from the beginning.
My buddy owns 2 snakes and had a lot of stuff he no longer used.
I was wanting a snake for a while and went to my local pet store [pet depot]
And purchased a ball python and a 20G tank kit that was around 150$
It came with

Aspen bedding
Log hide
Waterbowl
Blue light heat bulp + dome
fake plants
heat pad
etc.

My buddy gave me a small water bowl, a medium water bowl, and a huge water bowl. 2 yellow thermostats with probes to monitor the temperatures. A cheap thermostat along with a medium UTH

I went to my local Walmart and purchased a digital acurite thermometer and some black foam board so I can black out the sides and the back of the tank.
I then went to home depot and purchased a IR temp gun.
I just recently purchased a Vivarium Electronics 300x2 and its coming by UPS and should be here in about a week.
(My goal is too have a healthy snake and I will spend whatever and do whatever I need for it)

At first I had it in my spare bedroom of my house.
The temps was really cold in there and I had a hard time maintaining the temps. Every time I would get it right when night came the temps would drop severely and I was battling myself with trying to keep it up and perfect etc.

I then decided too move the tank into my main bedroom where I sleep.
I am having much better results in keeping a steady temp.
-My temps-
Cold side is reading 79-80
The ambient temp is 79
Humidity is 48
Hot side is 89-91.5

I know my humidity is too low but I have tried everything.
I've replaced water bowls, added another one in middle one on cool side.
Misting the tank works but I am trying different methods.
I have the top of the tank taped up with Foil tape.
The black foam boards are taped with foil tape.
I just got back from the pet store and got some sphagnum moss.
I thought about trying to make a humidity box.

Please help with me uping my humidity She is shedding and I want it to be smooth as possible.

[EL Ziggy]

As long as your snake has access to fresh water and is well hydrated I think your humidity will be fine. I never mist any of my snakes and have never had a bad shed or RI with humidity ranging anywhere from 35-65% depending on the season. A humid hide should be all you need and I very rarely use those. Let us know how the shed goes!

[runs]

The shed is coming off in pieces.

[TRD]

Change the substrate from Aspen to something that can hold humidity well without rotting... Aspen makes everything very dry and rots readily in a moist environment. A Good substrate layer is your answer to humidity issues. If there's a screen top on the terrarium, you can also block off some of it (but not all!).

I don't keep balls, but people seem to have success with substrates build around coco husk (but don't use only that, it gets soggy fast), fir bark/orchid bark, cypress mulch, top soil.

Remember that your snake needs a moist air environment, but prefers a dry soil. It can be challenging... One thing that helps is to top the water holding substrate off with a layer that dries fast.