Brazilian Rainbow Boa Enclosure....early planning stages....a few questions

[Huge Noob]

Hi everybody. I am in the early planning phase of building a forever home for a Brazilian Rainbow Boa. I am hoping to ask questions and see if anyone has tried the things I'm thinking of trying, or if they have any insight.

Here's a few random thoughts spinning through my head, in no particular order....

*Live plants....has anyone tried that with BRBs? I'm thinking a living floor of moss, with maybe a plant or two in the viv. My assumption is living moss floor would help maintain humidity. Thoughts?

*A waterfall feature. Fairly simple to build, and cheap. Again, hoping moving water will help with humidity. Ideas / thoughts / experiences appreciated.

*Humidity...I want to build a better mousetrap here. Looking for ways to not constantly be watering / misting / etc. Current ideas are some sort of heated water tank setup, like a large reservoir with a heating element in it....the element heats the water to steaming and voila...humidity. Of course steps would have to be taken to ensure the water can't touch the snake, and the snake can't touch the reservoir....but I'm thinking if i can build the reservoir big enough, I could go a week or more without adding water.

*Heat...heat tape? Ceramic? This is going to be a handmade enclosure, glass walls with wood corner braces. if I go with live plants, I'll probably need a gravel bottom layer for drainage, so won't that make underneath heating problematic?

*The inspiration for the look is this one from Youtube....although mine will be just one not two enclosures....I also love the hides down underneath the enclosure...I might incorporate that as well. That's also where I got the idea to do swimming holes beneath the ground level, which may end up in the final product.

Thanks in advance for all input, ideas, suggestions, comments, and valuable experience. I've never attempted an enclosure for one of these animals before, so I am trying to only do this once and do it right the first time!!

Thanks
-HN

[jjhill001]

You really shouldn't make your username huge noob. Eventually you are going to be really experienced and then when you give advice no one is going to listen to you.

[psychocircus]

Using plastic/PVC helps immensely in holding humidity.

Moss and plants: Your snake will climb over these regularly and potentially lead to their destruction, especially as it grows. I have a fully planted GTP enclosure, but he is small and I am noticing some plants getting damaged. I hope it holds out, but planted enclosures can be tough with snakes.

Water features: I have limited experience here, but most people find that they are more trouble than they are worth with snakes.

Humidity: Again, Plastic enclosures help. I mist my BRB enclosure probably once every three days and have a large waterbowl. I've had no issues with sheds.

Heating: Under tank heating won't work with gravel and soil layers, you are correct. I recommend using a radiant heat panel.

[Huge Noob]

Originally Posted by psychocircus

Using plastic/PVC helps immensely in holding humidity.

Moss and plants: Your snake will climb over these regularly and potentially lead to their destruction, especially as it grows. I have a fully planted GTP enclosure, but he is small and I am noticing some plants getting damaged. I hope it holds out, but planted enclosures can be tough with snakes.

Water features: I have limited experience here, but most people find that they are more trouble than they are worth with snakes.

Humidity: Again, Plastic enclosures help. I mist my BRB enclosure probably once every three days and have a large waterbowl. I've had no issues with sheds.

Heating: Under tank heating won't work with gravel and soil layers, you are correct. I recommend using a radiant heat panel.

I know what you mean about plastic / pvc cages...this is going to be in full sight in the main room, and those things are just not attractive. I do plan on doing all I can to compensate...the wood will be cut, stained and fully sealed at least a couple months prior to assembly so all fumes / gasses can leave. Doors will have gaskets, glass will be sealed. My ideal setup will have Lexan walls with very little wood actually exposed inside.

I hear you on the plants getting damaged, that is definitely a concern. I am hoping someone chimes in on a hardy moss that can serve as floor covering and won't grow tall. I worry about the snake digging in it though. That part of it may get tossed in favor of more common substrate like coconut fibers or shavings.

I'm not familiar with radiant heat panels, I'll look into it, thanks for the tip!

Thanks!
-HN

[Huge Noob]

Originally Posted by jjhill001

You really shouldn't make your username huge noob. Eventually you are going to be really experienced and then when you give advice no one is going to listen to you.

Where's your sense of humor? Imagine how hilarious it would be if I became like the smartest snake guy ever. Granted there's about a 00.0000000000001% chance of that happening, but still.....

[chairman]

You can look in to aquarium substrate heating cable. Place it down in your drainage layer and it should bump up the humidity nicely. It'll be much lower wattage than your boiler idea and highly unlikely to injure a snake.

[Jim Smith]

Since you're still in the planning stages, you might be interested in this article to grow your moss. How to Make Moss Grow With Milk | Home Guides | SF Gate Basically what you do is to take a large clump of moss and put it in a blender with some Buttermilk. When you get a watery slurry, use a clean paint brush to brush it on the surfaces you want the moss to grow on. I've seen it work before and if you give the moss what it needs (shade and some moisture) it should work great, especially if you have some rocks you want to have moss grow on. Good luck.

[Huge Noob]

Originally Posted by chairman

You can look in to aquarium substrate heating cable. Place it down in your drainage layer and it should bump up the humidity nicely. It'll be much lower wattage than your boiler idea and highly unlikely to injure a snake.

Oh wow....that looks PERFECT....I get it...keep a nice soil / drainage layer, and the gentle heat will produce humidity....

Thank you....that is very promising.

Have you tried something like that before?

Thanks!
-HN

[Huge Noob]

Originally Posted by Jim Smith

Since you're still in the planning stages, you might be interested in this article to grow your moss. How to Make Moss Grow With Milk | Home Guides | SF Gate Basically what you do is to take a large clump of moss and put it in a blender with some Buttermilk. When you get a watery slurry, use a clean paint brush to brush it on the surfaces you want the moss to grow on. I've seen it work before and if you give the moss what it needs (shade and some moisture) it should work great, especially if you have some rocks you want to have moss grow on. Good luck.

OK, I have to admit...make moss with buttermilk? For a second I thought you were f***ing with me....

But that seems legit..I now just need to visit a garden store and see if they have spores for specific strains. I want something hardy, that the snake will be discouraged from digging in due to density, that will thrive with a highly humid environment, but will not grow too tall....something that basically exists as ground cover and doesn't get tall.

Thanks everyone, these are great ideas....I'll post pics as this moves from planning to construction.

Thanks!
-HN

[chairman]

Yes, I used heat cable to bump up humidity for some hingeback tortoises. The cable never required a thermostat or rheostat, it never got hot enough to cause problems. Did a nice job.

The brand name of the cable I used was Hydor Hydrokable.