"Automating" a ball python water bowl?

[Mount_Prion]

As some of you might have seen, I've been looking for a herp to fill up some space in my living room and pet-keeping life.

After batting around a few ideas I've decided to set up a small forest turtle tank for interactivity and get a couple of cool ball python morphs for looks and possible pokemon-esque breeding a bit down the line.

I've been reading up a lot about ball care, and I've got an idea that spawned some questions.

It seems very important to keep their water supply clean and fresh, and would be something of a daily task changing and cleaning their bowls.

But of course my main experience with keeping animals in tanks is with fish, and I had some ideas.

I believe I've read (or maybe I assumed this) that you want to give pythons de-chlorinated water.

What if I drilled a couple of smallish holes in the side of their hypothetical enclosure for an in and out tube and set up a tiny (say 5g) tank beneath as a sump, connected to a large, also drilled water dish? Obviously I don't want their humidity level too high so I'd keep the water flow at a minimum and the receptacle in their enclosure wouldn't be larger than a normal snake water dish.

I figure this way they'll have dechlorinated water and if/when they defecate in it, there'll be bacteria present to help break it down. And I figure this means I'd have to change it less frequently and it'll be "cleaner" than a normally washed stagnant water bowl.

Of course I don't know if the BB in the water would make a snake sick the same way it might make a human, so that's an obvious concern. But I sort of figured I'd throw some pothos in the "sump" to keep it fresh and whatnot.

Thoughts? Good idea? Bad? If so, why.

Thanks!

 

[Miguel]

I am going to be a pian in the arae, Moun.

Snakes are so low work intensive that every automation leads to neglec.

Just change the water bowl any other day, check the snakes...

And forget about leaving deopings in the water, assuming they do it in the water...

Do not do it. You will end up doing nothing with the snakes iif you dn't have to...
Sorry, just my years of experience alking.

 

[Mount_Prion]

I am going to be a pian in the arae, Moun.

Snakes are so low work intensive that every automation leads to neglec.

Just change the water bowl any other day, check the snakes...

And forget about leaving deopings in the water, assuming they do it in the water...

Do not do it. You will end up doing nothing with the snakes iif you dn't have to...
Sorry, just my years of experience alking.

I appreciate the concern but I don't really think it's applicable. I'm an extremely responsible uh, husband (somebody who practices husbandry?) to my animals.

Everything gets checked up on when I get home from work every day regardless of if it needs it, and I don't have/plan on getting nearly enough stuff for neglect to come from being overwhelmed.

If anything I figure this could improve their living conditions, and I enjoy the DIY/setting up aspect. I'm planning on doing something really cool and similar with aforementioned forest turtle tank, too, and I'll be posting that.

And I wouldn't leave any poop in their water once I'm home. But if the thing decides to go right after I leave for work some morning, this system has to be better for it than the crap sitting there several hours in a drinking water puddle while I'm in the office.

 

[fwprawn]

I've "done" snakes too - they are so low maintenance as it is - As Miguel said - just keep an eye on the water bowl and change it every couple of days - They DO like to poop in water - but until they do, the water is pretty clean. You will actually enjoy handling the snakes more.
You should scrub the bowls every other week, or once a week, otherwise, as you said, bacteria will grow in it. That might not bother the snake, but it will create unhealthy conditions in the enclosure, and for yourself.
Think of it like having your cat - same idea with the water bowl.

 

[Miguel]

Was never my intention, Mount, to doubt your knowledge and committment, Man.

Just gave npmy opinion. The more one auomates the more one neglects....but thatnis just me..

Have kept 27 snakes at the same time and did it all amannually. Was my way of deao,ing with them, of observing them...

 

[fwprawn]

If you are worrying about poop being left in the bowl for a couple of hours - rest easy - and, tap water is just fine.
If you ENJOY complicating things (that's in a good way) - then sure, try that drip kit, but that will lead to excessive moisture. That would be okay for something along the lines of an Anaconda, Watersnake, etc, but not a Ball.

And in light of your enjoying DIY, you could, then, set up a "micro fan" to filter out excessive moisture. Just make sure you watch the temp - which is yet another DIY possibility.

One thing that came to mind is; if you are concerned about space, or the size, then stick with males - they stay much smaller.

 

[Mount_Prion]

Was never my intention, Mount, to doubt your knowledge and committment, Man.

Just gave npmy opinion. The more one auomates the more one neglects....but thatnis just me..

Have kept 27 snakes at the same time and did it all amannually. Was my way of deao,ing with them, of observing them...

Sorry for being reactionary. You do have a point, but again I'm planning on setting them up in something of a display. I know they'll hang out in hides most of the day and aren't very active, but I do plan on handling them as much as they'll tolerate up to the point of causing them stress that would stop them from eating. I couldn't buy one of those snake-drawer systems. Maybe for babies I was trying to sell, but that's it.

I guess I come from the IT industry where automation is almost always better.

"A lazy sys-admin is a good sys-admin."

If you are worrying about poop being left in the bowl for a couple of hours - rest easy - and, tap water is just fine.
If you ENJOY complicating things (that's in a good way) - then sure, try that drip kit, but that will lead to excessive moisture. That would be okay for something along the lines of an Anaconda, Watersnake, etc, but not a Ball.

And in light of your enjoying DIY, you could, then, set up a "micro fan" to filter out excessive moisture. Just make sure you watch the temp - which is yet another DIY possibility.

One thing that came to mind is; if you are concerned about space, or the size, then stick with males - they stay much smaller.

Thanks! Yeah I'm gonna have to figure out moisture levels. I have a feeling the moisture level in my apartment in general is going to be significantly higher than normal due to the swamp in my living room. But the radiators tend to dry things out quite a bit, so I'm not sure. Gonna test that tonight, actually.

Size isn't a concern for me in a snake. Heck, as far as I'm concerned the bigger the better. Just that most big snakes are illegal to own in NY. But balls especially don't need a very large enclosure, and most importantly for me said enclosure won't weigh all that much.