Hey everyone. I gotta be totally honest, I kinda wish I’d gotten colubrids before my ball pythons. Don’t get me wrong, I love them, but keeping the humidity up can be a real pain sometimes. My AMK and Durango Mountain Kingsnake always have perfect sheds, no extra humidity needed. But one of my ball pythons had a bad shed recently, and it made me feel like a terrible keeper. I really try to keep their humidity right, but I think with winter being so dry, it’s just tough. Just venting here. I truly love my snakes and do my absolute best to give them great lives, but man, a California kingsnake probably would’ve been easier.
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I do love my colubrids. Corn snakes are so easy and chill by comparison with many other kinds. I’m sure you’ll figure it out, though! I can tell from your post you really care about doing the best you can by ALL of your snakes. Good luck!
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I might ruffle some feathers here but colubrids are superior to ball pythons for a number of reasons. Many of the commonly available colubrid species have much easier to meet environmental requirements for the average keeper than ball pythons. They are more active and engaging. They are typically great eaters. A number of species come in a wide range of color and pattern morphs. They are the superior “beginner” snake IMO.
Based on my experience with both species, I would even consider boas (imperator) to be a superior first time snake to a ball python, if you are comfortable with the size potential of a boa. I’m biased here though. 
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As I’m sure you’re aware, there are pain-in-the-butt colubrids too! But it’s hard to go wrong with most North American rat snakes, milk snakes, and kingsnakes.
I don’t know much about BPs. Will they utilize a humid hide if they need to?
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Honest opinion… There is absolutely nothing wrong with trying a species, discovering it is not a fit for you, and then moving on to something else. In my many many years, I have had plenty of species that I ended up trying and discovering they just were not for me. Find your passion and run with it. There is nothing to feel guilty about
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They usually will. I used to keep damp sphagnum in one of my worst shedding BP’s enclosure. Just a hide with some moss. It helps a lot!
Also @dzag a question on that particular BP. Were they fed a few days to a week before shedding? Snakes go through some crazy stages in metabolism after a meal and that can cause some bad sheds as well.
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Well this particular ball python will eat whenever so she probably did eat lol. Shes a great eater. One time i tried to spot clean and she got my finger so it couldve been that.
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Oh man. She is waiting for her appetizers.
Yeah. I’ve had a couple over the years where they don’t really have that blue look yet. And it’s like the next 2 days it happens and ‘well… 
’.
It’s a coin flip after that. good shed/messy shed
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Totally understand the frustration with maintaining humidity, especially in the winter. The air is so dry in the winter where I live, keeping my tropical species happy is definitely a bit of a task. I’ve found that pouring water into the substrate rather than misting is much more effective. Adding damp sphagnum moss to the substrate also helps, as can moving the water dish to the warm side to promote more evaporation.
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Thank you for the tips 
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This is not an uncommon issue and you are not alone. Since you love them- it sounds like the main issue is humidity. There are solutions for that.
I would make sure to increase the humidity in my (2) humid hides. I would also increase the surface area on your glass water bowl(s) again (2) and more wide than deep. With the hides, you can put some damp sponges inside. One of the cold side and the other on the hotter side.
It is often ideal to have some vents on the lower cold side, and the same amount (based on size of enclosure) on the upper part of the HOT side. Correct ventilation is also indirectly good sheds and overall health.
A substrate choice of Cyprus mulch with some light misting might also help. You can also look into a bioactive set-up.
If you care to share, what are your typical maintained Heat and Humidity values?
Your enclosure is also simply and likely not great at trapping humidity. I am not a fan of PVC enclosures but good ones (thicker) do a great job at that- and especially thicker, heavier ones. A smaller one will also be easier but for a Ball the min. size should be a 4x2x2. Glass leaks out the most heat and humidity and despite looking good, they really are not ideal.
My bottom line thought would be keep what you have for another snake, like a Corn that would not require as much attention to heat and humidity, and buy a NEW enclosure that people online talk about as being very good for humidity- again, like PVC or ideal HDPE aka High-Density Polyethylene (a much more eco friendly material.) Ideally, the structure should be about 1/2" thick. Not flimsy or ~70lbs. like many are. Also, and this is important, the TOP should not be all screen. That lets out all the heat and humidity leak right out. You will notice that most of the higher end enclosures are closed on top- but still have adequate venting but no more than is necessary.
So before considering changing your reptile, maybe simply upgrade your enclosure. You sound like an amazing keeper- your Balls are lucky to have you and as others said…you will learn, adapt and do great in this hobby. We all learn.
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