Because ball pythons are crepuscular, additional light beyond what illuminates the reptile room is not widely considered “necessary.” However, it is best practice to keep a light on to mimic nature’s day/night cycle. Because of their equatorial origin, ReptiFiles recommends a day/night cycle of 12 hours on, 12 hours off. If you want to get more specific with your light cycle, you can leave the lights on for 12.5 hours during summer and 11.75 hours during winter.
The best way to provide low-level illumination for your ball python is with a low-strength UVB fluorescent as your light source. It is commonly believed that nocturnal snakes do not “need” UVB, therefore it would be a waste of money to provide it. While this reasoning may seem sound, it oversimplifies the issue. UVB does more for a reptile than help them synthesize vitamin D3; for example, did you know that ball pythons can see ultraviolet light?
Recent studies indicate that UVB can be beneficial for snakes’ long-term physical and mental health. To provide UVB for ball pythons in a 4x2x2 enclosure, use a 22″ long, low-intensity T5 HO fluorescent tube (not coil). I recommend sticking with the Zoo Med or Arcadia brand, as others are not reliable enough to be used without a Solarmeter 6.5 in hand.
To achieve a UVI of 2.0-3.0 in the basking area (closest location to the UVB lamp), you will need a specific distance between the UVB bulb and the snake’s back when basking:
Lamp mounted above mesh (recommended for safety):
Without mesh obstruction:
The above distance recommendations assume a ~35% mesh block. It is strongly recommended to use a Solarmeter 6.5 to determine the best placement. For more details on adjusting basking distance based on mesh obstruction, see the Facebook group Reptile Lighting > Guides > Guide 1: Using T5-HO lamps above a Mesh Screen.
If you need more distance between your snake and the UVB in the basking area than your enclosure’s setup will allow, I recommend using a UVB Riser to strategically increase the distance for your snake’s safety.
You will need to mount your UVB bulb in a Vivarium Electronics T5 HO or Arcadia ProT5 fixture. Optimal use distance is likely to be more variable if you use something different. In addition, plan on changing your UVB bulb every 12 months. Even if it’s still producing visible light, UVB output decreases over time, so the bulb becomes less beneficial to your snake with age.
