Well first off, i'm new here and also new to the snake world. I have just recently purchased a "normal" corn snake. He's an awesome little dude. But I do have some questions about him. When I put him in his terrarium, he just burrows under the "mulch" and stays there. Should this be a concern? What can I do to get him to stay above the "mulch" where I can watch him mess around and whatnot?

My current terrarium set up is:

5 1/2 gallon terrarium
"mulch" bedding (I know there is a correct name for it but i'm not sure what it is)
An under tank heating pad
A half circle log hide
A large water bowl
And one of those wall sticky thermometer (the adhesive ones)

Thanks to any replies.

He's going to need a bigger tank, a 5 1/2 isn't going to last long at all really. How big/old is he? Assuming he is a hatchling that will be OK for a bit, but there is not a lot of room to create a good temperature gradient. You should provide him with at least one more hide, one on the warm side and one on the cool, that may by part of the reason he is burrowing, the other reason is just that he likes to
Pick up a digital thermometer w/a probe, you have to really know what your temperatures are on the substrate and those stick on ones are useless for that. Walmart has great ones, for around $18 you can get one that has indoor (cool side)/outdoor (probe, warm side) and hygrometer readings, all digital so very accurate. You have to monitor the humidity too so that is the easiest way to do it.
What type of mulch? There are a lot out there, aspen and cypress being the best for snakes. Don't use anything with pine or cedar, they can be toxic to snakes.
Welcome to the forums!

like Clementine 3 said he will need a bigger tank and you need AT LEAST 2 hides and they should fit close around its body to give it a more secure feeling. But as far as the burrowing goes there is no way to stop it. mine will spend allday under the mulch (probably aspen)

Ok sorry for the delay. I have cypress mulch. Shoot. I already need to get a bigger tank? He is about 13 - 15 inches long. About 7 months old.

The tank size is OK for now, the trouble you may run into is the temperature gradient. There needs to be a cool side and a warm side with a hide on each side...you have room for the snake but maybe not for all he needs
Before you worry too much about tank size pick up that thermometer, that is really more important for right now.

ok sweet. So they gave me a medium hide and its actually quite large. lol. So maybe I should get two small ones? The one he was in when I bought it was the "cave" He seemed to enjoy it. Maybe I should buy the same one. I also read about a controled "mister." should I bother with one of those?

Unless you live in an extreamly dry area, I wouldn't worry about getting a mister of any sort...just monitor the humidity levels, if they're down, squirt the tank with that high tech plant mister you can get at the dollar store. I also found that having a towel over part of the top of the tank keeps humidity in and temperatures up. Good luck with your new baby!

another thing that they usually like are the "snake caves" it's like a rock with a hole in top and comes with some moss. mine was in it all the time until she got big and even after i got her a bigger one she would't use it, now she just digs or goes in the tissue box i put in there

The hide he was in when I bought him was a cave. I'm wondering if I shouldnt go and buy that instead of this half log thing. I need to buy 2 small hides.