my first cornsnake

Question
So me and my boyfriend have been thibking about getting our first pet snake, it will be a corn snake. My first question is after either of us feed him or her are we suppose to leave m in the feeding box?
Second question,  is it okay to use drift wood and hollowed out logs that we have cleaned and soaked alright to use in its home?

Answer
I have never used, nor do I recommend feeding boxes. Snakes know what food is, they wont mistake your hand for food unless it smells like food. If you take him out of his enclosure and put him in another box just to eat, you run the risk every time of him not eating. Some snakes are very sensitive, ball pythons can go off food for weeks just by a few degrees of temperature change. Thankfully corns are pretty easy going ( as are most colubrids). But really, just feed him in the tank he lives in.

Let him be for a day and you will be good, this allows for digestion. DO NOT feed live, just saw a photo the other day of a snake that got a quarter size chew wound from his "food".

As for the wood, etc. I never suggest to use outside items, yes you can bake them but that is very dangerous and even makes me nervous. If you soak them in bleach, it will take weeks for them to dry properly.

But corns, like most colubrids, are den animals. They are not arboreal and dont really climb. They prefer a plastic hide ( made from a plastic shoe box bin) or just deep substrate. They are especially fond of fine shaved, aspen bedding. It is soft and fluffy and giving them several inches will make them quite happy. They burrow naturally so unless for health reasons, give them plenty of burrowing room.

Make sure your enclosure is proper size, if you get a hatchling or smaller than 1 foot, you will want to keep the animal in a plastic shoe box bin or ensure you are always checking your 10 gallon. Biggest issue people have is using to big of a enclosure, which can cause health issues as well as fear in the snake. Making them hide to much and even not eat. Let me know if you have any other questions and good luck!