Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I fear that I have been very irresponsible as a ball python owner. I have two ball pythons, which I thought were both males. Clearly this is not the case. I returned from a few days of vacation to find that the older of the two has laid eggs. As of late I have been putting the two in the same tank together and separate when feeding, but most of the time it is just easier to keep them separate. I have never really seen the pair lock and most of the time both snakes were in different parts of the tank. I run a humidifier as much as I can, but humidity always seems to be a problem with the younger snake as it has more difficulty shedding. Anyway, back to the issue at hand. As I was told that they were both males I was not expecting them to breed.
I have been frantically looking through websites, forums, myspace advice, I even found some you tube videos how to set up an incubator. I am just trying to find the best way to carry out this incubation period. It seemed all across the board breeders were against allowing the female to maternally incubate the eggs. So, I have purchased a HovaBator incubator along with some Vermiculite, which I am waiting to arrive from Big Apple Pet Supply.
It has now been a few days since she first laid the eggs and after the second day she seemed to leave the clutch. I had to replace the water in the tank and she was very defensive. I do not wish to cause her anymore stress than she already has been through. My fears, I imagine are those of any breeder: Are these eggs healthy and will they hatch? There is one egg that is further away from the others and the female has given less attention to. It looks pretty shriveled, I'm afraid due to lack of humidity. I have a separate zoomed thermometer and humidity gauge. I have tried to maintain the temp between 82-90. I am running a humidifier, constantly spraying the tank, have added moss to hold the water and there is a large water dish. I cannot maintain a humidity over 40%. The max reads 60% min = 30 %. I cannot imagine that the incubator will yield a higher humidity.
I have not handled the eggs at this point, I was waiting to set up the incubator. I know it should have been set up before the eggs were laid, but as this was unexpected I am trying to do my best to care for these eggs. I have had a hard time finding answers to a few of my remaining questions. Will snakes lay a clutch of infertile eggs? Will females lay eggs without being with a male? I have read stories that entire clutches have been lost, which is one of my biggest fears at this point. Is there anyone out there that has had luck allowing a mother ball python to hatch a clutch herself? I hope the clutch is now getting the humidity it needs, but I expect a long road ahead. If you could let me know if I am on the right track and what I need to be doing differently I appreciate any feedback that can be offered.
Thank you

Pretty much every snake in Africa has had luck with maternal incubation. Haha.

She is capable of taking care of them, but it's tougher to keep temps and humidity. Just let her do it until your incubator comes in, and use that.
Make sure you hook the Hovabator to a thermostat, in case it's internal thermostat craps the bed...
it happens.

Good luck!
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"What is man without the beasts?
If all the beasts were gone,
men would die from great loneliness of spirit.
For what happens to the beasts,
soon happens to men.
All things are connected."

-Chief Seattle (Duwamish Tribe)