Is an open bottom hide better than a non open bottom in the basking area of cage?

Open bottom hide being a bottomless hide which allows contact between the substrate and snake; non bottomless hide being a log type hide.

Really depends on how thick it is. If it's too thick it may block out some of the heat. If it's thin I doubt it will make much difference.

I use simple plastic hides or small boxes so they're thin, I leave the bottoms on.

If it's a log, it may be best to have an open hide. Plus make sure it only has one entrance, logs with open sides are bad, they stress out the snake.

Hope that helps.:)

BG hates all hides unless it's a problem feeder.

I think you worded the question poorly. Non bottomless is a double-negative. Do you mean hides that have a bottom vs. hides that don't have a bottom?

Go with the ones with no bottom. You don't want to crank up your heat source just to get through the hide when they could still easily go under the hide and get to a much hotter then normal heat source.

BG: what works for you may not work for everyone. Especially the majority of newbies who come in here that use tank setups.

Open bottom. Warmth=digestion=poop in hide. I have got some closed-bottom hides, and I hate cleaning them.

I like open bottom hides. They make it much easier to remove the snake, and I would think lying on top of substrate would be more soft and comfortable for the snake than lying on a hard surface that wouldn't conform to their bodies.