NWes help w heating

Ok so I took advice that I got on here and got a temp gun. Now when I went to take temp on my lunch break the gauge thermometers said 79 and 85. When I used the gun the area over the uth was over a hundred so I unplugged it. And since I cannot afford a t-stat right now all I have for my tank is a 50w infrared bulb. What can I do to make sure the temp stays at the right level untill I can get a t-stat? And was my thermometers in the tank just reading the ambient temp? And for a lil more info it's a ten gal glass tank w a screen lid. Any help appreciated.

Gauge thermometers are notoriously inaccurate to begin with. And then, they will only measure the temperature exactly where they are placed...so if it's stuck on the side of the glass, that is what it is measuring. You'd have to actually lay it down directly over the UTH on the floor of the cage to get even an inaccurate reading of that from the gauge.

You can get a ~$10 dimmer switch for table lamps from any hardware store. It's like an extension cord with a dimmer switch connected to it. You have to be careful and monitor your temps carefully, but it can work...especially in a room where the local ambient temps don't fluctuate too much. Definitely save up for a reliable t-stat, though. Makes things much safer and you'll have more confidence that your equipment is behaving as expected.