Heat tape trouble shooting

Having some technical difficulties setting up my new VE-2 and am in need of a more experienced brain or few to round things out. I started with the thermostat set to 91 degrees to create a decent thermal gradient and we've dropped to 88 so far, my temp gun keeps reading out at 105-110 degrees on the hot side when the thermostat kicks the heat tape on (max 94 when tape is off). THG tape is supposed to max out at 105, so 110 has me anxious, especially when it's set to turn off at 88. Thermostat was tested for efficiency before setup and probe is in the provided slot, recessed below the tote but on top on the tape. I also have a small hygro/thermometer placed on the "hot spot" that reads 86.7 high, 83.3 low, 57% humidity. I had read somewhere that my gun may be reflecting a bad reading, and my substrate atm is tan paper, but I know I need to trust my gun to properly keep an eye on things as we progress. The cool side steadily reads 78-80 degrees, so I moved my most 'vocal' girl in so I could read her body language. She'll climb right out of something as soon as you open it if she doesn't like it much. She has been spotted on both ends of the tote drawer, but favors the cool side, tucked all the way in front of her bowl, over the hot side and the middle where I've placed her hide. Her body continues to read 80-84 degrees throughout and she hasn't 'met me at the door' yet. ISO: education. Thanks in advance.

It sounds like your thermostat/probe/placement are out of whack. What kind of temp gun are you using? I use a Klein DUAL-laser infrared gun and it is precisely accurate, costs BOUT $60 BUT well worth it.
https://ball-pythons.net/forums/cach...a/IMG_0461.jpg

The probe placement is predetermined on that rack. You can't mess that up. The rack is drilled out with probe channels.

It's an off brand $16 thing off the internet, I fully plan on replacing it. Thanks for the tip on a reliable one.