Freaking out BAD.

Even having substrate over the UTH - you need a thermostat. I made that mistake since my snake never burrowed in 1 1/2 years - one day he decided to and now he needs injections every 3 days for a month plus antibiotic cream 2x a day.
Snakes don't feel the heat and they won't move when getting burned. I thought I was giving him the absolute best care but one simple mistake now he's suffering.
I would unplug that UTH until you get a thermostat to regulate it and use another source for heat in the meantime.

I've had my balls for about a year now and have had pretty good success just using a 250 watt infrared bulb (the kind used for brooding baby chicks) suspended from the ceiling over each tank and raising/lowering it depending on the time of year. It gets cold where I live during the winter (~50 degrees in the house) and these lights are powerful enough to provide a good heat gradient in the tank even during the coldest nights. They work well because directly under the light will be the hottest and serves as a basking spot, and the edges of the tank are cooler. The snakes can choose which spot in the tank suits their temperature needs. I check thermometers at least twice a day to ensure that the temperature range is where it should be. The tanks are near windows, so they have natural light for their dark/light cycle. It's worked really well for me and is definitely not as expensive as some of the alternatives.

Just so I don't have to start another thread, I have a UTH heating my tank and having a lot of difficulty keeping the temperatures high, my house is not very warm and the thermostat is reading 68F. I'm wrapping her tub with towels and letting the humidity raise a bit but if I can't get her warmed up I will have to return the animal cause I'm terrified! I was told getting the THG tape wasn't necessary because the brand I got will do it.

As for her, she's out of her hide today and seems curious about her new home so that's good?

Invest in a thermoSTAT (note: a thermometer measures temps a thermostat controls temps).
The best you can afford. (personally I would suggest either Herpstat or Vivarium Electronics although others swear Helix is reliable and even Hydrofarm is better than nothing)

Eliminate drafts in the room and yes, insulation will help keep the heating cost down. My concern is that you are having issues as the ambient temp changes, That tells me your set up is likely running at its' max which is not where you want to be. The max or even less should still have enough output to maintain optimum temps in the worst conditions you expect to experience and the thermostat idles the output back to keep the temps ideal for you in warmer months.

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Originally Posted by Sapphirescript

Just so I don't have to start another thread, I have a UTH heating my tank and having a lot of difficulty keeping the temperatures high, my house is not very warm and the thermostat is reading 68F. I'm wrapping her tub with towels and letting the humidity raise a bit but if I can't get her warmed up I will have to return the animal cause I'm terrified! I was told getting the THG tape wasn't necessary because the brand I got will do it.

As for her, she's out of her hide today and seems curious about her new home so that's good?

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UTH will not heat ambient temperature in your tank. In order to bump up temps in your terrarium I recommend getting a heat lamp.

Check thread for how to properly set up a 20 gallon tank: http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showthread.php?t=201740

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There is a thermostat that I use with great success to regulate my UTH's and it's from hydrofarms you can get it on amazon and i'm sure other places as well. I started with some of the models in the pet store and moved to this one and I love it even though it is meant for heat mats for plants . It works great and according to my thermometers is very accurate once set . I use one for my big red-tail as well as my bp , juvi red-tail and cali king and all are in great condition .