First of all, THANK YOU in advance for any help you can give me. A little background: I’ve recently come into the care of a 5 mo old banana ball named Lola. I felt pretty prepared to care for her because I kept a ball python when I was in my early teens, but now I feel absolutely terrible as to what I may have made him suffer through based on the advice of my local Petco. Lola is currently in a 20 gal glass tank while I’m waiting for a TGR rack with Freedom Breeder tub expected Mid-April. I have two AcuRite thermometer/hygrometers, with probes placed at each end of her enclosure. I have 2 UTHs, 2 CHEs, lights, and thermostats available to work with. I’m currently waiting on a temperature gun to make its way to my house.

But what I’m running into is really just an issue of what temps she should be at, how to best read them, and the ideal mix for getting her there. From what I understand we should have 90° on the hot side, with overall ambient temp not falling below 80°? Should the probes for the thermostat be placed inside her enclosure or under the UTH? On top of the substrate or at the bottom? What’s the best way to get an ambient temperature reading?

I feel as though I’ve read so much information here recently that it’s really starting to conflict.