I have my bp set up in a 30” exo terra. I have a heat mat, set to 90F against the glass, and a RHP set to 80ish (78-82 depending on room temp). My bp does not burrow, and with the substrate, I don’t think he’s getting much belly heat out of the heat mat. I don’t dare turn up the heat in case he does decide to burrow some day.

So! I am wondering if I can get rid of the heat mat altogether, and just heat the cage with the heat panel. Maybe get a piece of slate rock, elevated, to absorb some rhp heat for him to lie on? And if so, what would I set the ambient temperature at?

And also if so, my rhp is almost the same size as the lid, so it’s not providing a huge range from cool side to warm side. I was relying on the heat mat to give him a warm side. Should I get a small one or can I use vertical levels (higher slate rock for warm, half-buried cave for cool)?