We are in the process of setting up the rack for our little ball pythons. We have the thermostat ready and the probe taped to the heat tape. A few questions.

It says the hot side should be 88-94. What is a good temperature, given that range of temps. 92? Ambient temps in the room are around 80.

The thermostat probe is taped to the second shelf heat tape. We used black electrical tape. Its vinyl. Is this safe? The thermostat is not operational at the time, so if its not safe, we can remove it and use something else. If electrical tape is not safe to use, what kind of tape is?

I think that is it for now. Oh! How long should we wait after setting up the rack with the right temps to move the ball pythons in? How long does it take the flexwatt to heat up.