Newbie, question about thermometer setup

[Brstin2flames]

Hi everyone! I'm new to owning reptiles and I just got my ball python yesterday. I had his habitat set up for 3 days in order to make sure I had the right temps and humidity before purchasing and introducing him to his new environment.

So far everything seems to be good, and I am familiar with the temperatures needed in his tank but I have a question about where to put my thermometers. Current I have one about a quarter of the way up the glass that measures temp and humidity and I also have a thermometer with a probe. I've been moving the probe around to check basking spots etc. Should I be measuring the temperature on the substrate since this is the temp that the snake feels? If I put the probe on the substrate it reads over 90 degrees over my UTH so I have turned it down.

Could someone give some advice on where the probe should be placed to get an accurate ambient temp for the snake? On substrate, under substrate, above? Thanks so much!

[Kaorte]

The probe goes right on the glass under the substrate where the UTH is to measure the hottest point your snake can possibly get to. You want this spot to be between 90-95*

Another digital ambient thermometer should go on the side opposite the UTH about an inch off the substrate. This should be between 75-85*

Also, ball pythons don't "bask" like lizards. They don't come out and lay in the open very often. They will generally spend all of their time hiding. In the wild they rarely leave their temperature and humidity controlled termite mounds

[Brstin2flames]

Thanks so much for the advice! I'm finding this forum extremely helpful so far!