no you dont need to have day/night temps.i believe your house will cool down at night and the cool and middle temps will as well,i would leave the "basking spot" on at all times.
scratch the heat lamp,get an under tank heater and a thermostat to control and keep the temp steady wthout you having to constantly adjust like you would with a dimmer or rheostat.
get three digital thermometers,two that have probes and on that will hang on in the middle to gauge ambient air temps.
the two that have probes will measure the cool and warm spot(i put my probes on top of the substrate with a lil bit over em inside the cool and warm hide,the hide sits on top of the probe chord). the thermostat probe and thermometer probe on the basking spot should be placed next to each other.
get a hygrometer to gauge the humidity,a digital one works best but there are some accurate analog hygros that work well but are pretty much the same price as a digital hygro.
i would suggest get everything set up first before you get your bp so you can noodle with everything and get it all stabilized before you introduce your bp to its new home.
if your getting a tank,your more than likely gonna battle with humidity and will have to make something to go on top to reduce too much ventilation.some people have success with tin foil,saran wrap,plexi glass, vinyl folders or vinyl plastic sheets.if you go that route there are a ton of people that could instruct you in that.also substrate makes a big difference with humidity. with a tank your bp will like three of its tanks sides to be blocked out with a background,construction paper or anything that makes it feel in a closed secure setting.tubs are also a good option as well.
identical hides on each side,a middle hide wouldnt hurt.
congratulations on your coming reptilian friend and welcome to the forum.ask away and dont be shy.
Mark
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