Congrats on getting your first bp! Do you have any pictures of him to share?
Well, it looks like you're off to a good start. I do have a few suggestions...
Instead of covering screen tops with foil I find that placing a damp dish towel over 3/4 of the screen does wonders for humidity. Are you misting the cage?
No, a light is not necessary if the UTH keeps the the hot side warm enough (lights also tend to suck up humidity, which may be part of your problem). Definitely get a digital thermometer with a probe; I've had those circular ones be off by 20 degrees. Right now the thermometer stuck to the side of the cage is reading the ambient temperature, which is fine at 75. For the hot side, you want to aim to get the surface temperature under the substrate at 88-90 so that he can digest and stay warm but not get burned. A digital thermometer with a probe placed under the substrate directly above the UTH will give you this reading. I definitely recommend putting some sort of controller (preferably a thermostat) on the UTH because they tend to fluctuate in temperature.
Good luck with him! If you have any other questions, we're here to help.
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