So are you saying that with the Herpstat probe sitting in the exact spot that the snakes would be sitting at and the Herpstat set at 94, that the hot spot isn't actually 94 degrees? This seems odd to me, but I guess I'll have to pick up a IR Thermometer to test it to be sure.
Also do you have the air temp set to 90 or the surface temp of the tub?
Not odd, the probe and the heat tape are not inside the tub.. The temperature inside the tub is usually a bit lower.