Quote Originally Posted by skyelovesyou View Post
my heating pad does not have a thermometer and i have the ones from petsmart the reptile heat cage thermometer and humdity gauge and i just bought a black light for night
I'm guessing it is one of those little analog dial thermometers, right? Those are junk. You can pick up an Accu-rite digital thermometer at Wal-Mart that will be far more accurate.

And a thermostat is a device which controls the temps of your heat mat. An unregulated heat mat can exceed 130 degrees, which is more than enough to burn and even kill your snake. Unlike higher animals, they will not always move away from heat and will literally cook themselves. I've seen the damage that unregulated heat mats can do first hand and it is very sad. If you're on a budget, Hydrofarm makes a cheap thermostat that works ok. Amazon.com sells them for about $30. Either way your heat mat must be regulated.