Is the RHP set in stone? Why do you want to go this route? I ask because its kinda a strange way to go for a ball.

I have three pvc cages that are 48x24x15 with both a UTH and a RHP. I was planning on using these setups to house snakes in a room that stays 68-70. I found that the RHP would not keep the ambient temps within the desired range without creating a hotspot that was much warmer than wanted. I ended up turning the RHPs off and getting a oil filled heater to heat the room. I also found that the RHPs were warming the top of the hide but the interior of the hide was staying much lower than the top of the hide. I was using black hides and a grey cat litter box hide and neither warmed on the inside like I needed. That was with the RHPs alone, just testing their capabilities.

It was a good thing that I opted for the belly heat too because that was the route I had to go for their hotspot. If you could change the RHP to a UTH I think it would serve you better or just order it without heat and put the UTH you already need on it when it arrives. RHPs have their place and it works perfect for my GTP setup since he perches directly in the heat path without a hide but it many cases that do not raise the ambient temps high enough. From what I have read they seem to work better in thick walled cages such as ones made of wood, but then that's a separate issue.

The one thing you are going to need regardless of the setup is a thermostat(tstat). I good tstat can run any type of heat source such as a UTH, RHP, or heat bulb but not all tstats are created equal. I like Herpstat by Spyder Robotics. I have four of their units and they are great. They are doing a 10% off summer sale now too. http://spyderrobotics.com/

You need to buy the best tstat you can afford as its the most important tool to keep your snake safe and healthy. If you buy cheap you get cheap. If you have temp swings in your home your going to want a unit that can handle the swings well. Plus the nicer models will track temps(highs and lows) so you can make sure your not having spikes or drops way out of range when you are away. The Herpstat 1, 2, and 4 will do that plus much more.

Here is a very recent thread about a cheap tstat failing and burning the snake causing much more in vet bills than a good tstat would have cost in the beginning. This person did a brave thing of owning up to their mistake and used it to hopefully teach others to not make the same mistakes.
http://ball-pythons.net/forums/showt...38#post2254938

Tstats have been discussed heavily here and there are many recent threads on different ones. Search through the recent threads and you will see many different options and a few ideas on where to maybe pick one up used.

As for a temporary setup I would recommend a tub with locking lid with a UTH. You can put aluminum foil on the sticky side of the UTH and then tape it in place on the tub so that it can be easily removed for cleaning or changing locations without damaging the UTH mat. This mat could even be moved to the pvc cage when it arrives.

I would suggest that you start to monitor the temps in your house. That is a wide range you threw out and if it really does have that much swing we will need to find a way to level it out. This could be as easy as adding a heat lamp or small room heater to keep the temps more stable. A heat lamp suspended on a stand or string can be very effective with a tub if needed. We can tackle that once we have better information.