A person is 98degrees and the heat pad should only be around 90 so it should never feel hot when your hand is on it. I have 5 of the exact same UTH (purchased this year)and they all get well over 110degrees without a thermostat. I live in western washington state and its cold. Plus your tank would be hot with the heat sources and be well over 26 degrees Celsius if you want to go by that. Everyone is just trying to help because we have all been there
