i have newspaper down, the hot side ranges from 91-88 and his hide on that side is a rectangular black plastic container with a hole cut in it. before that though it was a hollowed out log. he hasnt used either one. I switched because the plastic container was more private. the thing is he's lounging about on the ground right in front of the hide so the temp should be pretty much the same in or out. he's just not hiding, which i'm hoping isn't stressing him out.