Yes, the 7-day thing is totally for our convenience of a Sunday and so we remember after the novelty of a new pet has worn off. That said, it shouldn't be a problem as I'm making my son keep a chart updated with feeding, shedding, and cleaning schedules. So...we're flexible. As you said, it's a fairly quick process and there's only 1 snake at the moment.
Thus far with the winter ambient temps being ~73, she has seemed to prefer the hide above the UTH which I dialed down to a max of 85 after advice on these forums. I'm predicting she'll enjoy the cool side once the weather warms up and the ambient temps go up to ~79-80. She comes out to cruise and climb every night after the lights in the room are turned low. She goes back to her hide after an hour or so.