Quote Originally Posted by Mr. Misha View Post
Actually, RHPs are specifically made to raise ambient temps...
Really? According to Reptile Basics RHP FAQs, "RHP's are similar to Ceramic Heat Emitters (CHE) - they both project IR heat into the cage...This Infrared Heat tends to heat objects more than the air, much like the natural sunlight outdoors." This agrees with my personal experience. I have an 80w VE RHP in a 3x2x2 and the opposite side of the enclosure is room temperature. If RHPs raised ambient temps, I would expect that temperature to be higher.

Also, 80F seems too low to keep the entire enclosure. The forum's caresheet recommends a basking temp of around 90. I've heard that large scale breeders that don't provide basking spots keep their ambient temps closer to 85F.