Unless you are rich or have more than one snake ranco, johnson and definitly helix and spyder robotics are just plain over kill. You probally looked at the prices of these and instantly crapped youre pants i know i did the first time i looked at the prices. Currently i have two RANCOS and i love them to death they make youre life a lot easier. But the above post is not entirely correct the zoo med 500R is a great little thermostat it just takes a few hours of dinkin' around to get the temps right. I first bought it for my ball python and was entirely happy with it. Then i got 6 more snakes and it just wasnt' cutting it so i bought the ranco. I still use the zoomed for my corn snake i have been using it for over a year with no problems. They are still kind of expensive around $40 dollars new at a petco but you do need one. Or do a search for a rhestat on google to find a place that carries them they are much cheap and with a little more work it will do just fine. Just make sure you check the temps a lot with them because the temps will change with it. Now for the heat lamp. Im guessing youre using a glass tank if you have the lamp. Id recommend getting some tin foil and some duct tape. And cover about 2/3 of youre screen lid. Foil the top of the lid and the under side of it and tape it on. If you don't like the way it looks paint it or cover it with fabric or paper be creative with it. It will help a lot with humidity and keep youre temps up. Good luck and get a thermostat they are well worth it.