it is possible to successfully manage temps with a UTH and a rheostat. not as accurate as a thermostat but possible. when i first started keeping balls i used heat lamps on tanks and i would manage the temps by using an appropriate wattage red bulb placed directly on the lid or raised a little higher to warm or cool the tank. i never used UTHs because i got proper ambient temps with heat bulbs alone.
enough about me..
if you want to use a rheostat on the UTH then youre going to need a few thermometers. you need to place the probe of the first thermometer directly on the glass over top the UTH. this way you know the exact temp that your snake may come in contact with if he burrows under the substrate. i would use a thinner layer of substrate just so that i know exactly what temp my snake is sitting on when hes on the hot side. then you need a probe to measure the ambient temps of the warm and cool side. some people place those under each hide but you can also place them on the substrate on each side.
if you can get the UTH thermometer at 89-92 and the warm and cool side thermometers at anywhere from 80-85 then youre chillin!
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