Hi,
Actually adjust it first of all to the glass beneath the repti-carpet but otherwise you are bang on. I always plan for the worst and asume the snake will burrow at some point. Trying to spot and eliminate possible problems before the snake thinks of them makes things a lot safer in the long run.
It doesn't matter what value the thermostat is actually set to as long as it is set to keep the temps spot on in the animals environment.
So aim to get it no higher than 95 under the carpet and remember when you add hides they trap a little heat so that is where to take the above carpet readings.
Personally I find newspaper easier to clean though.
dr del