Loki's Enclosure - Check it out please?

[Savannah]

This is a 40 gallon breeder. I've been playing around with the setup (inside and the lamps) and get my best temps (108-112; measured with a temp gun. The in-tank therm can be anywhere between 1-6 degrees off) with both the basking light (100w) and the ceramic heat emitter (150w) on the warm side. The cool side stays about 82-84 degrees. I have since lowered the hammock and both the hammock and the branch at their highest points are 6" from the heat source. The UVB is missing, but it is going in today. I have it velcro'd to the bottom of the screen top so there will be nothing between the UVB (Reptisun 10.0 24") and Loki. When the temps are where they should be, humidity maxes out at 31%; when the lamps are off, it jumps up to 40-44% (I live in Florida), but it falls fairly quickly once I get the lights on. Now, questions:

1. Is this too simple? Do I need to add anything else for stimulation?
2. Is it bad that the humidity hops up into the 40s?
3. I have all the electrical set up on a 12 hour timer. I've been testing it coming on at 6 and going off at 6, but I'm thinking I will change it to be 8-8. Is 12 hours on/off okay, or should it be more/less?
4. I read that I shouldn't feed in the morning until lights have been on for a couple of hours, and I should feed at least two hours before lights off. Is this correct?
5. Could you give me alternatives to specifically made basking bulbs? I heard regular household bulbs will be okay. Do the coil ones work? And I have a light dimmer, so should I go ahead with 150 watts and, if it's too much, just dim it down?
6. At the moment Loki will be able to get within 6.5 inches of the heat lamp and 5-6 inches of the UVB. Is that safe or do I need to get him a shorter branch?
7. Also, I get different temp readings when I scan the highest part of the branch about 4 inches away than I do when it is within half an inch. The closer readings tend to be very high (118-120), while the farther ones read the ideal (108-112). Is this bad? Which reading should I use to gauge the heat?
8. At the moment, Loki is 12.5" (4 mos). What are the chances that he would be injured by a fall off the hammock (which is now 5-6" off the floor) or the branch?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Germ]

This is a 40 gallon breeder. I've been playing around with the setup (inside and the lamps) and get my best temps (108-112; measured with a temp gun. The in-tank therm can be anywhere between 1-6 degrees off) with both the basking light (100w) and the ceramic heat emitter (150w) on the warm side. The cool side stays about 82-84 degrees. I have since lowered the hammock and both the hammock and the branch at their highest points are 6" from the heat source. The UVB is missing, but it is going in today. I have it velcro'd to the bottom of the screen top so there will be nothing between the UVB (Reptisun 10.0 24") and Loki. When the temps are where they should be, humidity maxes out at 31%; when the lamps are off, it jumps up to 40-44% (I live in Florida) He will Be Fine ... , but it falls fairly quickly once I get the lights on. Now, questions:

1. Is this too simple? Do I need to add anything else for stimulation? The K.I.S.S (Keep It Simple Stupid) method is always the best for these guys. More elaborate setups just provide hiding spots for the feeders, making it harder to hunt.
   
2. Is it bad that the humidity hops up into the 40s? They will adapt quite well, the humidity in my climate rises as high as 70-90%, I have had absolutely no issues in 12 years.
   
3. I have all the electrical set up on a 12 hour timer. I've been testing it coming on at 6 and going off at 6, but I'm thinking I will change it to be 8-8. Is 12 hours on/off okay, or should it be more/less? Most of us have found that 12on/12off works very well for them & is the Day/night schedule that I have settled on to use.
   
4. I read that I shouldn't feed in the morning until lights have been on for a couple of hours, and I should feed at least two hours before lights off. Is this correct? You could put the Greens in anytime, but you are correct as far as live feeders go. Sometimes it is better to feed the greens first, then try the live prey a couple hours later.
   
5. Could you give me alternatives to specifically made basking bulbs? I heard regular household bulbs will be okay. Do the coil ones work? And I have a light dimmer, so should I go ahead with 150 watts and, if it's too much, just dim it down? Any white or clear bulb of a type & with sufficient wattage to provide the temps required will do the job for heat. I and many others use Halogen Flood Bulbs for our Basking Bulbs, half the price or less, than so called Pet Store Basking Bulbs, provide more heat per watt, so cheaper to run power wise, emits brighter whiter light too. We all have to play with different types & wattages of bulbs to find what works for our individual setups. There are so many variables that come into play, that what works for me, may not work for others. Some of the variables that are different from setup to setup are, distance from Basking Spot to Bulb, air flow & ventilation, ambient room temps, size of enclosure, drafts, etc, etc. We all have to go through the trial & error phase, until we find the bulb & distance that does the job for our particular setups.
   
6. At the moment Loki will be able to get within 6.5 inches of the heat lamp and 5-6 inches of the UVB. Is that safe or do I need to get him a shorter branch? Providing that the heat Bulb is protected by the the screen, you should be just fine.
   
7. Also, I get different temp readings when I scan the highest part of the branch about 4 inches away than I do when it is within half an inch. The closer readings tend to be very high (118-120), while the farther ones read the ideal (108-112). Is this bad? Which reading should I use to gauge the heat? Please check out this link for the very important proper use of an Infrared Thermometer -> Temp Guns
   
8. At the moment, Loki is 12.5" (4 mos). What are the chances that he would be injured by a fall off the hammock (which is now 5-6" off the floor) or the branch? He should be just fine ...

Thanks in advance!