Tstat's are a great piece of mind. I actually had success with the Zilla Thermostat too. Only 50 bucks at most pet shops! People talk a lot of smack about them, but I think they're actually not a bad product. I had mine for almost 5 years, but I broke it by me accidentally stepping on the probe when I was setting up a rack(idiot)...Rheostats in my opinion are pretty horrible at keeping a consistent temp. I've returned home from work and my snakes cages would be 100+ on the hot end using a rheostat. And those little heat pads are like 20 bucks!! What a rip! So after the pad and rheostat your at 40, why not spend the extra 15 ya know? Just my 2 cents on all that. Also, heat tape is great because if you buy a bunch it gives you an excuse to buy some more critters!