What is done in really hot areas of Australia is the basking lights are simply switched off for 3 or 4 hours in the hottest part of the day, often these are on a timer and the timer does this automatically. So only the UV source (if not a MVB) is left on.
Great to know that as that is what i had been doing. Ive now ordered a dimming thermostat. Hopefully that will sort the prob although im guessing could still get really hot when sun moves around into the room next summer. Winters coming now so should be ok for time being plus the lazy git is sleeping lol.
Oh as for the heat probe thermometers theyre reasonably priced here. Like maybe £4. Deffo worth the money plus peace of mind.
This is a picture of the setup and the temp gun i'm using. I've been keeping an eye on him since i posted and deleted most of the post because things changed. He's sleeping soundly and isn't breathing heavily at the moment, I will see how he is in the morning but for now he seems okay. In the image you can see his tail (Hope) below the driftwood that Mirage is sleeping on.
Update: Hope is doing well today, tried a vaporizer with kaz inhalant and held him up a few feet above it, away from the heat but still in the steam. Cough is gone but still going to do another vaporizer treatment tonight just to be safe. Hooray for youtube and improvisation.
Update: Hope is back to doing what he was last night except with an added bonus, his beard is going black like a string underneath his "chin", like it goes from one ear to the other