Hey Chris,
I do not have a huge hog collection... However, I do keep a large collection of a variety of species...From my experience with keeping hogs now and back in the 90's, my opinion is that a 75 degree ambient may be ok but it is simply not the best temps to keep them at... I have been keeping mine at an 80 degree ambient with a hot spot that varies between 92 and 95 degrees... And yes, they do use the high basking temps...
From my experience the high basking temps promote steady growth and increased feeding... The hognose can heat up and thermoregulate in minutes... This leaves them time to be more active instead of trying to heat up to optimal temperatures...
Whenever I temp gun my hognose snakes they are almost always between 83 and 86 degrees no matter what time of the day I check them... This tells me that like most reptiles, their optimal body temp is in the low to mid 80's... So if you are only offering them a temp between 75 and 80 degrees, they will be less active, eat less, and not grow at a steady rate...
Also, whenever I do feild herping, I always have a temp gun handy... Even other colubrids like pines, corns, milks, garters, and racers have all been documented basking in spots that were in the mid to high 90's...
I am able to maintain my temps using a thermostat on a rack system... In the summer, the room my reptiles are kept in is air conditioned so I have no issues with overheating at all..
