I'm so confused....what should I do?

[boyzx3]

I have 3 crabs, 10g tank, 1 mesh cover, 1 lamp w/ a basking bulb.

I'm not holding humidity in at all, and the temp drops at night when the light is turned off. We're in Nebraska so our temps are still pretty low.

I guess I have several options, but I want to make the best decision for my(i mean my kids) crabs.

1. I can cover the cover I have now w/ suran wrap.
2. I can get a plexi glass or glass lid and use a UTH?
3. I can get a hood cover w/ 2 lights, a night time light and the other kind(what exactly would that be?)
There's also a question about oxygen loss or the chance of them developing respratory problems in the tank using glass or plexi glass?

If I'm missing something, please let me know. We've only been at this little adventure for 2 days and I'm stressing big time about this.

BTW, all 3 of my little guys have gone beneath the soil.
Speaking of soil, is it ok to mix the calcium sand(which I purchased first) w/ the EE?

I know there's a lot of questions. I appreciate your help. I'm going back out to the store tonight so the more answeres I have the better.

[HERMEZ]

In the future try not to post more than one of the same thread- Thanks --you can always add to your original post by modifying it.

[dgh_1984]

I live in Texas, so I am having problems with the humidity staying too high. I have a UTH, but haven't had to use it yet. My dad custom made me a lid. By custom made, I mean a piece of plexiglass with holes drilled in it with a handle screwed into the top. It's awesome. I got lucky and happened to have plexiglass laying around. It's rather expensive. I used surrand wrap until I got the other. Just make sure you poke holes into it and just put it over the top instead of over the mesh lid. The mesh lid is what is causing you to lose too much temp and humidity. I taped it to the sides so it would stay in place. Also, the calci sand with the EE is ok. I use premium play sand and mix it with the Zoo Med hermit soil. I am new to this also and I am going by my own experiences so far so I hope you get more replies from people who have been crabbing a lot longer than I have. Good Luck!

[krackersmom2]

What area of Texas do you live in....sounds like you are near the coast like I am. By your humidity being too high, how high is it going and how long does it stay there. I find that leaving a small crack in the plexiglass lid maybe a 1/4" will alleviate some of the humidity problem. I use pure playsand from the hardware store along with ventilating my lid and my humidity stays pretty much within normal perameters. You can run a fan in the room with the crabs to dry out the humidity in the room too.....I know how humid the air can get! If you are using calci sand as substrate, ditch it....it should be used as a feeding supplement. It does not make a good substrate because it is too dry and clumps when you try to wet it. Crabs need good moist playsand in order to dig tunnels and molting caves.

[dgh_1984]

I live in Northeast Texas. I do keep the lid cracked a little at all times now so the humidity is staying ok and I use the playsand from the hardware store.

[Donna M]

Hi Boyz Mom,

I've only been at this for about a year, so I'm no expert. But I've read on this site that the UTH's don't give off much heat and are not worth the money. When I had a very small plastic tank and attached a small UTH to the side of the tank, it got warm but I could hardly feel any heat inside the tank at all. I heard the ones that cover the majority of the bottom of your tank aren't much better.

I've also learned that the crabs can bury themselves for several reasons. Since you just brought them home, they may hide while they destress. They'll come out when they're hungry or thirsty, don't worry! Also, they may bury themselves if the tank temperature or humidity is not right to their liking.

I've also learned that some crabs are just not sociable, and just like to stay buried. But I don't know how one can tell if the heat is the problem, or the humidity, or if the crabs are just loners! (Big help I am, huh?)

I have a mesh cover, but for heat I use a 40-watt clamp on lamp that shines down into the tank. Yes, it's a lot of light and the lamp is on 24/7, but I have to leave it on constantly to keep the tank warm. Plus I have a hut for each of my 3 crabs, and it's pretty dark inside, if they want to go in there and nap.

I mist the interior heavily with dechlor water at least twice a day. The lamp dries everything out so quickly, I really soak everything, including the huts.

I'm sure more experienced hermit owners will be able to give you a lot more information. If you go to the section on this site about Crab Care, there's lots of info there.

Good luck!

Donna M.

[WizKidsMom]

boyzx3,
With a mesh lid, try using plastic wrap over 3/4 of it. That should keep the humidity and heat inside.
If you decide to get a plexi glass - you can get it cut so there is a small space for air circulation. A regular tank lid with a combo light will have a lid that opens for access and you can prop it open slightly for air circulation.

Lights - a day glo and a night glo. You want a light fixture with separate switches so you can give the day/night cycle.

And yes, you can mix calci sand with the EE. I use salt water to expand the EE, then mix the sand in. Make sure you don't have clumps of sand - mixing is evenly.

Donna M,
Our crabbies need a day/night cycle. You can get a moon glo bulb and have that on during the night. It will give some heat and keep the tank warm. Of course that means getting a second clamp light - or just a dome placed on the part of the lid that is not covered with plastic wrap.

[boyzx3]

Alrighty, here's what we've done for the last week. We bought a night time bulb to go in our clamp lamp. We have UTH on one side, which really only helps a little. We keep the clamp lamp on all the time so the heat stays up to a decent temp. We keep suran wrap on the lid to help w/ the humidity.

I ordered the hood lamp, and some other little things from Crabbage Patch. Hopefully that will be here today. I'm going to have a piece of plexi glass cut to cover the remaining of the lid. Tammy? was the 1st person that actually explained how it should look when it's all finished. She was great a help. When the fixture gets here, I'll buy new bulbs for it, including a dayglo light. I just want to make sure I get the right bulb for my fixture.

I did mix the calcisand and EE. I think it's working out ok. It doesn't seem like there's a lot of clumping. When we clean the tank out a few months down the road, we'll get regular playsand.

I've had 2 crabs come up and change shells. Jeffrey changed and went back to his old one. Spidey changed out of his painted shell into a natural shell. I took is painted shell out so he wouldn't be tempted to go back. Rocky is still burried. I was was happy to see Spidey because out of all of them, I though he would be the one that died first. He was just so quiet and still when we brought him home.

It's funny because when we bought the crabs and all the stuff my husband was out of town. I told him on the phone what we did and he was not happy. He asked where we were keeping them and I said ds1 room, but it's the coldest room in the house. We really should move them. He says "you're not puting them in our room". The day he got home he ignored them. Well later in the day he says it was ok to move them in. After that, he got all into it. Went to the pet store with me. Helped w/ the suran wrap. He's constantly checking the gages and adjusting if need be. Then one night one of them came up. He was so excited. He's read the Hermit Crabs for Dummies, too. He tells me what is right or wrong. He wanted to buy a huge tank and stand for them, too. He's addicted as the rest of us. They really are cool.

Thanks everybody for your help.

[hermie 5]

Thats so funny, it sounds like my house. My husband even cuts up food that he thinks they will like. I find it funny that the ones that fight the most against having them are addicted (and quickly). They are fun and fairly care free once you have the tank adjusted.

[WizKidsMom]

My hubby keeps coming up with new ideas for our tank.