tank set up

[beachberly]

Hello- I have just set up a 40 gallon breeder that I put my 2 hermit crabs in. I have been hearing mixed reviews on a couple of things so I wanted to see what others thought. I currently have about 5 inches on one side sloping down to about one inch. I have the ecoearth mixed through the beach sand to help. I have recently heard that you should not use sand at all because it can lead to bacteria and its best to just use a paper towel bottom. They said they will molt regardless... Another in thing is chola wood, is this bad or good for them. I thought that it was good for them but understand that the humidity in the tank can cause mites as it is a dead piece of wood? Any insight would be great as I am so confused on what the right thing is to do.

[Geranium]

Welcome. There is all sorts of information out there about care and feeding of Hermit Crabs unfortunately much of it is dangerous because it has a bit of truth in it. Read the everything pinned at the top of the Zoea section. I have found the information on this site to be the most accurate and helpful.Now to answer your questions.The sloping substrate is not recommended because it then limits the area available for molting but given that you only have two crabs in a 40 gallon it is probably less of a worry.EE and Playsand are the only substrates recommended by those who know what they are talking about. The beach sand would be fine if it weren't for the likely contamination that humans contribute to the conditions. You substrate should be a depth of at least twice the height of you largest crab, but a minimum of 6 inches. Depth is important for successful molting. It should also be hydrated to sandcastle consistency with dechlorinated water. Many prefer dechlorinated aquarium salt water to inhibit mold growth.While it is true that a crab can surface molt as suggested on paper towels, it is very stressful and puts the crabs in danger. Many will die of the stress of putting off the molt in conditions such as those described. They molt under the sub in a molting pocket when conditions are good.If you soak in dechlor salt water and bake Cholla it will kill and bugs and inhibit mold growth. Cholla is good for them, they climb it, hide in it sometimes, munch on it. All good things.

[jenok]

I agree with geranium. You are fine with the sand and eco earth EE. The 5" you have is ok but 6" is better. The slope is ok unless you put in more crabs then you should even it out. Using salt water to hydrate your sand will help minimize bacteria, remember water evaporates salt doesn't so you don't have to use salt every time. Also every so often like 3x a year you want to change out with new sand keeping just a little old sand so you still have some good bacteria to your tank. You can soak the cholla in salt water or boil it, then bake it or let it dry before putting in the tank. This will not completely eliminate mold and bacteria but will help prevent it. once you notic it growing just remove and boil/bake again to kill the mold.

[Crabber85]

I concur with jenok and Geranium, play sand and ecco earth are the only two safe hermitcrab approved substrates.Hermitcrabs do in deed need to be able to burrow down and create molt pockets because these pockets have increased air pressure which helps the crab split its old exo during the molt and these pockets self regulate to the ideal or optimum temp and humidity levels thereby giving the crab a constant comfortable environment to molt in.If given the choice hermitcrabs will never surface molt because the conditions for successfully shedding the old exo just aren't available on the surface not to mention the risk being out in the open poses to the soft newly molted hermit as they are easy victims of cannibalism at this stage.The odds of a successful topside or surface molt are reduced by more than half when the crab has to molt on the surface or out side of a molt pocket so your looking at a mere 15 to 20% success rate for surface molters versus a 70 to 80& success rate for hermitcrabs who have been able to create and utilize molt pockets deep within the substrate.We do know that the deeper the substrate the better the odds of a successful molt completion and hermitcrabs will always burrow down to the bottom no matter what the depth as evidenced by Tammy and Kirk over at the Hermitcrabpatch.com using more than three feet of substrate depth in their enclosures and having near 100% of the crabs of each tank burrow down to the bottom.This is a biological defensive mechanism to prevent the crab from being disturbed during molt by other tank mates accidentally finding them which also reduces the risk of being eaten during the hardening phase of the molt.I have used nothing but regular play sand as my substrate in my 121 gallon enclosure for the last four years and have not had one single problem with bacteria or mold in my tank and I run a bubble pool to keep the air in the tank humid so my humidity levels are always a constant 75% the key to keeping the mold and bacteria at bay is to have a sufficient air flow into the tank so that fresh air is always exchanging with the old stale air in the tank as warm stale air is what causes mold to grow.You'll have to play around with an air gap in the lid depending on the size of the tank you have you may not need as much of an air exchange as I do on my tank.We will help you tailor your enclosure to your specific needs to that it is well balanced so as to avoid any issues with temp or humidity.Whoever gave you the advice of using a paper towel bottom for your crabs to molt on is seriously off on their information and they need to stop giving it out because they are doing little more than killing other peoples hermitcrabs.Your substrate should ideally be no less than six inches deep across the entire bottom of the enclosure this is to allow for more molting space at the bottom of the tank, tanks with larger foot prints like breeders do better than long narrow tanks like the standard 50/55 and 75 gallon longs because they offer less ground space they are technically considered smaller than the breeder style which is short and wide being nearly perfectly square.I have an old forty gallon breeder that actually offered more ground space than a 55 gallon long I was looking at when I got the forty.You can mix ecco earth with play sand to give a more natural look to the substrate and the ecco earth also retains moisture better than sand so the substrate will stay at the right consistency for your hermitcrabs to tunnel, burrow and care out molt pockets in not to mention ecco earth is half the weight of sand so less risk of the substrate collapsing tunnels and such.Cholla wood often pronounced Choy-Ya is perfectly fine for hermitcrabs they love to nibble on it and climb on it, its an excellent all natural addition to the enclosure as it provides a good source of Cellulose or fiber which hermitcrabs have to have in their diet at all times.I like Mopani aka Fig wood better its harder and heavier so my jumbos cant really destroy it or move it around as easily as the cholla wood.Mopani can be quite expensive depending on where you want to get it from so if you decide you want some check your local pet stores in the bird isle as its often used as perches in bird cages and will be much cheaper as a result.I got two huge pieces for around three dollars a per at my local pet store they are about a foot in length and about six inches across at their widest part.

[Keg]

I recall researching that cholla wood is safe...but now I just found a source (next link) that says it isn't. It also says grape wood and reptile caves are no good. Come to think of it, those reptile caves do look suspiciously like evergreen. I should check that. But you're right beachberly, there surely is conflicting information.http://thehappyhermitcrab.blog...-list-of-no-nos.html***Obviously the pet store sells Cholla for crabs. I stupidly found some outdoors and used it. The crab does seem to enjoy climbing around on it for its own sake.I use 100% play sand. I would have to look up the exact number of years but roughly one crab is 12, the other around 2. No deaths.I suspect mites are inevitable, although it's just a guess. I mean our beds are said to gain several pounds from them over the course of a decade. Mites are an extremely successful creature I hear. They're everywhere. Sorry, no source for that, just a vague memory of reading it.A suggestion: Put a mirror outside the glass. They'll interact with it. Set up spare seashells on the wood and they (mine anyway) make a point of knocking them down. I just went over to set them up, since I haven't done that in awhile, and all the shells I've put in there are now hidden in the cave. They definitely do that on purpose.

[Geranium]

It says"Do NOT give your hermit crabs access to these items.... Evergreen or conifer woods. Be especially wary of wood tunnels or caves in the reptile section. Do give grapewood, cholla wood, coconut shell huts, or other natural materials."It is confusing because of the formatting of all of the statements, the beginning is do not give then followed by a "Do give". So, even according to this site, cholla is fine. We have discussed on this forum the concerns about the reptile caves that are pine and decided that even though some crabs live near and in conifer trees that because of the experience and research of vetran crabbers that it wasn't worth the risk.

[Keg]

Thanks.