Calcisand as a substrate

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Sep 28, 2005 9:10 am

I have my crabs on Calcisand as a substrate. The crabs seem to really like digging and burrowing into it. I do not keep it damp so I have not had troubles with clumping. The humidity in the tank has been consistently good so I have thought misting it down not necessary. I find it easy to clean up after the crabs because their droppings show up well. I just scoop out the dirty and add new when needed. It seems most crabbers prefer playsand. Does anyone like Calcisand and use it? The important question is, can the crabs molt in it sucessfully? I have only had crabs since July so this is all still new to me. I have yet to face a molt. Thanks!

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Sep 28, 2005 9:50 am

Well I don't use calcisand as a substrate because of the clumpy/smelly mess you get when it is wet. Also it is quite expensive. I bought a 18kg bag of playsand for $2.50 CAD.I am unsure whether or not they can moult in it... I keep a little dish in my tank so they can munch on it if they like.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Sep 28, 2005 11:12 am

Calci sand really isn't the best choice for a substrate. Playsand or EE is better, and both are way less expensive. Offering a small bowl or dish of calci sand is a good thing tho, it does provide a good source of calcium for your crabs.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Sep 28, 2005 11:48 am

I used to use calcisand when I first got my crabs, but went to playsand. A lot cheaper especially if you have two 45 gal. tanks and I make mine 8 inches deep. I have some really big crabs that love to dig and the sand works really well.

Willow · Post by **Willow** » Thu Sep 29, 2005 10:33 am

crab happy--how do you keep the humidity high without a damp substrate? I've never been able to do it....the main problem with Calci-Sand and moulting is that if it's dry, it'll just collapse around the crabs as they dig; they can't make a nice "moulting tunnel". And we all know what happens if it gets wet. Also, it's so expensive, most people just put a thin layer of it and the hermies need it to be deep enough to bury completely.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Thu Sep 29, 2005 8:47 pm

I guess the glass lid is keeping the humidity in. If I don't keep it propped a little it gets too humid. I do see the point about tunneling so I think I will switch to playsand. Have you ever heard of Estes Ultra Reef Sand?

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Fri Sep 30, 2005 4:35 am

I use VitaSand, which has calcium and I guess other vitamins in it, mixed with ReptiSand on one side and EE on the other. My crabs like to dig and molt in either side, I guess it just depends on the crab. Never had any problems, though I'd agree it's expensive and next time I replace the substrate I'll probably just get some play sand.

Bubu · Post by **Bubu** » Fri Sep 30, 2005 5:50 am

When I first started crabbing I used calci-sand. They really enjoyed it, and I had several molts using it. Both underground and topside. About a year ago I switched to play sand since it was so much cheaper (I got a 50 pound bag for a quarter because the store couldn't sell it. It had a hole in it ) And they seem to like the play sand too. I just recently started putting a layer of the calci-sand on one half of the tank, just for that extra boost of calcium. They do well in both in my experiences

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Fri Sep 30, 2005 7:19 am

Thanks for all the responses on this, I don't know why it has been so difficult for me to figure out. I guess I just like the calcisand better myself because it seems cleaner to me but that is beginning to seem silly. I like the idea of using the playsand with a layer of calcisand on top. Where do you get VitaSand from? Ineed to experiment with something else because I don't think I have the substrate deep enough because o the cost. Has anyone heard of Estes Ultra Reef Sand? I heard this was good and not as expensive. Thanks so much!

Willow · Post by **Willow** » Sat Oct 01, 2005 1:16 pm

I've heard good things about reef sand, but to my knowledge, it's pretty expensive, although it might be less than Calci-Sand. I once heard that Vita-Sand gets "soupy" when wet, but they might have changed the formula since then.