?should I add eco earth?

jasonmom · Post by **jasonmom** » Sun Jul 14, 2013 2:33 pm

My tank has been setting for about 2 1/2 wks. The substrate of all playsand has settled and is only about 2 1/2" deep on the deep side. Should I get some coconut fiber / eco earth and put it on top? Right now 4 of my 6 PPs are buried. Can I use soil/dirt in my tank?

finalfantasyxii · Post by **finalfantasyxii** » Sun Jul 14, 2013 2:53 pm

I would say that you don't need to add when so many are down. You can sprinkle EE on top though just don't pack it down. You want the depth to be 2.5 times the height of your tallest crab.

Crabber85 · Post by **Crabber85** » Sun Jul 14, 2013 3:24 pm

The only two approved substrates are regular play sand and eco earth(ee) because they are hermitcrab safe unlike the soils/dirts that most places sell which will either clump when wet or don't hold moisture at all staying bone dry which means the crabs can dig or burrow as the sub wont hold shape.You can add ee but will up the acidity of the sub if too much is used which can be detrimental to soft molters as the acidity hinders the hardening process.You can safely do a 50/50 mix ratio but I wouldn't go any higher than that on the ee for the above mentioned reason.Just make sure your not dumping the hydrated ee in from up high and avoid packing it and you should be good to go.

finalfantasyxii · Post by **finalfantasyxii** » Sun Jul 14, 2013 3:46 pm

Crabber85 - I have heard of people using EE by itself successfully. I have used it in my ISO with no issues. I did not realize it was supposed to be too acidic!

finalfantasyxii · Post by **finalfantasyxii** » Sun Jul 14, 2013 5:22 pm

I guess I've heard speculation it might be too acidic but since so many people use it without issue I thought it must not be. Have you heard of people with pure EE having issues? I would be most interested because my new crabs currently reside in it right now!

jasonmom · Post by **jasonmom** » Mon Jul 15, 2013 12:36 am

Thanks for the advise. Think I'll order some and sprinkle on top. I wish I'd made my substrate deeper, but can't really do anything at this point as 4 have buried down. I really wish I'd learned how they should be kept before I got them. Live and learn I guess.

Crabber85 · Post by **Crabber85** » Mon Jul 15, 2013 4:55 am

@finalfantasy, yeah theres some anecdotal evidence which suggests that since ee is made of plant matter that it has a lower PH level than 7.0 and anything lower than 7.0 is considered acidic, 7.0 is neutral and anything over 7.0 is basic.I believe the PH of ee is somewhere around 6.8 which means its slightly acidic and for each whole increment below 7.0 your essentially doubling the level of acidity so a PH of 6.0 would be twice as acidic as the neutral value and so on so forth.I've read of where people used nothing but ee and tested six months later to get a reading of 5.0 which is three times as acidic as the neutral value and they cited that they were having molting issues as a result which I found interesting.As ee breaks down the PH level will continue to drop until the ee is completely decomposed at which point the PH level will be essentially 1.0 to 0.0 meaning the ee will have had an acidic level six times that of the neutral value at which point your hermitcrabs become vulnerable to the high level of acid present.

jasonmom · Post by **jasonmom** » Mon Jul 15, 2013 5:46 am

Can I use soil from the forest?

Crabber85 · Post by **Crabber85** » Mon Jul 15, 2013 6:38 am

Soil or dirt from outside are not the best or safest options as you really can't tell what kind of contaminants my be present and odds are there are microbes, fungal and mold spores that will be present and will be introduced into the hermitcrabs habitat and these things are not native to the poor hermits so the likelihood of them getting sick from exposure goes up exponentially.

jasonmom · Post by **jasonmom** » Wed Jul 17, 2013 11:16 am

Keeping my forest soil out. Definitely no hermit crabs in WV.