HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Hi, new to hermit crabs! Would this light be good for them? I really can't tell

https://www.amazon.ca/Reptile-Habitat-F ... 453&sr=8-1

That works. Lighting choice isn’t super important so long as they get a regular day/night cycle.


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Are you using it for lighting only...or as a heat source as well? I only ask bc I found that the heating lamps (I used to use a daytime and nighttime bulb) zapped my humidity, plus they got super hot to the touch. I ended up going with a couple uths (under tank heaters) instead...they are actually placed on the back and/or sides of tank though (not like the name suggests), above the substrate line. I then just got a LED light strip fixture for their day/night cycle. It doesn’t get hot and sits right on my glass lid...and it has different settings, including moonlight so I can watch them when they’re out and about at night! This is just what worked for me so I thought I’d share!


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I was just going to use for a light and get a separate heating device as well! Thank you for sharing! Question: Can hermit crabs have led or UVA/UVB lights?

They can have both! Personally I use UVB because my tanks aren’t in an area with a lot of light, but I know a lot of crabbers that use LED


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UVB doesn't penetrate through glass or plastic, and screening filters out a lot. They can be used for crabs with creative modifications, but if they aren't used properly they have no benefit and are a waste of money.

I have a myriad of lighting for mine. First an LED light strip for day and it turns to blue for night time. Then I have a small UVB bulb that runs during the day. Then I have a 100W clamp lamp heat bulb for the day during the colder months. Finally, I have a second clamp lamp for night which uses a 75W moonglo bulb in the warmer months and I switch it out to a 100W red heat bulb in the cooler months.

HermitofHermitCrabs wrote: ↑

Sun Feb 21, 2021 11:03 pm

I have a myriad of lighting for mine. First an LED light strip for day and it turns to blue for night time. Then I have a small UVB bulb that runs during the day. Then I have a 100W clamp lamp heat bulb for the day during the colder months. Finally, I have a second clamp lamp for night which uses a 75W moonglo bulb in the warmer months and I switch it out to a 100W red heat bulb in the cooler months.

Even though it appears not to disturb them, I'd be wary about using red lamps at night (and to a degree, the moonglo) as they can see within that colour spectrum. Lighting at night is very disruptive for proper hormone production and can lead to a variety of behavioural issues in animals (which includes humans) so worth considering replacing those styles of lamps with other forms of heat like additional UTHs or a CHE.

aussieJJDude wrote: ↑

Mon Feb 22, 2021 6:02 pm

Even though it appears not to disturb them, I'd be wary about using red lamps at night (and to a degree, the moonglo) as they can see within that colour spectrum. Lighting at night is very disruptive for proper hormone production and can lead to a variety of behavioural issues in animals (which includes humans) so worth considering replacing those styles of lamps with other forms of heat like additional UTHs or a CHE.

Well, I guess we'll agree to disagree on this one since I have had zero deaths that were my fault in years of doing this. I have a large tank and the lights are only on a small corner for the very cold nights. I actually don't even run them during the warmer months.