Ocean tide or marsh water

[Phairlady]

I live across the street from a state park beach reservation where the mouth of a river meets the ocean and the tidewater comes in almost to my driveway. (It almost floods it) I have been very curious about taking tidewater or water from the ocean to use in a pool in my crabitat, being that I could replace it anytime. Does anyone have an experience or input on this? My questions are about safety, is it beneficial or a risk; would I want to boil it first if it was to provide any benefit, does it make a difference that the crabs around here are not the species I have and therefore this water is not even the right conditions for them? I don’t know much about water, but my tap water is really hard so I’ve been driving far to a spring for fresh water. It made me think about ph and salinity too. Any water experts out there that can offer some input?

[curlysister]

Taking water from the sea or other places isn't recommended. There are too many contaminants and micro plastics and such, as well as introducing possible bacteria etc.
It is better to use tap water and treat it with a dechlorinator for the fresh water. Then take that water and add a marine salt like Instant Ocean for the salt water.

[Phairlady]

Thank you, I had a feeling, yet being that crabs live in this water I wondered. So if you don’t mind helping me with another question, should I use a water softener as my tap water is very hard and I know it’s not really good for a fish aquarium so I’m also wondering about this.

[Phairlady]

Just to elaborate I know the prime etc. removes chlorine but what about other minerals like calcium and magnesium? If the water is hard from the tap is that o.k.? Or is spring or distilled water optimal?

[curlysister]

Is your tap water from a well?

Have you had a look through the 'water' care sheet? A dechlorinator like Prime will remove heavy metals for sure. I am not a water expert by any means, I don't have fish, and don't test water like some people do. Some of the admins/ mods know a lot more about water than I do, so hoping someone else can help more with your specific question about hard water.

http://www.hermitcrabassociation.com/ph ... 27&t=92553

[CrabbyLover77]

Thank you, I had a feeling, yet being that crabs live in this water I wondered. So if you don’t mind helping me with another question, should I use a water softener as my tap water is very hard and I know it’s not really good for a fish aquarium so I’m also wondering about this.

At my old house, I had hard water. I also kept up to 5 fish tanks at once. Technically, I know some fish prefer softer or harder water. I never altered my water though (except for adding Prime of course), and my fish and hermits never seemed bothered by it. I had a goldfish there for 9-10 years before he passed away.

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[JoeHermits]

Just to elaborate I know the prime etc. removes chlorine but what about other minerals like calcium and magnesium? If the water is hard from the tap is that o.k.? Or is spring or distilled water optimal?

I don’t know if Prime binds calcium and magnesium and since the exact formula is proprietary there’s no way to confirm.

Hard water, however, should be fine for hermits.


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[wodesorel]

Yeah, hard water may actually be beneficial for hermits because it adds more needed minerals (calcium) and doesn't do any damage to their exoskeleton like soft water can to calcium-rich shells. Many freshwater fish have trouble because interior lakes and rivers do tend to be on the soft side of things (there are exceptions, like with African lake cichlids), but ocean water is pretty much as hard as it comes.

The only thing I would check is if there is any salinity in your water, because if you do have a well (or are on tap from a city well source) and are that close to the ocean there is going to be contamination. Generally if it's safe for humans to drink it shouldn't be that bad, but there are places that have no choice in the matter. If the crab's freshwater is also salty they might run into issues, in which case buying bottled may be a better choice.

[Phairlady]

Thank you so much for all your replies. It sounds like I am all set. I am Very interested to check the tap water salinity now though.

[Momma And Company]

I live across the street from a state park beach reservation where the mouth of a river meets the ocean and the tidewater comes in almost to my driveway. (It almost floods it) I have been very curious about taking tidewater or water from the ocean to use in a pool in my crabitat, being that I could replace it anytime. Does anyone have an experience or input on this? My questions are about safety, is it beneficial or a risk; would I want to boil it first if it was to provide any benefit, does it make a difference that the crabs around here are not the species I have and therefore this water is not even the right conditions for them? I don’t know much about water, but my tap water is really hard so I’ve been driving far to a spring for fresh water. It made me think about ph and salinity too. Any water experts out there that can offer some input?

I'd be beyond tempted by this too but here's a test - if you're gungoho for it, STOP. PAUSE. RESEARCH.

Oceanic water quality =

1.) Lighter things, float. Warmer water, lighter saline sufficient minerals, bio-bacteria, micro-plastics, water solvent gases such as methane, diluted oil spills, mining and oil chemical concentrations, etc.

--Whatever floats up onto a beach is going to be bad. Sometimes for humans, but most times for pets when we use these shallow surface waters for them because we use such a small amount like with crabbies in 2 pools of freshwater and salt.

--This doesn't meant they'll "die", it just means they might not live as long. Very few studies have been about hermit crabs and native environmental factors.

2.) Boiling water - this will only kill micro organisms such as a parasites, mites, bacteria, etc. and even then not ALL. It won't do a thing to combat any man-made chemicals in the water, etc.

3.) Hard water being a good thing - I'm not too sure about this, only because hermit crabs are a land species and an oceanic species - they straddle both. Hard water, typically, benefits coral species the most - the filtering class like corals, mussles, etc. While I don't doubt that hermit crabs can benefit, they're not really set up to really gain alot from hard water. Typically they gain their calcium through eating shells, corals, their own molted shells, etc. rather than the water itself which gets filtered through their pseudo-gills rather than through their stomachs.

They're not the type of animal to fully benefit from hardwater through their gills, they're not as set up to be receptive I don't think.

This is just my opinion, but I still wouldn't suggest using actual seawater for your water pools.

[JoeHermits]

[

Hard water, typically, benefits coral species the most - the filtering class like corals, mussles, etc. While I don't doubt that hermit crabs can benefit, they're not really set up to really gain alot from hard water. Typically they gain their calcium through eating shells, corals, their own molted shells, etc. rather than the water itself which gets filtered through their pseudo-gills rather than through their stomachs.

They're not the type of animal to fully benefit from hardwater through their gills, they're not as set up to be receptive I don't think.

This is just my opinion, but I still wouldn't suggest using actual seawater for your water pools.

They’re not equipped to filter minerals through their gills, but they do ingest materials they drink.


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[Momma And Company]

They’re not equipped to filter minerals through their gills, but they do ingest materials they drink.


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Hi Joe, it's so nice to meet you!! I agree on the drinking of minerals, but when you think about it - how much are they ingesting? Don't get me wrong. any little bit helps but when it comes down to it but I still wonder. Hard water can definitely supplement a crab through drinking, but when you really look at it they tend to take in the majority through eating - and excess hard water in our captivity conditions can definitely cause problems in the crabitat being the most notable. Like hard water build up on the pools, in the bubbler filters, on the glass even.

Since we're dealing with such smaller pools of water, crabs could potentially develop build up on their exo or god forbid, their gills.

Thus why I was wondering and pushing for an API Test Kit. I'll be researching extra on this, since I'm a newbie but I''d think a balance is best.

[JoeHermits]

Buildup is always a possibility, but if your water is hard enough for deposits on your crabs to be concerning I think you’ve bigger problems.


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