HCA: Hermit Crab Association

I noticed a lot of you have air stones in your pools, just wondering what the pros are in having them & what kind or brand you use? I don't think mine have even been in the SW pool I made, would the bubbles help them? The FW dish I have seen them at & using...
Salt water

Fresh water


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Hi! I got mine for like $2 on Amazon for 12. No brand or anything like that, just some airstones. They don't have to be large or fancy. Bubble pools help with humidity in the tank and also IMO help keep the water from stagnating so quickly. I paid less than $20 for my setup. All you need is a 10 gallon aquarium air pump, tubing, connectors and a valve if you are going to make both pools bubbly, and the air stones.



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As @soilentgringa said, you don't have to spend very much to set up bubblers. I did my set up for about $12 at Walmart for the pump, tubing, a splitter and a 2-pack of blue Tootsie Roll mini-sized airstones. My PPs rarely used the pools for anything other than leaning in to drink until I added the airstones: once they heard and saw the bubbles, it was like I had created a 24-hour spa for them! All 4 use the pools now and even when they find themselves accidentally in a pool (slipped while walking on the rim or fell in from the overhanging plants), they're not in such a hurry to get out ! The one downside is that the bubblers will increase the humidity in the tank but, to me, it's a positive trade-off to see the crabs enjoy the pools.

My cool side is @75 &83% humidity, my warm side is @83&92% humidity, so if I keep them on the cool side would that be ok? I definitely don't have a humidity problem


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behnk99k wrote:My cool side is @75 &83% humidity, my warm side is @83&92% humidity, so if I keep them on the cool side would that be ok? I definitely don't have a humidity problem

The airstones will produce more condensation on the tank walls near the pools and the condensation will cause an overall increase in humidity throughout the tank. Putting the bubblers/pools on the cooler, drier side may cause a lesser increase in humidity but I don't think so.

soilentgringa wrote:Hi! I got mine for like $2 on Amazon for 12. No brand or anything like that, just some airstones. They don't have to be large or fancy. Bubble pools help with humidity in the tank and also IMO help keep the water from stagnating so quickly. I paid less than $20 for my setup. All you need is a 10 gallon aquarium air pump, tubing, connectors and a valve if you are going to make both pools bubbly, and the air stones.



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So can you just put air stones in the water or do you need the whole setup?


Mama of 3 PPs (Ganesh, Ivory, and Bruiser) and a pup named Smurf.

amcniel94 wrote: So can you just put air stones in the water or do you need the whole setup?


Mama of 3 PPs (Ganesh, Ivory, and Bruiser) and a pup named Smurf.

You need a small aquarium pump, tubing, and air stones. If you are just making one pool a bubble pool, you don't need the connectors to split the tubing into two pools. They are very cheap.

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soilentgringa wrote: You need a small aquarium pump, tubing, and air stones. If you are just making one pool a bubble pool, you don't need the connectors to split the tubing into two pools. They are very cheap.

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Oh, so air stones themselves do nothing?


Mama of 3 PPs (Ganesh, Ivory, and Bruiser) and a pup named Smurf.

No, they have to have the air pumped through them to create the bubbles, just like a fish tank. The pump forces air through the tubing and stones.


The bubbles would be out of control and super messy and the tube wouldn't stay weighted down without the stones.

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Oh! Okay! I'm trying to get more ideas for my crabitat. Where did you get the stuff you're using as ladders for the water bowls?


Mama of 3 PPs (Ganesh, Ivory, and Bruiser) and a pup named Smurf.

amcniel94 wrote: Where did you get the stuff you're using as ladders for the water bowls?

Mama of 3 PPs (Ganesh, Ivory, and Bruiser) and a pup named Smurf.

That's plastic craft mesh. It comes in variety of colors (I just picked up some in purple to jazz up the crabitat), can be found at Michael's, Joann Fabrics and probably Walmart and is under $1 for an 11x15 sheet.

Thank you!!!


Mama of 3 PPs (Ganesh, Ivory, and Bruiser) and a pup named Smurf.