HCA: Hermit Crab Association

So I found these cool looking dishes online at Lllreptiples.com and I was wondering if they were safe. They're glow in the dark apparently. I just like the design but I don't know if they're safe or not;they're meant for reptiles but I thought they would look nice in the tank.
I'm not quite sure how to add the picture

AndyCrabby wrote:So I found these cool looking dishes online at Lllreptiples.com and I was wondering if they were safe. They're glow in the dark apparently. I just like the design but I don't know if they're safe or not;they're meant for reptiles but I thought they would look nice in the tank.
I'm not quite sure how to add the picture

Hi Andy- im a new crabber (>1 yr) and i always err in favor of caution. If the dish has glo paint it may be attractive to a bored crabby. They have a tendancy to work and peel stuff, especially the stuff you don't want them too. I personally would not put the glo bowl in.
As far as loading pics. On the HCA forum you need to use a 3rd party to upload images (imgur etc) and paste the link.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

Being that it is just a dish, I'd say that it's probably fine.

Would I personally use it? No, but I always prefer natural looks, and play it super safe. I'm weird like that. To each's own

I stay away from glow in the dark things with all of my tank pets because I wonder about it irritating them at night when it's supposed to be dark. That alone is reason enough for me, besides not being natural and possibly toxic (personal preference). Glowing things in the saltwater dish mimicking bioluminescence every once in a great while as an enrichment item is one thing, and I'd love to try that, but back to your question. If it isn't painted, it may not be as tempting to pick at, but you never know what a crab will pick at and you never know about toxicity when it comes to glow in the dark things. If the plastic/ resin itself is glow in the dark (no paint) and it doesn't cause stress it may be ok, but to be safe, use it when you'll be home to monitor and make sure they're not eating it.

Even then the paint or coloration in the plastic/resin could leach into the pool... not to mention those things are super shallow and not good for anything larger than a small grape.

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

Yeah I agree. I wouldn't, just because of chemicals and stuff. And it can't be used as a water dish because, like you said AussieJJDude, it is WAY too shallow. Food dish, maybe but because there could be some poisonous stuff on there, I would stick to seashells that you can either buy or find on the beach or find things that do not have any toxins on it.

So I got them and they don't glow in the dark at all, lol what are the odds. I decided to just use one as a food dish and I have glass containers as water dishes instead. Seems to work for them. Thanks for all the replies