Worried about molter

[kayo1895]

My one crab, squirt, has been buried behind a rock for nearly a month now, and I assumed that he had begun to molt because when I was cleaning last month I shifted the rock and saw that he was immensely gray and ashy and partially hanging out of his shell. I gave it time and replaced the rock exactly as it was before. In another forum someone told me not to worry as that was signs of molting, but my main concern was that I could still partially see it's shell. In this last week I noticed that the shell is more noticeable above the substrate than it was before, and found an angle to try and see what he looked like without bothering him. It looks like there is a yellowish/purple blob of something right in front of the shell opening, but that is all I can see while not bothering him. Could that be his exoskeleton? Or is it worse and does that mean he actually passed? Just looking for advice and seeing if anyone else has had this experience.

I have two other crabs in the tank as well that are active for context.

[Theresa Howard]

I would just leave him alone. Depending on his size it may take longer to molt. If the tank starts to smell then he probably passed but if not I'm sure he's fine. The more you disrupt him the more stressed he will be.