Possible molter under water pool?

[kfinnz]

So the two water pools in my tank don't reach the very bottom so there's some sand under them. Over the past few days one of my bigger crabs has been behaving the same as he did before his last molt and yesterday and today he's been digging caves in the same spot he molted last time. Now though he has seemed to make his spot directly under my salt water pool. The concern I have isn't so much collapsing a cave since I never press down when I put the pools back in after refreshing the water (I have holes dug out to their size so they just slip in. But if he is molting will he be constantly disturbed by vibrations and such when I take the pools in and out to change the water? Will he move on his own after a week if he realizes it's a bad spot or is exposed right under the pool? I'm not sure how quick they settle into a molt and I'm just a little concerned since I did not have my pools last he started acting like this (he's been eating a ton, visiting the fresh water to get drinks far more frequently, digging lots of spots, etc etc)

EDIT: In addition I've noticed a little mold patch (they like hiding food to my dismay) near where he's been seemingly settling in. Since he's still digging around is it okay to try to remove this? Will it harm him in any way if I leave it till he's topside again?

[aussieJJDude]

You could just use a turkey baster for removing and adding water. That will minimise disruption as such.
Can you remove the mould. Or is it like really bad?

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[kfinnz]

Oh! I didn't think of that, I'll try to get a turkey baster asap.

It's not bad, but there's a spot on the side about halfway deep through the substrate. I would deff have to dig to get to it. Not sure how far back it goes though or if it's going to spread. My humidity is always on the higher end which won't help I assume. If the humidity can be balanced at around 80 do you think it would stop growing for awhile?

[aussieJJDude]

Are you sure it's mould not algae or a Bacteria bloom. Pics may help

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[kfinnz]

I'm sorry my camera is super old and doesn't show it very well since the spot I can see is small. I'm not sure if it's algae or a bacteria bloom (I don't know what the bloom is). Maybe algae if that can grow. It's bright green like someone dyed the sand where it is and I can still see the grains of sand in it. Doesn't look fuzzy like a mold, but the green color made me assume it was.

[Hermias_mom]

So if the turkey baster gives you fits or is difficult to use, you can get a gravel vacuum. Depending on what you've got in your pools you can use it with or without the extension tube on the end. I have 5/8"diameter glass pebbles. They're pretty flat and heavy, so I ended up taking off the extension and just using the hose with the hand pump. That helped me suck up more water, more quickly, and was very gentle. There's always a tiny bit of water left in the pools, so I refill and empty the pools a couple times if it seems dirty, and rinse with chlorinated water and dry them out once a week without removing the ceramic pools from the crabitat. (I do remove and rinse the glass pebbles and shells. ) My pools are about 5" diameter and 5.5" deep ceramic (no bubblers) and I don't want to upgrade to the nested plastic ones until my molter comes up.

But hey, the turkey baster should work just fine and is probably cheaper/more readily available. Just thought I'd mention another way in case you end up dealing with a lot of water or having to change water often while your molter is down, and it starts to bug you.

Best of luck!

[GotButterflies]

I love my gravel vacuum!!


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[aussieJJDude]

Since its bright green it really does sound like algae. Don't worry, algae is harmless.

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[kfinnz]

Whew! That's good to know! Thank you!

[LadyJinglyJones]

Is there a reason you don't use the nested container method?

[kfinnz]

Not sure what the nested container method is to be perfectly honest, never heard of it. Could you explain?

Mine just have dug out spots in the sand that the tupperwares fit in perfectly an sit so top is level with the top sand but I lift them out to change the water once a week.

[GotButterflies]

Nested is using two bowls of same size. First one stays in the ground. It is dry. You put a layer of gravel or stones in the bottom of it so the second bowl (which holds your water), is easy to lift out of it. This way when you change your water molters under the water bowl are not disturbed.


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[Hermias_mom]

And with nested bowls, NO SAND sticks to the outside of the bowls and has to be dealt with when you're changing water. If you have a substrate mixed with saltwater, this means no saltwater is around on the sand on the outside of the bowls to irritate/burn your skin either. Nested bowls is like the most awesome cool trick ever!!! I upgraded I love them

[kfinnz]

Whoa! That's a cool method, once he comes up I think I'll switch to doing that!! For now I'm doing the turkey baster thing haha.

[Hermias_mom]

Your crabs will probably get more use out of that turkey baster than your turkeys ever will!