HCA: Hermit Crab Association

So I posted this picture earlier to show where bellatrix had dug a cave, well she apparently came back up they a different tunnel route that brought her directly under the shell full of honey. Now, I'll try to describe this because a picture is not capturing it.... under the new corner food dish was a huge hole, maybe 1/6 of that hole was out from under the fish and inside that part of the hole is the entire mollusk shell I had full of honey, laying sideways. So all the honey had dumped down the tunnel, god only knows how far and how much sub is now contaminated.

How do I fix this?

I cleaned up the area and picked up some of the sub but none that I stirred up picked up or touched in any way feels sticky. It all feels the same(and I must say adding more ee is seriously working miracles on sand castle consistency). I hate bugs and really don't want to deal with any, so I assume it's important to get the honey out of the tank, but how?

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I would just take a plastic spoon and gently scrape up the area where the honey spilled and dump it.


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Honey is just sugar, it should be fine. The beneficial bacteria will decompose it, just make sure you keep an eye out for a bacterial bloom regardless - if you substrate is still building its bacteria colony. IMO, I wouldn't worry about it.

Since it literally spilled down a tunnel I have no clue where it is, nothing feels like honey. Guess I need to find a different container for giving them honey

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aussieJJDude wrote:Honey is just sugar, it should be fine. The beneficial bacteria will decompose it, just make sure you keep an eye out for a bacterial bloom regardless - if you substrate is still building its bacteria colony. IMO, I wouldn't worry about it.

Since I just mixed up the sub and added more ee, what, two three days ago, I'll assume it's still establishing? What would a bloom look like?

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Awwww... I'm sorry you have honey woes.

How long have you had the substrate in beforehand? Mixing it up does not kill BB (beneficial bacteria). BB grows on the sand/substrate itself. Basically a bloom will look like a darken patch - like a grey - in your substrate, and smell like eggs gone wrong - excess sulfur is released.

aussieJJDude wrote:How long have you had the substrate in beforehand? Mixing it up does not kill BB (beneficial bacteria). BB grows on the sand/substrate itself. Basically a bloom will look like a darken patch - like a grey - in your substrate, and smell like eggs gone wrong - excess sulfur is released.

I believe I got the 20g tank in Oct, so the sub has been in there ever since. Almost a week ago I added ee to the sub and mixed it up bc it was so compacted I lost almost 2 inches in depth.

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Personally, I wouldn't do anything about it.

If so, it should be developing/developed a bacteria colony. It should be fine!