HCA: Hermit Crab Association

I recently just got a heater pad for the side of my tank. My house is usually around 70-80F. How long should I leave the pad on per day? Or should I only have on at night since it’s cold or during the day? They’re more active at night while only one is always active in the day time.

Mine is always on. Do you have a thermometer to check the temp inside the 'tat?

I'd tend to say leave it on. Monitor the temp as closely as is practical for a few days to see where the pad brings it up to & then maybe consider getting a thermostat to shut it off if it gets too high (most likely not an issue unless your house is regularly in the 80's though, tbh... I only need a thermostat in the summer because I've no air conditioning.)

I live in an older house, no air conditioning. Southwestern Manitoba, where temps range from -40C in winter to +40C in summer. Crabs are in a tank upstairs, in a room with a baseboard heater. Needless to say, I check my temps frequently and plug/ unplug heaters very frequently! LOL!

I get very hot summers, up to 110F depending on the year.
When that season approaches, I will definitely watch temperatures, and turn off my Ultratherm if need be.

I always leave mine on.

3isha wrote:I recently just got a heater pad for the side of my tank. My house is usually around 70-80F. How long should I leave the pad on per day? Or should I only have on at night since it’s cold or during the day? They’re more active at night while only one is always active in the day time.

I use a thermostat. That way, if the UTH is large enough (and the right brand), once you get it set properly the thermostat can keep the tank at the same temperature year-round. Assuming your house is usually colder than you want to keep your crabitat.