HCA: Hermit Crab Association

So I own a 20 gallon hefty as my crabitat and im wondering what the best way to heat it up.
I dont live in a very warm place, so my room stays quite cold most the time and ive been trying my best to warm up their crabitat the best I can, but nothing I do seems to help. I use the usual plastic tote lid and ive cut a hole in it for a heat lamp to point down into (not directly down, its at a slight angle) but it doesnt seem to help it heat up in the slightest
I was wondering if anyone had any (preferably cheap as I dont have a job atm) advice because I dont want my hermits to be cold... Theyre already so inactive as it is and I want the absolute best for them..
Also tips on humidity will help as well!! Thank you <3

There are Ultra Therm Heaters on reptilebasics.com that are under $30 and work very well, but for insulation, you can try draping their tank with blankets for the winter. For humidity, you can get some moss cheap at the store and spray it with warm water, and try to seal off your tank as much as possible around the hole so humidity doesn't escape. you may be able to find some cheaper heating mat options on ebay. hope this helps!


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avocadocrabbies wrote: ↑

Mon Sep 21, 2020 7:12 pm

There are Ultra Therm Heaters on reptilebasics.com that are under $30 and work very well, but for insulation, you can try draping their tank with blankets for the winter. For humidity, you can get some moss cheap at the store and spray it with warm water, and try to seal off your tank as much as possible around the hole so humidity doesn't escape. you may be able to find some cheaper heating mat options on ebay. hope this helps!


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Thank you very much!! Ill make a list and try my best !

make sure when you spray water in the tank it’s saltwater so mold doesn’t form! i had the same issue with keeping up humidity and the heat bc my house is always cold but i got some of the pad heaters for the side of the tank and sprayed some saltwater in to make sure it’s humid enough!


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miamorre wrote:make sure when you spray water in the tank it’s saltwater so mold doesn’t form! i had the same issue with keeping up humidity and the heat bc my house is always cold but i got some of the pad heaters for the side of the tank and sprayed some saltwater in to make sure it’s humid enough!


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Hi there!
It's usually not recommend to mist with saltwater. The water will evaporate but the salt will not, which can lead to salt buildup in the substrate. It's ok to originally mix up your sub to sand castle consistency with marine salt water to stave off mold growth, you just don't want to keep misting with it. Hope this helps!

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If you have an ultratherm, you can try to insulate over your heating pad and tank to raise the temperature of your tank. There are several ways to do this. Don't insulate over your heating pad if it is a zoomed, or any other heating pad that is insulated (padded). If your heating pad is insulated, you would insulate AROUND the heating pad.

Cheaper way: You can use aluminum foil (shiny part facing the crabitat), then cardboard. Attach using packaging tape, duct tape or Reflectix tape.

More expensive: Purchase a product called Reflectix. This product looks like car shade material. It is sold in rolls at local hardware stores like Lowes and Home Depot. You can also purchase it on Amazon. Cut the Reflectix to fit your tank. Attach using packaging tape, duct tape or Reflectix tape.


It can take several hours to see the difference. If doing the insulation doesn't raise your temperature, you might want to consider getting a bigger and or better heater. Most of us use ultratherms. They are great heaters. www.reptilebasics.com or www.beanfarm.com sells them.

Hermit crabs have modified gills, and need humidity to breathe. IMO heat lamps are terrible at making the humidity evaporate, so I personally do not like them. A vast majority of crabbers use the ultratherms to heat the air instead of heat lamps.


Humidity boosters: Bubblers definitely do help boost the humidity. Double dish bubblers: http://hermitcrabassociation.com/phpBB/ ... r#p1030806

You can also add moss pits to help. You would use organic moss (as well as moss that is on the safe list), and moisten it with dechlorinated fresh water. Then, put the moss in a shower caddy or a glass vase laying on it's side so the hermits can walk in and out of it. Glass tops also help keep humidity in.