HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Hello Everyone,

So my boyfriend is going to build me a crabitate tank. It is going to 1 ft high, 48"x24"x18"..I am not sure what to use for the bottom, back, and the two sides? I'm not sure if untreated pine would be safe because of the sand and it being moist, I don't want it to rot or mildew. What does everyone recommend? My boyfriend is going to use untreated pine for the corners and along the bottom..he will make it so the plexiglass slides in the wood so there is no use of glue. the shelving I plan to put in will also be the same untreated pine, but I plan to use EE on them with no moisture, just the EE. Any ideas would be grateful..This is a project for us and I want to make sure I do not use anything that is going to harm my hermies..

Is pressure treated or cedar a better option?

Appreciate all reply's and ideas...

Dolphin

Untreated wood cannot be used because of the moisture and humidity, it will rot quickly. It has to be sealed with a crab safe coating.

Untreated plywood is especially unsafe because of the glues used to bind it together. It is also safe if sealed properly.

Never use pressure treated wood as the chemicals used to keep it from rotting are toxic to animals - especially wood eating arthropods. (Like crabs!) If the seal ever cracks or the crabs manage to scrape through it, it would be very harmful. Also generally not something you want inside your house.

Uncoated cedar would not be good. While it's not outright deadly, it does release a lot of phenols and with the amount of wood being used in this project it could harm the crabs.

Safe wood coatings for crabs are the same as for aquarium. Two-part marine epoxy, mainly.

I think I understand what you are trying to do. I was thinking about doing the same, but a nice tank fell in my lap.

You'll definitely what to seal the wood as Wodecorel mentioned. Google "plywood aquarium". You'll basically want all the wood sealed the same way. Also look for a "low vox", formaldehyde free plywood.


For the sliding doors in the front, use glass instead of plexiglass. Plexiglass can warp considerably in a warm humid environment. Cranb will also scratch it up pretty quickly. You can get glass cut at home depot and it's really not that hard to cut.

There are plenty of aquarium safe glues and epoxies you can use if you search for them so don't worry too much about that. I would use the pre-made slides. Routed grooves in the wood would wear down with all the sand.

I really would love to see the project when it is done.

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A 90 gal rectangle glass aquarium has the same volume as the enclosure you want to make. You'd be better off seeing if you can search your local neighborhood sites, Facebook marketplace, etc to see if you can find a used one for sale.

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One more thing to consider is how do you plan on heating the tank?

With wood, the typical side mounted heating undertank heater won't work well and heating lamps are not the best option for creating the humid conditions crabs need.



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Thank you everyone for your comments! I am now searching marketplace on Facebook for a tank! Got a couple of tanks I’ve looked into now just waiting for a reply back from people. Fingers crossed.

DL


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I should point out, I'm no expert, but I spent a lot of time researching what the experts had to say.

For me, a front opening enclosure would have been nice, but in the end it wasn't worth the hassle. Just my opinion.

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Brian_T wrote:I should point out, I'm no expert, but I spent a lot of time researching what the experts had to say.

For me, a front opening enclosure would have been nice, but in the end it wasn't worth the hassle. Just my opinion.

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Hey Brian_T,

No way possible to have a front opening enclosure with 6” of sand in the tank. I’m looking for a bigger tank now. I never thought to look on Facebook to see if there was one. I found a few but people are asking way to much for some of the used tanks when it is just the tank and nothing else with it. The ones I did find are reasonable prices. So hopefully someone gets back to me.

DL


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Okay I got a 55 gallon tank! So we are safe and no wood will be used. Just need to make a lid for it now because it didn’t have one. They used it for a fish tank and the people before them used it for a turtle.

Now to find me a bigger heater to heat it with. I have a small one on my 10 gallon. How hard are they to get off of glass?

DL


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Sent you a msg back about uth's, thermostats, and tank lids.

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dolphinlover wrote: ↑

Sun Jun 06, 2021 11:39 am

Hey Brian_T,

No way possible to have a front opening enclosure with 6” of sand in the tank.

There are front opening pauldariums with 10 inches of depth to the door opening. Regular terrariums can also be modded using glass or plexiglass to hold in deeper substrate - or used upsidedown on top of a matching aquarium. Problem is that front opening tanks can be hard to come by used and cost a lot new.

Since your post i have seen a couple tanks with these openings. I wouldnt recommended it either. I did get a 55 gallon tank today from facebook marketplace. I got a good deal on it too..so now im waiting for my new heater to come in and tuesday I have to order a new lid because the tank didnt come with one. the people that had it used it for their fish. Crabby sent me a link where i can order one..So that is my plan and once i get that i can start setting my new tank up.

DL

Question, I cannot afford a glass lid and I don't have Saran Wrap. Can I use cardboard for the lid? I would replace it a lot... right now I am using a folded thin blanket for the lid. Photos of my crabitat will be posted soon...

HermitCrabCHICA wrote:Question, I cannot afford a glass lid and I don't have Saran Wrap. Can I use cardboard for the lid? I would replace it a lot... right now I am using a folded thin blanket for the lid. Photos of my crabitat will be posted soon...

What size tank do you have? Depending on the size I would recommend getting a lid. Walmart sells lids that are metal and mesh on top of you have a 10 gallon tank. That’s what I’m using right now until I get my 55 gallon tank finished. I wrapped the top with Saran Wrap and have a towel over top oh that. You would be amazed how strong hermies can be. They can push stuff around! Is the tank you have your hermies in glass?

Dolphinlover


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My tank is glass my tank size is ten gallon. With this covid I can't really pick stuff out from Walmart so I have to use whatever I have. Plus I have already spent a lot of money on my hermit crabs and I already went over my bday money limit and I am keeping my hermit crabs in a cold not humid tank right now I really need my parents to approve me getting this stuff that my hermit crabs desperately need! I am paying this stuff with my allowance. I am responsible so is cardboard okay?...