HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Hello Everyone!

I am newly responsible for 5 purple pinchers (they are at my workplace and their previous person is now remote) I have been doing a lot of research on how to best care for them, but I have no background in caring for these animals.

They currently live in a 34 gallon tank where the humidity sits around 80%, and the temperature ranges from 78 to 82 farenheit. Their food currently consists of "Naturally Crabby" products and the occasional fruit or vegetable. On the left side of their tank the sand is about 4 inches deep and the left side is about 6 inches deep. They only have 1 area to climb in, but they have many hiding spaces and two large areas for fresh and salt water.

I was wondering if their diet is sufficient, if I need to make more areas for climbing, and if I should increase the sand depth?

Any and all advice is extremely appreciated!!

Welcome to crabbing and to the site!
What or who is 'naturally crabby'? We have a 'nutrition' care sheet that goes into detail about crab nutrition needs. In general, you can feed all fresh foods, all dried foods, or a combo of the two. They need animal protein and calcium daily. Variety is key - different fruits, veggies, grains, nuts, seeds, eggs and shells, meats, seafood, greens, leaves, flowers, etc.
Substrate should be at least 2 -3 times as deep as your largest crab. It should be moistened with dechlorinated water so that it holds it's shape (ie- sand castle consistency) but not so wet that water pools in the bottom.
What do you have for climbing now? They do like to climb, but you don't have to use anything fancy or expensive.

very late to this ahaha! i own 2 pp's myself, they're very friendly! they love having time outside the cage. they become very active, at least mine, if you can watch'em every now and then! mine mostly eat some generic commercial food and go nuts for it. i add dried river shrimp and dried mealworm on top. tthey love to climb. i normally do 1 crab = 10 gallon. (could be wrong with that!). mine use Eco Earth and playsand. they actually really love to be in the water. atleast mine do! they should have salt water every or most days. they love hiding places to, so make sure you have plenty of those! thats all ive got good luck !! - snuggled/turtle

Please do not feed them commercial pellets. Feed them organic stuff and meal mixes from etsy instead! Also hermit crabs are hands off pets, like a fish. They are active because they are scared and can't breathe outside their enclosure. They are trying to find a warm and humid hiding spot and are suffering.

Crabs don't necessarily need only organic foods - there are some foods that the organic will have less preservatives, but some it really doesn't make a big difference.
There is really no guarantee that any Etsy seller is any better than another, or that they have an understanding of crab nutrition. The costs of dried mixes is going to be much more than buying things separately, or of feeding things from the kitchen and pet stores.
HCA recognizes that there are multiple ways to successfully care for crabs. Some people handle their crabs, and some do not. If a person is going to handle them, we would recommend waiting until after at least their first molt so that they are past the PPS period.
Be sure to look at our care sheets, about nutrition, commercial foods, how many crabs in what size tank, etc.

Thank you all so much for the help! Naturally Crabby is an Etsy seller for organic crab food (mix of dried foods, eggshells, mealworms, etc), but I have recently introduced some fresh food (kiwi, apples, etc.) to their diet as well. They have a ramp, elkhorn coral, and some hanging nets to climb right now, and it looks like they are enjoying them! I added some coconut fiber (the eco blocks) to the substrate to help increase humidity and the tank seems to sit around 82% (is that too high?)

Thanks again, everyone!

Sounds like you're doing great. There isn't a 'too high' for humidity, so anything up to 99% is totally fine. Thing might mold faster with super high humidity, but 82 isn't too high.