Substrate suddenly dry

[WinkyCrab]

I recently changed out the sub in my tank to a 3 to 2 mixture of ecoearth to play sand, and for about a week it was a good sandcastle consistency and perfectly damp. Recently however,it still has the same sandcastle consistency, but the humidity is really low and it's dry. Does anybody know why? I'm in the process of figuring out how to safely remove my UTH from under the tank to the back. Can a UTH be placed over a plastic/paper scenery piece, or should I cut a hole in it? Also, we were making a homemade humidifier, but he silicone we had used to stick the tubing to the plastic container simply peeled off in 2 days. Is there any way to help or fix the tank humidity and or fix the humidifier? I do have a moss pit, but it's in a hanging coconut bird toy I got, and has a large opening on the side with a ladder. I know the UTH could very well be the problem, but for the longest time before I completely changed my sub the under tank UTH didn't affect the sub that bad.

[theornerycheese]

The UTH being on the bottom of the tank would be the problem, or contributing to it. I've read people on here have put their UTHs on their scenery paper things so it seems safe. Just keep an eye on it. Also, if you were using pure coconut fiber before, you will notice a drop in humidity with the switch to a mix of coconut fiber and sand. But yeah, definitely move the UTH so it's about an inch or two above the substrate line. Also if that doesn't work, try wrapping the top of the tank with plastic wrap or shower curtain.

As for the humidifier, how long did you let the silicone sit for? You can also try using duct tape with it if it's on the outside.

[WinkyCrab]

Thank you! We let the silicone on the humidifier dry for more than a couple days, and it was waterproof. Right now I have have some crabs molting in the UTH area, so i'm not going to try and move it now. I do have a side of the tank that is always very moist and humid, and my thermometer and hydrometer are on the UTH side, so I think that the readings might be a little off. I'm going to re calibrate it and move it more to the center of the tat soon.

[marandashermies]

Thank you! We let the silicone on the humidifier dry for more than a couple days, and it was waterproof. Right now I have have some crabs molting in the UTH area, so i'm not going to try and move it now. I do have a side of the tank that is always very moist and humid, and my thermometer and hydrometer are on the UTH side, so I think that the readings might be a little off. I'm going to re calibrate it and move it more to the center of the tat soon.

Keep a good eye on your molting crabs with the UTH being under the tank. The UTH will heat the sand, and the crab, which is no good! It will also dry out the sand to where it is no longer sand castle consistency, and tunnels the crabs are molting in could collapse. Hopefully you don't have any issues, but I would move the UTH as soon as you possibly can!

[Angizme]

If you have ths UTH still heating you can easily remove it and repost it somewhere else, thats how I always move mine to new tanks. They stay sticky

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[Angizme]

Also, the sand EE ratio does a better job when it is 5 parts sand to 1 part EE

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