HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Is there anyone that can recommend a good UTH that can be found at petsmart? I'm going there tomorrow to get some more soil and was wondering if they carried any UTH that would be worth buying! I have one now by all living things called a heating mat haven't used it yet. I have a 10 gallon glass tank.

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People use many brands..zoo med comes to mind. You need one that will warm a 30 gallon tank.you take your tank size 10 gallons x 3 =30 so if you had a 20 gallon x 3 = 60. You would think oh my gosh I will cook my crabs..but you won't..place it on the side

In addition to their own brands, All Living Things and Grreat Choice, the only brands PetSmart carries are ZooMed/ReptiTherm and NationalGeographic. Of these four, your best bet is ZooMed/ReptiTherm. As @Laurie LeAnn noted, you can't go by the number of gallons you tank holds when choosing a UTH: you need to get the largest physical size that comes closest to covering the back of your tank without dipping too far below the top of the substrate. A 10g tank is 20" long so, assuming 6" of substrate, you'll want to cover approximately 6"x16 to 6"x20". Two 6x8 mats would work. Before you buy, read the package to see if the UTH is safe to insulate to raise efficiency (using cardboard, aluminum foil, styrofoam).

PetSmart doesn't carry Flukers brand but they are highly-rated. The best UTH is the Ultratherm, found only online. The variety of sizes is very good and the vendor ReptileBasics.com has excellent prices and shipping fees. An Ultratherm will probably end up costing you less and will be more effective than most brands found in a pet shop.

If I ended up buying one online is there anything I can do to keep the tank warm until it arrives? It is sitting at 73-74 degrees right now and a humidity of 78-80%.

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Oh and thanks for all the advice Laurie LeAnn and Crabinski and for being so patient with a new crab mom!

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There are a few things you can do to help your temp if you decide to order online. You mentioned already having a UTH but not currentyusing it? Placing that on the tank (above the substrate on the the back outside of tank) will definately help. Look at the box it is in, or look up the UTH you have online to see if it's safe to insulate because if you can that will help. You can also have a heating lamp. Just be cautious for a few things with one, if you have sand as substrate the lamp can dry it out. And also some lamp bulbs are stronger than others, on the box it most likely has a diagram showing the heat it puts off at what distances in inches. I would look at that and be sure it's placed not to close where it could burn a crab. And another option is to place it in a warmer room of the house or adjust the temp of the room the tank is in to be warmer.

Krusty2015 wrote:If I ended up buying one online is there anything I can do to keep the tank warm until it arrives? It is sitting at 73-74 degrees right now and a humidity of 78-80%.

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It's lower than the crabs will probably comfortable with - you'll see more activity at around 80 degrees - but it is within the safe zone. Try to keep the drafts off of it so it doesn't drop any in the meantime. This time of year is bad because temps change without warning!