HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Hey everyone I have a giant tank that is holding about a lot of sand/EE. I'm having trouble keeping it sand castle consistency. Anyone have tips or tricks they know to keep it like that? My humidity in the tank is always around 85% and temp is around 89 degrees Fahrenheit. Just having trouble keeping the substrate moist.

Have you checked that it is drying out right down? Having the top dry is just like in the wild. If it is drying out right through there are a couple of things to consider. 1) is your heat mat on the back/side above sub level? 2) do you have some Eco earth mixed with your sand? 5 parts sand 1part ee is advised for any crabs other than Aussies. We use 8:1 ratio


Still in denial I've managed to pull this off.

SstoneC21 wrote:Hey everyone I have a giant tank that is holding about a lot of sand/EE. I'm having trouble keeping it sand castle consistency. Anyone have tips or tricks they know to keep it like that? My humidity in the tank is always around 85% and temp is around 89 degrees Fahrenheit. Just having trouble keeping the substrate moist.

Off topic. The safe zone for PPs is up to 85 while your E will be up to 90. Your tank is much too warm for the PPs. I have the same problem lately.

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I keep the top of my tank at 90-95 for my PPs. So long as there are cooler areas (around 82 or so) they'll be okay.


Keep in mind that the air can be moist because of the moisture coming out of the substrate, replacing the moisture in the air of the tank that has been pulled out into the dryer house. If you have high humidity but drying sub, then adding in more moisture is the way to go so long as you're keeping an eye on the bottom for standing water, since water droplets will tend to travel to the very bottom of the tank and pool, growing bacteria in the process. In winter I have no choice but to add buckets of water or run a humidifier round the clock or my sub dries out too much. Just one of those pain in the rear things that comes with maintaining the tank. In the more humid months (basically whenever we aren't running the furnace) the substrate stays picture perfect. There's no easy guide on the best way to replace that lost moisture, since everyone's tank is different and dries at different rates. It takes watching, experimenting, and learning what works and what doesn't over time.

I mean in general, I should have specified. The back of mine by the heater is at 90 but the front is only 75.oops! Teach me to post in a hurry!!!

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