HCA: Hermit Crab Association

I've been hanging onto a 70 gallon tank that's would LOVE to customize for my hermies. I've been reading a lot through the forums on this site and in some other animal forums so I think I have a good idea of what kinds of elements I want to incorporate and how to go about doing it. BUT I'm still uncertain about how to go about heating such a large tank!

To give you an idea of what I have in mind, I will be making a custom rock background out of foam carved to have caves, ledges, and climbing elements. I'm then going to cover it in several layers of cement mix to seal the foam away from prying claws. But I'm worried that having a UTH on the back of the tank won't be able to penetrate through all that material! Is there a way to heat the tank with a UTH while still having this type of background? And if I absolutely need to leave a portion of the back uncovered to accommodate for the UTH, how can I do so without seeing the UTH from the front of the tank? How do you hide these things?

I want to make a tropical, natural environment for my little hermies that looks untouched by humans, so any tricks/tips for hiding the human elements are appreciated!

I do not think you could put the UTH BEHIND a foam wall and expect it to warm the tank much, if at all (foam is an insulator), so you would have to put UTH's on the sides, and for best performance, it's best not to cover the area where they are, so if you really don't want them to show at all--

You might try not using UTH's at all. Depending where you live and the typical temperature and humidity inside your house, and what you do for water sources, you may be able to do just fine with lamps. My 90g is entirely heated by lamps, most of the year. I do have two relatively small UTH's on one side of the back of the tank, which I will use in the winter if we get extended cold temperatures, but some years I have not needed them. I do wrap the tank sides and back, fall to spring, with Mylar "bubble wrap" type insulation, and when it gets really cold, I wrap the front, too. No, it definitely doesn't look "natural," but it does keep the heat in, which is more important to the crabs. . .

The good news is, with large tanks and deep substrate, once you have the substrate warmed to proper temperature, it definitely becomes your ally in keeping the tank warm. So you actually need less heat actively being ADDED all the time, once you have all that thermal mass warmed up--as long as you keep it from escaping the tank. Thus, my mylar "bubble wrap" insulation. Your foam rock wall should be a help to you in that regard, too. You might consider doing not just the back but the sides, too? And then using lamps for heat.

I'll be interested what others think, especially anybody else that has done that kind of foam background. I do try to give the crabs the most natural interior environment I can, but I've never been that ambitious! (Also, I'd be a bit worried about the crabs picking bits of the foam off and possibly eating it. . . )

Maybe use plastic vines in the place where the UTH is? That way the heat should travel through and since a UTH is normally black, it should hide well.

I am doing a foam back but only on the side of the tank so I can use UTH on the back

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Check out neherp website about doing custom background, I am using there info to do mine.

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http://www.neherpetoculture.com/

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