HCA: Hermit Crab Association

for my 20 gallon L i'm using 6" x 23" ultra therm ordered from bean farm.
I have insultated it with tin foil and cardboard. I haven't used it yet as its summer
and its hot, and the temps are always 80 - 85 now. My question is when it gets cold
how long does it take once the heater is on to build up temps and how will i know
its working do i get a separate gauge to put over the back of the tank to see what
the actual temp is on the back to k now its working??? our landlord controls the
heat and usually he only turns it on during the mornings and it can get pretty
cold in here in the winter i'd say 60 degrees. Would this pad be enough to bring it up
20 degrees ??? if not should i look into getting a heat lamp instead??? can a heat
lap be used with a versa top (glass top)??

Hello
When I get the Uth heater and plug it in it starts beating immediately .
You can put your hand on it quick and feel it
Heat lamps get real hot they don't recommend , unless u got a huge tank
I got a Uth and a lamp it works good , they sell different watts 40-60 watt
60 is hot though , guess it's trial and error on how good it works in the cold
Maybe Uth on the back and a small one on the bottom like a 10gal size
Good luck

I'm using a 20 gallon now trying to figure out of the size i have will put out enough heat for the winter. if not id like to take care of it now before it gets too cold. I'd need it to bring it up above 60 degrees at least so prob 20 degrees hotter. I have it insulated as well

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What I'm asking though is how long does it take to bring the tank up many degrees hour ? Half our ?

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The instructions say that it takes 6 hours to get to temp.
I just put on a small UTH (rated for 10-20 gallons) on the back of my 10g and it hasn't raised my temps much at all.

I have a 6 x 23 on my 20 gallon l and its insulated

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From what I've heard, after a few hours it should work well. And no, I would not recommend just using a heat lamp, mine dried my tank out A LOT.

Never, ever, ever put a UTH under a crab tank.

They were not designed to heat through several inches of moist sand.

Heat can build up in the substrate and cook crabs.
The substrate should always be cooler than the air in the tank.

Like when you go the beach or dig outside in your yard, after getting through the warm initial layer, the earth is cooler.

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