HCA: Hermit Crab Association

I recently added a hammock/climbing net made of twine. I angled it from the bottom of the tank for crabs to be abke to climb and enjoy. Within a few days it had white mold and brown mold growing on it. Is there a way to prevent this? Will ot hurt anything? I've heard salt water soakes will prevent this but im not sure what type of saltwater to use? Thoughts? Also if I wanted to use it as a second level where would be a good place to find cholla wood longer than 6" like you find online?

Mold doesn't hurt the crabs, but if you have a problem with mold then it's not good. You would soak it in dechlorinated saltwater.

You can find long pieces of cholla on eBay Just make sure no chemicals are used to clean it

Is it ok to use wood from around my house? I'm worried about getting bugs from ky in the tank.

Cottman26 wrote: ↑

Tue Sep 03, 2019 9:03 am

Is it ok to use wood from around my house? I'm worried about getting bugs from ky in the tank.

Wood has to be on the safe list. It also needs to be free from pesticides, fertilizers and free of chemicals. To get rid of bugs, you can cook it in the oven with the door cracked - 250 degrees for approx 10 min.

Ok, I rinsed the mold off of the climber with hot water then soaked it in the saltwater mixture, then I let it sit in the sun for a day. I re-installed it in the tank with a plactic climbing stick they will have to climb in order to get to it. Within a few hrs outlr most active crab (Turbo) was at the very top of the new and improved climber.

Is the climbing just for climbing sake? Or is it an exploritive thing? I guess what I'm asking is do they just go up and down for fun or are they exploring looking for food Etc?

I don't know which one you have but I got this one Penn Plax Reptology Lizard Lounger, Small By: Penn Plax from Petco (you can buy online if you don't have local) might find elsewhere but they're on sale right now there. And haven't had any issues with mold. Maybe because it's seagrass? I spray it with dechlorinated water when it seems really dry. I have it at an angle and they love it and climb on it all the time. In fact couldn't find one, one day and I thought maybe it was buried.. nope it was climbing on the underside of it.