New 40 breeder looking for ideas

[Moe2076]

I had to listen to my wife's wisdom and not buy the 75 gallon that definately will not fit on my desk or in my man cave without a stand and of course I don't have the room for. I settled for a 40 gallon breeder 36 in long 18 in wide and 16 in high (half off at petco). I got a small silent plastic hamster wheel and a bunch of that craft mesh in several different colors. I currently have a 20 gal long zilla and I'm thinking of trying to stack it on top of the 40 and busting the glass bottom out so they can have a higher place to climb. I'm not the most creative individual in the world and I'm looking for ideas and tips, tricks to make the project go smoothly. I've got a couble pieces of driftwood and more larger pieces I could add. I also have a roll of burlap and some burlap type string and 4 suction cups. 3 sets of my plastic dishes are double set so I can sink them and pull the upper to wash and keep the other in place in the substrate. The next good set of plastic dishes I find I will get to add a 4th, 2 for water and 2 for food. I'm thinking I want to do a second level in the lower tank and I'm not 100%committed to stacking the 20 gal on top. I'm also trying to keep in mind how to get as much set up as I can before I have to move the crabs into a tote while I gather everything from the current tank to transfer over. I need to order more UTH but I'm not sure how many I will need. I love the 2 zoomed 12in by 8 in on the 20 gal now, 1 on back and 1 on side and they keep the temp pretty stable but they have that sticky backing. I'm looking to order the kind I can remove vs the sticky backed ones. I might be brave enough to try and move the ones I have but I'm not sure how successful that will be and I dont want to be freaking out about heat. I have a little space heater I use but its only good in the short term. What do you all reccomend for heat? I imagine I'll order a couple and just get more if I need to. I have a humidifier I run at times and my computer keeps the room warm as well. My wife and I will cut some more clear stained glass for a lid and that holds the humidity really well. I'm gonna try and post some pics of what I have and the tank I bought.

[Moe2076]

Pics

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[Moe2076]

I did some research and just ordered an ultratherm 11x 35 from reptile basics. (a vendor I found by looking at the "Help us improve out resources" section here at HCA) They were by far the cheapest (better than amazon even and the vendor wasn't prime so I'd have had to pay shipping either way) We have a Lowe's trip planned tomorrow and I'm gonna get some 2 by 4's to reinforce my desk just to be safe (It's an L shaped computer desk I've had for a million years and it is surprisingly in good shape still) The aquarium is self is already heavy and I know it's going to be impossible to move when it is full of substrate. Oooo that reminds me I need to clear off more space where my 10 gallon Iso is at to make room for the 20 gal so I can put the 40gal on my desk. I saw a lonely small sized crab today and I almost brought it home, but I resisted the urge... The 2nd place we went had a lizard where they were keeping crabs last time so I didn't have to see something I probably shouldn't have just yet until I have more space.

[Moe2076]

Supports are built!

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[Moe2076]

UTH attatched!

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[Hermiesguardian]

Nice! I have a 40 breeder. But I'll be upgrading, hopefully soon, to a 75. Lol. We originally got the 75 for my husband for a saltwater fish tank. (Or fresh) but he said I could have it. My dream of course is to get a 200+. I have, I think, 5 crabs in there now and a couple are getting bigger, yay, and the 6 inches of substrate just doesn't seem deep enough. I finally got a really sturdy desk for it. Now I just have to find someone to haul in the bags of sand when I get them and start putting it together. My husband can't help, he's currently living out of state. Anyway... you asked for ideas. I know I had a 2nd level at one time in my 40. Doing a topper was always an idea but I was afraid to tackle that. I also have a 90 gallon with 7 crabs. I think. But would love to combine the colonies hence a 200+. And of course add a couple more crabbies. I guess I didn't really have much advice or tips. Sorry.

[Moe2076]

Hermiesguardian you helped me more than you know just now! You commented on GotButterflies builds and that was EXACTLY the post I was scouring for thank you! Do you have pictures of your builds? I would love to see them!

I'm trying to research and get ideas and trying not to get overwhelmed... I know once I start adding substrate there's no going back, or moving the tank without a lot of extra work. I'm eager to start mixing or do something else but I am struggling with what build order I should take. I plan on just putting in 8 to 10 inches of sub in so I don't have to worry about it for a while even tho I just have medium and small crabs.

I really think I want to try and find or order some egg crate. I have a bunch of craft mesh and I want to put a layer of it in the back of the tank, but I don't know how to anchor it so that it won't fall down. So far I've seen a few ppl anchor it to the egg crate with zip ties.

I am planning on crafting my own lid (Which I need to finish conceptualizing and go shopping for materials) and I want it to be able to accommodate stacking the other tank on top eventually, but for now I want to just get a good lid made do I can put the crabs in it once it is finished. I suppose I could and probably should venture to the basement to look at the selection of stained glass and find some pieces that I could use to cover with for now.

[Hermiesguardian]

Here's a pic of my 40. It has about 7" of substrate. In the back on the right side, can you see the driftwood and net above it? Funny story. I put one of those aquarium scenery backing on the back (outside). To make it look beachy, jungley. But I noticed one of the crabs, when he was on the driftwood, kept trying to climb on the foliage. Which really wasn't there. I guess their depth perception isn't that great. I felt so bad so I attached a net. They use it regularly. In my next set up I'm just going to use alot of egg crate. Lol

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[Moe2076]

I've struggled some and got stuck with a few problems along the way, but its finally finished!

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[Moe2076]

I decided against this backdrop of Tenax hardware net that I found at tractor supply. The thought of a crab getting stuck back there was too much.

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[Moe2076]

It took longer than I thought to get the 2nd level made and I wanted to do that before I added any sub.

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[Moe2076]

I got a little paranoid about heat and winter coming so I ordered 2 more UTH and put them on the sides before I started adding my substrate. I was thinking about doing a gradient level with the sub. I used a brick of compressed EE for a lot of this sub and I wouldn't do it again. I like the big bag of the dry, I think it mixes better, plus it's easier to store. I did manage to use the whole brick.

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[Moe2076]

I didn't end up adding the wheel yet. How come I have 2x as big of a tank and it still feels small and crowded??! I did add bigger water dishes. I really like how under the second level there is a lot of darkness. (Ok I HATE that it is so dark! I can't see good under there but my crabs LOVE it.) I've already had to put up some barriers to keep them from trying to go between PVC pipe and the glass.

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[Moe2076]

I'm definately doing the 20 gal as a topper. I have some pretty big pieces of driftwood I want to use.

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[Moe2076]

Who knew how useful that craft mesh and zip ties would be?

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