HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Just got this from store talks about male and female sides and not quite sure how to instal it it's from the crabs to climb on. And to help keep humidity up. Here's a picture of it and the instructions.

Well your not going to be able to use staples in your tank, they will rust. The female and male are just talking about the smooth part of the Velcro and the rough part of Velcro. You might be able to use command type hooks and just poke the mat through to the hooks on those. Use 4 - 2 on top, 2 on bottom to create tension

@laurie where did it say anything about using staples?The male part of the Velcro should be the part that sticks to the fuzzy "female" part. You could use the Velcro if you want but make sure the crabs can't get to it (so they don't get in the sticky stuff) and it may or may not stay up in the enclosure since its humid. Laurie's idea of using plastic suction cups should work also.

At the top of the top photo the directions say to staple the mat the the front corner. Odd directions!

They both liked it so much they climbed up and stuck themselves onto the lid even though the climbing stuff is an inch from the top. Is this going to be bad for them and can they get themselves down? Also how am I supposed to lift the lid to feed them when their on it?

my bad, apparently I overlooked the staple part.The crabs should be able to get down by themselves but keep an eye on them if they stay up for a really long time over a day. When lifting the lid do so carefully and slowly watching to see if they move. Mine will stay on and let me flip the lid over or sometimes I just slide the lid over enough to get the food and water. I responded to your other reply a little more specifically. You can also lift the lid just enough to put your hand on them but usually they hold on tight and won't let go when they're hanging upside down.

You can get suction cups with hooks and use zip ties

When I had a coconut wall, I tried using the velcro but no matter what I did it always ended up falling down. In the end, I just ended up propping it up against with pieces of wood. You might want to try that if you don't feel like getting hooks. By the way, the crabs like to pull the wall apart. That's why I don't have one anymore. The crabs tore it apart over the course of a year.

If it's pliable you can try over lapping it on the back and have your tank lids sit on them to hold them down..I don't know how thick they are though. Hermies are great climbers, remember they are wild creatures that we are bringing into our world and they still have their natural instincts if we provide it to them...what goes up.. must come down...Lol!! Try using a alcohol wipe to clean the spot where you are going to put your Velcro and use a good name brand not some dollar tree stuff. Command strips are the same, you want those to work in your tank follow directions and they do work. Key is the clean area w her you put it, no sand grit or oil residues. Then wait before you hang anything on it.