New to crabs

[Jaydick484]

Hi all!
I am new to crabs, and have just brought home 2 little ones on Friday. I got the tank set first to my best ability, but now I'm having struggles over the whole heat and humidity thing. It's agonizing, actually. I had no sleep last night, constantly checking and trying to spray....cover with a blanket....just basically panic. The 2 crabs are in already, and it was a gorgeous warm, humid day here. So that worked well. Then, we had a cold storm come through and the small one started digging. She hasn't come back. From what I have read, she must be molting. The problem is, I was hoping to remove the substrate and just do the brown coco stuff. I have the "cement" like sand. It is so cold. Even with brown on top. So cold. I have two pads on the back, and a heat lamp that I'm afraid to use.... because it's so bright. The heat is 70F but it's just teetering colder. Humidity I got under control with the plastic wrap. So far, this is very stressful. I just hope the crabbies are alright. My main one, that's still above the substrate, does come out and eat. He stands on top of where his friend buried herself. (We like to pretend they are a couple) He just stares out the glass on top of her. It looks sad. But he does come look at me, slowly, and wiggle his long tentacle like things. So I do it back with my fingers hahaha. I hope to get a good routine down to manage heat and humidity properly, without constantly checking. Whenever the smaller one comes back up, I want to take all that and out from that side and replace it. First thing. And level it all. I made hills to make it fun. Probably not a great idea. Woops! I may also get another companion while she's under there, because they pretty much played leap frog the whole first day and sat on each other's heads. It looked like he was happier. That's my crab life story! Glad this community exists. Bless you!

[curlysister]

Welcome to crabbing and to the HCA!
Take a breath, you're doing fine so far.
A few questions so we can help you.
What brand of heat mats do you have? Some can be insulated over top, but some cannot.
What type of thermometer/ hygrometer are you using - analog or digital? What is your humidity reading?
When you say 'cement' like sand, what was the brand that you used?

[Jaydick484]

Thanks!
I have a zoo med small and an exo terra 8x8.
The sand is imaginarium, I believe.
Readers are analog, zoomed combo.
Humidity is 75% on the plastic wrap side and 70% on the unwrapped side.
It seems under control now. I got some moss and sprayed it. It spiked the humidity and lasted. I didn't have to use spray at all today or through the night. Might just be weather, but the moss and the heat lamp really seem to work. I only put the heat lamp on if it drops, but it doesn't go below 70F. Then I spray the moss, because the lamp kills humidity. It's a system, but I'm not panicking anymore.
We also got a friend for our crab, since the other is still down below. We added more coco fiber substrate and there is plenty of room. They are both hiding in the cave together. The new one explored for a long time. Taking plenty of tumbles and seemed to have fun.

[Jaydick484]

I had the lid off for a while and it dropped, but it was a good 90% all day. The crab hideout is on the hotter, more humid side.

[curlysister]

Glad you are feeling better about things!
The Zoo Med heat pad cannot be insulated over top. If the Exo Terra is permanently stuck on, it can't either. But you could put insulation around the sides where the heat pads are not present, and also on the portion of the lid that is covered. If you put a solid lid on the top that is insulated (or I have a solid lid and fold up a couple of wool blankets to put on top), and insulate the parts of the back and sides that don't have a UTH attached, you might get the temp into a good range without the heat lamp. You could also get another more powerful heat mat (check out Reptile Basics or Ultra Therm) and add it to a side or back, and insulate over top of it.
I am pretty sure that sand is safe, just probably more expensive than play sand. Remember that the sand and water will always feel colder than the air temp in the tank, but that's okay.
Digital hygrometer/ thermometers tend to be more accurate than the analog ones.
How big is your tank?

[Jaydick484]

thank you. I have a 10 gallon right now. I wanted to go get a 20, but one crab is down below. Now I have to wait.
I was just about to to grab a third heating pad today to get it above 70F. I don't like the lamp much. I would never just leave it on and walk away. It seems more practical to get more pads. Would you recommend another 8 watt? It doesn't seem to put out much heat, but the crabs like to sit by it.

[Jaydick484]

I will invest in a new reader today while I'm out. I'll try a digital for the other side of the tank.

[curlysister]

If you can get one of the more powerful heat mats, that would be ideal - they really do put out more heat, and insulating over top also makes a difference. They are of course more expensive, but because you attach them with tape, they can be moved to another tank if you upgrade (the sticky ones cannot be peeled off and moved). Go by size not by watts. Ideally, it will fit all across the back of your tank from side to side, and cover most of the space above the substrate line.

[Jaydick484]

Oh thank you. I didn't realize about the size vs watts. Good to know!