Heat help

[channi]

I am new to this and thought I had it all set up well before I brought the crabs home. I have a 10 gallon tank with a hood and a light (fish tank with hood and average energy saving bulb), 6 inches of substrait, and a medium sized 8 watt heat wave terrarium heater mounted on the back left of the tank. The heat and humidity was stable before I brought them home. It's summer and the tank has been in the 75-85 zone. Last night a cold front moved in and the house is at 68f this morning. The gauge in the tank is reading 68f as is the one on the outside bottom of the tank. Clearly it is going to be too cold for them. The tank is in one of the warmest rooms of the house. (the humidity is good). Our winters are very cold and the house is typically down to 62 at night and during the day about 65-70. I'm at a loss. I saw different bulbs that could go in the hood that say heat and light source. Would that be a solution? I just don't know what to do.

[Kleinerhejhog]

Sounds like you might need an undertank heater that will cover all of the back of your tank that's above the substrate, that can be insulated. I don't think a heat bulb can be installed in a regular fish tank hood, it would likely melt the hood.

To boost your temp right now, I would try wrapping some aluminum foil around the sides of your tank, shiny side in, and placing a couple of plastic bottles filled with the hottest water you can get from your tap (closed tightly, of course) into the tank to act as radiant heaters. You might even wrap a towel over the aluminum foil.

That's what I would try, some of the actual experts around here may have more/better ideas. In the meantime, sending warm vibes your way.

[Crabinski]

Yes, a UTH (under-tank heater) is what you'll need. I live in Arizona (hot, hotter and OMG -- we're already at 113 & it isn't even summer yet) and still use a UTH on the crabitat to prevent any major heat fluctuations.

Contrary to its name, a UTH does not go under the tank but it attached to the back of the tank, above the substrate. You'll want to get the largest size that can safely fit on the back of the tank (UTHs cannot be bent to wrap around the corner of the tank). The best brand to buy is Ultratherm and the best place to buy it is from the online seller Reptile Basics: price, shipping charges and speedy shipping are the best around. They're listed on the HCA Shopping page.

[channi]

Thank you for your replies. I have an under the tank heater on it now. That is the 8 watt terrarium substrate heater I mentioned in the post. It is on the back left side of the tank. Since that is not heating the tank enough I didn't know what else to add. I saw on this site some examples of heat lamps that were mounted just off the tank, not touching it. http://hermitcrabassociation.com/phpBB/ ... 25&t=92543 Perhaps that? I hesitate to cover the entire back with a heaters as all the information I have read said to cover 1/2 the back so as to leave them a cool zone. Do I need a different under the tank heater? Perhaps it's just not strong enough but I don't have the money to just keep buying the wrong thing. The ultratherm heater suggested is 7 watts. The one I have now is 8 watts. Wouldn't that be weaker? Or does wattage not make a difference? I was really hoping to add something to the UTH I have now rather than replace it entirely.

[rf9661]

Thank you for your replies. I have an under the tank heater on it now. That is the 8 watt terrarium substrate heater I mentioned in the post. It is on the back left side of the tank. Since that is not heating the tank enough I didn't know what else to add. I saw on this site some examples of heat lamps that were mounted just off the tank, not touching it. http://hermitcrabassociation.com/phpBB/ ... 25&t=92543 Perhaps that? I hesitate to cover the entire back with a heaters as all the information I have read said to cover 1/2 the back so as to leave them a cool zone. Do I need a different under the tank heater? Perhaps it's just not strong enough but I don't have the money to just keep buying the wrong thing. The ultratherm heater suggested is 7 watts. The one I have now is 8 watts. Wouldn't that be weaker? Or does wattage not make a difference? I was really hoping to add something to the UTH I have now rather than replace it entirely.

Hello!

How are you? I would recommend going with the idea to use aluminum foil around the tank although I'm worried that the light being reflected is going to be way to bright and maybe blind them. So I would pour boiling water into some plastic bottles and place one in the tank. Although as long as it doesn't pass 68 F, it should be alright.

Happy Crabbing,
Richard

[channi]

Thank you for replying. The tank is now at 74 having warmed up with the day and I have put a space heater in the room to hopefully prevent it from dropping so low overnight. What I was really asking for was a long term solution, an additional heat source for the tank. If it goes down to 68 in the spring it would surely go much lower in the winter. I have the under the tank heater, as I have said, but it obviously isn't enough. The water would be a nice idea but it would be stone cold by morning so I would like to do something to avoid this problem in the future.
I will go to the pet store tomorrow, although ours is not very good so I'm not overly hopeful about anyone there knowing what will help. Still worth a try!

[channi]

Sorry I neglected to do this before. I didn't see it.

1. What kind of substrate is used in your tank and how deep is it? Mix of play sand and eco earth

2. Do you have gauges in the tank to measure temperature and humidity? If so, where are they located and what temperature and humidity do they usually read? I have one gauge in the tank on the opposite side from the UTH. It currently reads 75 f and almost 90 for humidity but I just misted and replaced the water, it will drop a little in a bit. It is usually aroun 82-85. Also a temp gauge on the bottom outside of the tank.

3. Is a heat source used in the tank? If so, what?
8 watt UTH, which I just put foil over due to the advice here, thank you. Last night also a room space heater which kept the area 5 degrees warmer than the rest of the house.

4. What types of water are available (fresh or salt) and how is the water treated (what brands of dechlorinator or salt mix and what ratio is used to mix it)? salt and fresh water bowls. I've thrown away the box but it's 2 drops of the demineralizer and 1 tsp of the salt per cup. No chlorine in our water.

5. What kinds of food do you feed and how often is it replaced? I have two types of hermit crab food, and in addition they have had boiled egg and shell, natural peanut butter, asparagus, carrot, kiwi, pineapple, unsulferated molasses, flax seed, cabbage, shrimp, beef, peas, natural coconut, banana, oats and brown rice. I think that's it so far. Obviously not all that every day.

6. How long have you had the crab and what species is it, if known? Purple pinches and 1 week.

7. Has your crab molted, and how long ago did it happen? One might be molting now, I just don't know. It hid as soon as I put it in the tank and I hadn't seen it again. The other 2 have not.

8. What type of housing are the crabs kept in, what size is it and what kind of lid is on the housing? 10 gallon glass tank with an aquarium hood. Tin foil over the hole in the lid.

9. How many crabs are in the tank and about how large are they? Very small and 3 of them. I only see one regularly. The other will only come out at night after all lights are out and if I turn the light on to look he buries himself again (but he has changed shells). The other, as I said, is buried and I have no evidence he comes out.

10. How many extra shells are usually kept in the tank, if any? there are about 10 extra shells in there, I have more to switch them up .

11. Have there been any fumes or chemicals near the crabitat recently? Not that I know of.

12. How often do you clean the tank and how? I scooped the poop out once, and have just changed the moss in the moss pits today. Other than that it's only been a week so it's just cleaning the water bowls and sponges and food bowls daily.

13. Are sponges used in the water dish? If so, how are they cleaned? With very hot water. I was going to look into today what else to do to clean them.

14. Has anything new been added to your crabitat recently? Everything is new to them really. It's just been 1 week and one day.

15. Is there any other information you would like to share that might be helpful (anything that is regularly part of your crab care, playtime, bathing, etc.)? I have been leaving them alone for the most part as I know they are very stressed. The one that stays out has become very active at times and seems to love all the climbing things in the tank.

16. Please describe the emergency situation in detail. The heat problem is detailed at the top.

[meg_and_the_zoo]

I had a similar issue with the (very small) UTH I first bought not being sufficient to heat the tank. I'll be upgrading soon and didn't want to buy a new, full, UTH for the smaller tank so I just bought another smallish UTH and added that to the back of the tank with some foil. Seems to be doing the trick


Zoo mom of 3 cats, a dog, a fish and 3 crabs

[klowns]

Figured i'd throw in my recent interaction with adding a UTH to the back of my tank.

I was ranging anywhere from 76-85, now with the 47x11 on the back, it ranges from 83-88 on the substrate and up to -95 on the 2nd level under the lights.

All in all it seems to be working great, the extra heat has made it a little more stinky when i put certain foods in there, but they appear to be more active now.

[meg_and_the_zoo]

My AC is on the fritz and while I wait for my landlord to fix it my crabs are loving life


Zoo mom of 3 cats, a dog, a fish and 3 crabs

[wodesorel]

Those little UTHs won't do much. I use an 11x11 inch Flukers on my 15 (formerly 10) gallon and it heats it perfectly, even in the middle of winter when that room reaches below 65 degrees. In summer I unplug it since we don't use a/c, but it can be used with a dimmer instead to cool it down a bit. I think you just need a bigger better quality pad. They are not all made equal, and they are built to provide a single spot of heat, so we crabbers are using then off-label which makes it more difficult.