My new 20 gallon long tank...heat/humidity?

[crablab]

Hello I was wondering if anyone on here could point me in the right direction in terms of heating and or lighting for my new 20 gallon LONG crabitat. I just upgraded from a 10 gallon which I had a UTH on the side and plexi glass with holes on the top with no light source, it seemed to maintain the right heat and humidity with that but this new tank is posing some problems.What should I use for a cover screen or plexi?Should I have an infrared bulb(I'm currently trying this but it seems to be drying things up), reg bulb or no bulb?Should I have an UTH heater with this one as well?As you can see I am having major heating & humidity issues any and all help would be appreciated

[Laurie LeAnn]

yep a uth is always a good thing, you can try a lower watt bulb? trying think what mine was that was so long ago..maybe a 18 or 15?? I had a moon glow though and used it all the time. Mine had a normal lid and light to, found it at a yard sale. They really need to have some type of lighting, helps with day night cycle. You just have to play with it cause when you get into bigger tanks ya do run into that. I couldn't get my temp to stay up so I ended up with uth's on the back side of my 55 gal tank. I would try the plexi glass again or you can go to your local pet store and buy a reg fish tank topper for it, comes with the lid, hood and light or they can order you one if they don't have one. they usual run about 30$ and +. I have done this for my 55 gal tank.

[guitarsjb]

I use a screen for my cover, but I cover it with Glad Press n' Seal. Works great. I also have a 20 gal long. I don't use a bulb, but have 2 small UTH on the back.

[HermitCrabingrid]

I would get a moss pit, build a bubbler pool, get a Humidifyer etc for humidity. Also covering a screen lid with thick plastic retained a lot of moisture. I would have a UTH designed for a 30 gallon tank

[Laurie LeAnn]

measure the pro's and cons of a moss pit before getting one, cons: extra expense$$, only can use certain types, and at times they can harvest bugs, have to change it out periodically,pro's: crabs like to nest in it. You can use dried maple leaves crunched up a little in a corner caddy and this is something they really love and can eat on.when using a screen lid make sure it doesn't rust after time, some people try and make their own instead of buying a pet approved screen. the down side of saran wrap & press and seal is having to mess with it all the time when ya want to get to your crabs, getting it off and putting it back on, vs a reg lid and light where you just plop them on and your done. crabs really do need some source of light , the day light from your windows really isn't enough because it is to filtered and you really don't want your tank directly by a window either because of the sun hitting the tank and cooking your crabs or to much of a draft. just some things to think about

[guitarsjb]

Laurie,My screen is the one that goes with the tank. I cut out a spot of the Press n' Seal so the whole lid isn't covered..I cover the hole as necessary to keep the humidity in. I never have to mess with it, the whole lid comes off/on as needed..I should get some pics I guess...

[Superman&Roger]

I will preface this by saying, I am new to the whole hermit crab thing. But this is what worked for us. We just upgraded to a 20 gallon tank as well. The two UTHs from the 10 gallon tank didn't keep the 20 gallon tank warm enough. I have learned that the people from the pet store know nothing! The crabs were sluggish, not eating, and tended to bury themselves on top of the heaters, so I bought the biggest tank heater I could find, 11 x 17" and stuck it to the back of the tank. I also made a insulator out of styro packing panels from an appliance that we'd bought. A piece of styrofoam the size of the back of the tank would have been easier, but we live in a rural area, so I made do. I pieced the sections of styrofoam together and duct taped them to a piece of cardboard the size of the back of the tank. I then taped the insulator to the outside of the back of the tank over the heater to lessen the heat loss. It's crude, but it works, and since it's at the back, you don't see it. During the really cold nights this winter I covered 3/4 of the tank with a folded towel to keep the heat and humidity in. I always leave at least a 2" space open for air circulation. So we actually have two smaller UTH heaters and the 11 x 17 at the back.Humidity was a problem at first in the 20 gallon. We have the screen top. I put the lid with the light from our 10 gallon tank on top. It covers about 3/4, not perfectly, but good enough. There is about 8" of exposed screen which I partially covered with a book. Again, there is about 2" of open screen for air circulation. We put in a waterfall--which I take out and scrub down about every 10 days to 2 weeks, though I add fresh de-cholorinated water with Biotize to it daily. I keep a sponge in the basin of the waterfall which I swap out as often as I clean the waterfall. We also have a salt water pool which I top up daily/every other day. The section of the tank covered by the book, furthest away from the waterfall tended to dry out. Even with daily misting the sides of the tank, the substrate in that section would be dried out on the surface. But the daily misting, as well as covering part of the tank with the towel at night helped and now the humidity seems to have balanced itself out. I still mist daily, but the substrate isn't drying out anymore. Hope that helps.

[Theodora]

Well sounds like your all good! someone correct me if I am wrong.

[Crabber85]

@SupermanandRoger, you'll want to take out the sponge from the water fall because sponges tend to grow a type of bacteria that is harmful and potentially deadly to hermitcrabs in as little as twenty four to fourty eight hours after being placed in the water.That means you'll either need to have enough dry clean sponges on hand to coninutally swap them out on a 24hr basis or just remove the sponge and opt for something else to make the depth of the basin a little more shallow for your crabs like smooth river rocks or aquarium gravel.To clean a sponge you'll need to soak it in some dechlorinated salt water using the salt mix you have for your crabs for two to four hours then rinse the the sponge thuroughly in dechlorinated fresh water then allow it to air dry then once the sponge has completely dried place it in the microwave for about a minute and a half this hole process will ensure that you have killed any of the residule harmful bacteria on the sponge.If you put the sponge in the microwave when it's wet or even just a little damp it will quickly shrink to nothing.

[Superman&Roger]

DH and I were driving to the city when I saw your post! I laughed out loud. These crabs are so lucky I haven't killed them yet! Of course after everything they've been through, they could probably live through the apocalypse. To tell the truth, I am glad to be able to dispose of the sponges. They are a pain. The basin off the waterfall isn't too deep--sheesh, Superman's leg's are 2+" long! I just kept it in there for added humidity, but I think we're okay without it. Thanks for the info--the crabs will live to fight another day!

[Laurie LeAnn]

my 55 gal tank has 3 uth's on the back of it, all dif sizes so I can unplugged any of them if needed. I also took very thick cardboard and covered the back sides and one side of my tank to insulate it cause I live in a very drafty cold house in the winter and in the summer our house is covered by huge trees that keeps it really cool

[crablab]

Thanks for all the advice!This 20 gallon has been sort of a learning process. What worked in my 10 gallon isn't working in this one. I stuck one UTH heater on the side but I don't think it's strong enough because they seem to be underground(result of being cold I feel). I have the plexi glass cover 90% of the top of the tank with a 2 inch hole and then small holes throughout the plexi glass. I bought a fluorescent light that I placed on top of the plexi and is on a timer.My once active crabbies are now sad :/ Shopping list: Bigger water dishes, another UTH, more climbing things, better thermometer/hygrometer Thoughts?