After surface molt care questions.

[IamSam]

My crab is currently surface molting and I am new to hermit crabs and have never experienced one of my crabs molting before. I know surface molting is far from ideal for crabs.
I did some research and found a pps method for new crabs that involved minimal substrate for a period of time. I now know this is not what the HCA reccomends, but it's where we are.
My question is that assuming my crab molts safely when do I take him out of isolation and what should I do for him before returning him with my other crab, if anything?
1. When should I return him? After he eats his exoskeleton? Is their something I should look for so I know he's ready?
2. Should I feed him anything special after his molt? I heard something about honey or am I mistaken?
3. Should I give him a bath before returning him? If so how? Saltwater? Fresh water? No bath? I know newly molted crabs are very vulnerable and am hoping to do right by him.

[hermitsinnc]

Following as I'm in the exact same situation w/ Maxwell. (well, almost. not following traditional PPS standards).

[curlysister]

You now know why HCA doesn't recommend this method - it is safer for them to molt underground, and a crab can't put it off forever. So by not having deep enough sub for a molt, you are now dealing with a surface molt, which as you said is not ideal. But also like you said, here we are.
You will want to wait until he has eaten his exo and is moving around normally. There is no harm in waiting a bit longer just to be sure. At first he will only need his exo in there, but then you may want to consider adding some water and other foods if you have room in your iso. Honey is a good high energy food, so you wouldn't be wrong in offering it. But it is more important to offer a variety of healthy foods, including calcium and protein.
Crabs who surface molt don't 'scrub off' the molting smell when they dig back up to the surface. So you may want to consider a quick dip in the fresh water for both crabs, when you let the molter out of iso.

[IamSam]

Thank you Curly. This is very helpful.

[hermitsinnc]

Thanks!