Should I use Thrive-brand water conditioners?

[SarahKay1216]

Hi. I was just given some crabs (purple pinchers) that were bought by another family at a beach shop then re-homed to us. Since being handed these two crabs in their small plastic box, I've been learning as much as I can about appropriate crab care. Given these were given to us before we knew anything, I quickly picked up just a few supplies at our local big box on day 1 (yesterday). I've since watched many videos and read a lot; including that most big box products for hermit crabs may not be good for them. As such, I'm hoping someone can help me answer a few questions quickly.

1) I got two small bottles of water conditioner (one for freshwater and to make salt water) that are the "Thrive" brand. I now see people mostly recommend Prime and Instant Ocean brands. Are the Thrive conditioners bad? Can I use them up and then switch over, or do I need to throw these out?

2) I got a bag of cypress shred substrate (big hermit crab on the bag) and added a bit of it to their plastic box. The only came with a small handful of neon fish rocks in the bottom, which seemed really sad for them. Is this bad? I am working to set up our terrarium and now see I should use play sand and eco/coconut material when I get that set up. However, I got the crabs before I knew anything about them (quite suddenly) so it will take me a short time to get this tank started with sand, baths, etc. Do I need to worry today about the mulchy base?

3) Where do you get responsible, natural shells? It seems a lot are for sale that would not be good and may be not sized clearly. There may be a thread on this (I'll search), but since I'm posting; this is an area I'm having trouble figuring out and if someone has insights, I'd appreciate it.

[crabbycasey]

Hi. I was just given some crabs (purple pinchers) that were bought by another family at a beach shop then re-homed to us. Since being handed these two crabs in their small plastic box, I've been learning as much as I can about appropriate crab care. Given these were given to us before we knew anything, I quickly picked up just a few supplies at our local big box on day 1 (yesterday). I've since watched many videos and read a lot; including that most big box products for hermit crabs may not be good for them. As such, I'm hoping someone can help me answer a few questions quickly.

1) I got two small bottles of water conditioner (one for freshwater and to make salt water) that are the "Thrive" brand. I now see people mostly recommend Prime and Instant Ocean brands. Are the Thrive conditioners bad? Can I use them up and then switch over, or do I need to throw these out?

2) I got a bag of cypress shred substrate (big hermit crab on the bag) and added a bit of it to their plastic box. The only came with a small handful of neon fish rocks in the bottom, which seemed really sad for them. Is this bad? I am working to set up our terrarium and now see I should use play sand and eco/coconut material when I get that set up. However, I got the crabs before I knew anything about them (quite suddenly) so it will take me a short time to get this tank started with sand, baths, etc. Do I need to worry today about the mulchy base?

3) Where do you get responsible, natural shells? It seems a lot are for sale that would not be good and may be not sized clearly. There may be a thread on this (I'll search), but since I'm posting; this is an area I'm having trouble figuring out and if someone has insights, I'd appreciate it.

Hi and welcome!

1) I’m not familiar with the Thrive conditioners, but I had originally purchased the pre-made solutions by Thrive and the HCA informed me (thankfully) that it wasn’t good for them...even though it was specifically marketed for them. Apparently, of lot of stuff made for hermits, isn’t good for them.

2) I’ll let one of the experts chime in on the cypress sub you got. I can say that I personally have the playsand/eco earth coco fiber at a 5:1 ratio with majority playsand. Big thing is to have the sub moistened with your conditioned water to get to a sandcastle-like consistency...this is so that their tunnels hold when they bury.

3) Purple Pinchers seem to be fond of the “turbo” shell...it has a round opening. While you can get natural shell variety packs on Amazon, Naples and Richards are another 2 good ones!

I’d like to say good for you for putting in the effort to provide what they need! Check out the Care Sheets here...they’re super informative!


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[aussieJJDude]

1. The thrive freshwater conditioner could be used, however the salt one I would avoid and best to purchase reef grade salt separately. If its unopened and you still have the receipt, return at least the saltwater conditioner. Then use the freshwater for both and add in marine/reef salt to make saltwater.

Many like to use instant ocean (i believe its cheap/easy to source, but other salts can be used like red sea and fluval; as long as its made for reef fish you're kinda good to go)

2. Cypress mulch i would return, if its freshly sourced from thetree it will contain a lot of aromatics which could serve as an irritation not to mention other types of compounds - a lot of evergreens contain a lot of 'anti-insect' compounds, which could in theory hurt our crabs due to their close relation.

3. Id suggest starting out on the resource page, as there's loads of places to buy quality, cheap shells online. viewtopic.php?f=122&t=119315

[SarahKay1216]

This is super helpful, as is your post about not needing to do PPS method to get them started. That means when I get my sand, I can just load the terrarium up! Easier!

[wodesorel]

The thrive freshwater has a lot of extras added to it, and it does not treat ammonia. I'm all for using what you have but this stuff just doesn't sound great.

I've used Cypress bedding for several different insects before and it shouldn't cause problems because of that, but it is so dang chunky that it would be very dangerous if they were to try and molt in it. A dusting would be okay, but not enough that they could get themselves covered. It also has a tendency to completely mold if kept moist! I stopped using it because it kept ending up green.