It has really started to get cold in my area and I just bought a UTH to keep the tank warm. There is one under the tank and a small one on the side. Even with the heaters, the tank is still a bit cool yet comfortable. The crabs favor the area with both heaters ans spend most of their time there.
One crab has disappeared and reappeared when he dug all the way to the corner of the tank. He has been under for long enough I think he may be molting. He is under all the substrate directly above a heater. Is there any cause for concern with him there?
Molting and UTH
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NLindsey921
- Posts: 855
- Joined: Thu Feb 18, 2016 3:22 pm
- Location: Houston, TX
Re: Molting and UTH
The uth needs to be on the back of the tank. Under the tank it doesn't heat the air very much but it heats the substrate to a dangerous level for molting crabs.
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Re: Molting and UTH
It's getting chilly where I live too but with my heater the tank stays at 82 during the day and 79 at night. If you can place the UTH on the back of your tank without disturbing your molter you should see a difference in temp fairly quickly
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Re: Molting and UTH
As others have mentioned, you'll want to mount the uth on the side of the tank to heat the ambient air of the tank. UTH were originally designed for reptiles and are meant to provide a "hot spot" for basking, which isn't what we want for our crabs. If you haven't had a chance already I highly suggest checking out our basic care guide as well. 
viewtopic.php?f=51&t=92457
viewtopic.php?f=51&t=92457