HCA: Hermit Crab Association

I am a new crabber so please forgive me but I don't know how to add new substrate. I was in a bit of a rush this weekend to improve the crabs' condition. The Eco Earth is way deeper and their diet has been buffed with Pink GrapeFruit, sweet potato, kale, dried mango and peanuts. However I did not have the chance to buy playsand to mix into my eco earth. So my tank has 100% eco earth instead of the suggested ratio. I am planning on buying some this week but don't know how to incorporate it in. I do not wish to completely freak my crabs out again by taking ALL the substrate out, is there another way? If not, I will definitely get started on that.

If they not buried, you can mix the substrate in the tank. Just may want to take out all crabs and decor and then mix it. Otherwise, you can add the sand in and let the crabs mix it in themselves- which will ultimately happen!

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What I try to do is mix the Eco Earth (EE) and play sand in smaller batches. I will use something like a quart or half gallon container to measure out the correct measurements of each. I'll start with 2.5 scoops of sand 1/2 scoop of EE mix it up dry with a small gardeners shovel. Then add water to sand castle consistency. Then repeat, repeat, repeat. I find it easier because if you add too much water in yone mix you can not add as much iwater in the next.

This is best to do outside because if the sand is dry you will get dust all over the house. Plus you should also wear a dust mask.

That sounds like what I will do. I can take the ee from the sifes and work in a direction. What brand or type of playsand do I get? I am seeing that some of the plays sand is bad and some is good. Also, what is the dif. between safesand and playsand?

Crabby Fritos wrote: ↑

Tue Jan 22, 2019 3:57 pm

That sounds like what I will do. I can take the ee from the sifes and work in a direction. What brand or type of playsand do I get? I am seeing that some of the plays sand is bad and some is good. Also, what is the dif. between safesand and playsand?

You'll find playsand at a home improvement store like Home Depot and Lowes. I think it's in the lumber section. Also called quikcrete.

We use quikcrete playsand. It comes in 50 lb bags for around $4-5 per bag. Lowes usually keeps in on pallets near the lumber with bags on concrete.

I usually pick up one bag of of sand for every 10 gallons tank is. It's not a perfect calculation but should get you pretty close to what you need +/- a bag.