HCA: Hermit Crab Association

Alright folks, I've waited a long time for this! Its finally set up!! I'm not 100% finished, I still have to add the shells into their shop but here's what we've got so far!


This lid is temporary, I've got to figure out a plexiglass option that doesnt break the bank. It's a plastic piece from the roofing section. We had to cut the middle out and tape it back together because it has this raised section, but it's actually a pretty decent lid. I hate loading and unloading the stuff off of the top, but I'll do whatever I gotta do for now I guess.










The empty shelf is their shell shop. I haven't finished that part yet. I also need to get something for inside the hanging coconut. What do yall use?

Any suggestions on where to put my accurite? Someone on insta said it shouldn't be on the sub.

Here's some photos of my babies Rajah, Kenai, and Eric exploring. Sebastian is still in ISO, and unfortunately we lost Kaa. I found him shelless behind the cork bark, he had passed sometime in the last 24 hours. he was my littlest, I adopted him and his brother Kenai about a year ago.






Bonus: We've had hermit crabs for about 2 years now, and Brianna JUST realized it today. Haha! Shes been watching them for about 15 minutes now.





I wanted more vines hanging, more hiding places, etc. But this will do for tonight I guess. Any suggestions?

Let me know what you guys think!!!!!



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That is a crabby paradise

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very cool tat, looks like they are enjoying it. sorry to hear about Kaa

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Wlfwo wrote:That is a crabby paradise

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Thank you!!

doth wrote:very cool tat, looks like they are enjoying it. sorry to hear about Kaa

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Thank you. Kaa was my littlest baby. He was down molting for MONTHS trying to keep up with the others. Kenai is catching up to Rajah and Sebastian (biggest) pretty quickly.

Here's pics of where I'm adding the food bowl and shells



In case yall were wondering....


And a couple of bonus shots, because my pups are precious watching the tank!!


Rajah, my escape artist, showing me that I almost missed a spot:


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My dog watches sometimes too.

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I love it! Your puppers like to watch too! That’s so cute! I love your pinkish colored crabby hanging off the edge of the tank, he/she is beautiful! You have some very cute crabbies! I’m so sorry you lost Kaa.

Woot woot. Congrats on the upgrade, looks fab! I really like how you zip tied wood to the background, thats a really cool idea.

As for gauge on the substrate, sometimes the moisture from the sand can affect the reading - especially if sand gets into the part where the probe is! - or cause it to have an early death from constant exposure to moisture. But you can certainly leave it on the substrate, its not going to do much else, so don't feel obligated to hang it up.

You could make a small holder potentially (out of eggcrate or canvas mesh) and zip tie it to the background for example?

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aussieJJDude wrote:Woot woot. Congrats on the upgrade, looks fab! I really like how you zip tied wood to the background, thats a really cool idea.

As for gauge on the substrate, sometimes the moisture from the sand can affect the reading - especially if sand gets into the part where the probe is! - or cause it to have an early death from constant exposure to moisture. But you can certainly leave it on the substrate, its not going to do much else, so don't feel obligated to hang it up.

You could make a small holder potentially (out of eggcrate or canvas mesh) and zip tie it to the background for example?

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In the 55 I had a piece of cholla wood hanging from the lid and they loved it. I never could open that side because they were always on it. So I figured I'd remake that idea, but without the hassle of the lid part. Lol

Would it throw my readings off having the accurite so close to the UTH? I might make a little cage for it. That's a good idea

RiNiKy506 wrote:I love it! Your puppers like to watch too! That’s so cute! I love your pinkish colored crabby hanging off the edge of the tank, he/she is beautiful! You have some very cute crabbies! I’m so sorry you lost Kaa.

Thank you!

Hermiesguardian wrote:My dog watches sometimes too.

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That's just precious!!!

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It looks so nice and clean! I love the picture of your pups cuddled together looking at the tank!! That is precious!! I'm very sorry about Kaa. That is a bummer.

I made crab mesh holders to keep our Acurite off the substrate. They work really well and the crabs can climb on them too! Depending on your gauge you may need to tweak the measurements.

http://www.hermitcrabassociation.com/ph ... 9&t=118870

Thanks! I thought of those but I hadn't sat down to find the thread, thanks for linking it!

I finally finished the lid yesterday! It's not plexiglass, its egg crate, but I was able to make a hinge type lid that was easy access and I didn't have to load 15 things to hold it down lol. I'll post a picture and details tonight!!

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Looks great!! I love those bowfront tanks, they are the perfect shape for crabs IMO. Did u buy this new or used? Also do u plan on covering the egg crate with anything? How deep is the sub? it looks really deep. Also where did u get that barnacle thing and how much was it?


Also every time I ask about this I hear the beegees song 'how deep is your love?' In my head but with the words 'how deep is your sub?'...

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ROSIEonFIRE wrote:Looks great!! I love those bowfront tanks, they are the perfect shape for crabs IMO. Did u buy this new or used? Also do u plan on covering the egg crate with anything? How deep is the sub? it looks really deep. Also where did u get that barnacle thing and how much was it?


Also every time I ask about this I hear the beegees song 'how deep is your love?' In my head but with the words 'how deep is your sub?'...

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Thank you! I bought this used, tank and stand for only $100!!!

I wanted to cover the egg crate with vines and leaves, at some point I will add those. It's really hard to get zip ties behind there once the sub is in (I found that out with the oak branches) so I'll have to figure something out
The sub is about 13 inches deep across, they're not that big yet but I figured it was easier to add it now than take the tank apart and add it later!
The barnacle came from TheHealthyHermit on etsy! Its @GotButterflies shop! I believe it was about $6? My babies LOVE it! Especially my little E, he climbs all over it.

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Nice. I want to upgrade (I only bought this tank less than 2 years ago and I already want a bigger one lol) and I think bowfronts look the nicest but there is the question about what to do for the lid. I made the lid on my current tat myself out of wood but my carpentry skills are limited to shapes with 90 degree angles. What's ur plan?

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I found this video, only watched it a little bit so I'm not sure what kind of tools are really needed but this could work.
https://youtu.be/l87Smn6CRI8

Also you could make a wooden frame for the back and sides and then use some sort of rubber flap around the front.

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