Maintaining good substrate consistency

[asiankanye]

Hi guys, I haven't posted in a while but I have returned with a question. The substrate on the RHS of my tank has a pretty perfect consistency, as whenever I stick my finger straight down into the substrate, the substrate holds. On this side I have about 5:2 sand:EE. But on the other side of my tank, the substrate is much deeper. About 2 inches down, the substrate is a pretty good consistency. Although it looks dry, about a week ago I saw one of my molting crabs down there with the tunnel holding perfectly. But the top is extremely dry all the time. And this is only on the LHS of the tank. I suspect it has something to do with the playsand:EE ratio being about 2:3. I know one solution to this is adding playsand to mix into this side, but the issue is that I have 4/5 crabs molting right now and I don't know which side they are molting on. Do you guys know a solution to this without having to add playsand or disturb the molting crabs? Thanks!

[asiankanye]

Well... it looks like not all of them are molting after all. I replaced their food dish and tried out some fresh tilapia, and 2 of the “molters” came up from the ground and the two and the one who was already up are now sharing it


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[GotButterflies]

You can always do a mixture that works for your tank That consistency won't always work for everyone.

[asiankanye]

Got it, thanks!

[GotButterflies]

Got it, thanks!

Yw!

[wodesorel]

I'd suggest just spraying it down with freshwater as it dries off. That the EE is releasing so much moisture is also what is contributing to the humidity levels and probably helping to keep it stable. That is one of the benefits of using more EE, the humidity gets a good boost - and it means having to replace that moisture as it evaporates.

[asiankanye]

Yeah, my humidity has been at 99% ever since I added the playsand. I do mist the tank, although I try to limit this to once a week.


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[HermitofHermitCrabs]

I have two large bubbler pools (fresh and salt). It keeps about half the tank perfect for digging.

[asiankanye]

Yeah, that's the main issue I'm having. The right half of my tank and especially the substrate around the pools is almost perfect consistency.

[HermitofHermitCrabs]

Well, in my opinion you don't want the entire tank to have moist sand. If a crab wants to dig where there's dry sand they will usually make it damp on their own by using water from their shell.