We have a 10g tank with two 5g UTH's on opposite walls. Cookie Dough likes to lay up against the wall directly where the UTH is. Cookie Dough is not molting as the shell always shows and is active at night. I made the mistake of putting the UTH too low (the bottom lines up with the top of the substrate). We will be taking the UTH off of the walls and replacing them tomorrow. Until then, I am curious to know how dangerous is this for Cookie Dough? I was so concerned that I pushed the substrate away from the glass where the UTH is for the time being.
By the way, we also have a 25v Night Heat Infrared Bulb that we run 24x7. Is this the right voltage for a 10g tank? In addition to the bulb we have the two 5 UTH's mentioned above. It seems like ALOT but I can't seem to get the temp beyond 72 degrees. Thoughts?
Humidity is perfect!
Geckfam
Likes to lay against UTH
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wodesorel
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Re: Likes to lay against UTH
She's probably cold, and they will regulate their temperature by moving closer to and farther away from a heat source so long as there are hiding areas in different temperature areas of the tank. Some crabs like 90 degrees, some like 80, some like 75. Anything cooler then that though and they usually become sluggish and aren't nearly as active.
Are the 5W UTH doing anything? Usually when they're that small they don't help. One pad that is the size of the back of the tank will give you a lot more heat. I use a good quality 11W UTH on my 10 gallon which makes it a toasty 82 degrees. When I had a different 10 gallon and used a heat lamp I actually had to use a 40W bulb and insulate the tank to make it warm enough! The location of the tank in your home, how warm the room temperature around the tank is, and even what is inside the tank will all have an effect on how much energy is needed to heat it high enough. Some people need barely anything to bring up the temp, while others have to crank out heat to keep the temp up.
Are the 5W UTH doing anything? Usually when they're that small they don't help. One pad that is the size of the back of the tank will give you a lot more heat. I use a good quality 11W UTH on my 10 gallon which makes it a toasty 82 degrees. When I had a different 10 gallon and used a heat lamp I actually had to use a 40W bulb and insulate the tank to make it warm enough! The location of the tank in your home, how warm the room temperature around the tank is, and even what is inside the tank will all have an effect on how much energy is needed to heat it high enough. Some people need barely anything to bring up the temp, while others have to crank out heat to keep the temp up.
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Re: Likes to lay against UTH
Thank you for your quick response! They were very active last night and Pancake (who sits next to the UTH - I got them mixed up) sat in the salt water dish for a few hours. Maybe getting ready to molt? Either way, it looks like I need to pick up a larger UTH and take off the small UTH's (which will be tossed - I'll take the loss due to my learning curve). I will also need to add another two inches of substrate to ensure they have plenty of room to dig and protect themselves from each other. Right now they only have 3.5". I never thought I would be so intrigued by a hermit crab. Cookie Dough and Pancake definitely keep us on our toes!