DIY aquarium to vivarium

[platypuskid2]

ever since I got my Halloween moon crab, Lunar, he didn't seem very happy and his tank was very drab. After upgrading his 10 gallon to a 40 gallon I got inspiration to make his terrarium into a vivarium. After careful planning I figured out the fool proof plan. I went to the hardware store and bought a square foot of thick plexiglass and clear silicon caulk that can withstand being submerged. After that I headed to the pet store to gather supplies for the aquarium half as I have never had an aquarium before hand. These supplies included a medium filter, dechlorinator, aquarium gravel, and stacking stones to make a staircase. Once I got home I measured the tank and scored the plexiglass on the mark until it could snap (this didn't work so well so I used a grinder to fix the edges. Then I heavily caulked in the 12x6 inch piece of plexiglass into the tank and let it settle for a day while Lunar enjoyed his old tank for a bit. After drying I trimmed down the excess silicon and tested to see if it held water. The rest is just filling and decor and you got yourself a vivarium to make any land crab happy I found Lunar enjoying the water just the other night. Will update after I put fish in the aquarium half.


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[GotButterflies]

That is beautiful! My son wanted a Halloween crab so bad...I just won't do it!!


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[platypuskid2]

That is beautiful! My son wanted a Halloween crab so bad...I just won't do it!!


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they are very interesting but they simply do not compare to having a pet hermit crab!


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[C_fiesta]

It's beautiful! I know nothing about these creatures, but I have read that the plexi glass partition will eventually give out and flood the tank?

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[platypuskid2]

It's beautiful! I know nothing about these creatures, but I have read that the plexi glass partition will eventually give out and flood the tank?

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I sure hope not! It seems pretty unlikely since the glass is so thick and the silicon is applied quite liberally


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[C_fiesta]

It's beautiful! I know nothing about these creatures, but I have read that the plexi glass partition will eventually give out and flood the tank?

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I sure hope not! It seems pretty unlikely since the glass is so thick and the silicon is applied quite liberally


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I think it's something to do with the oils in the plexiglass eating away at the silicone. I could be thinking of something else. I hope someone else will come in and know what I'm thinking of

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[aussieJJDude]

Yep, the oils on the plexi will slowly loose bond, Wod's post here will explain more so I'll just link it here
http://www.hermitcrabassociation.com/ph ... plexiglass

(Saves me time typing it out.)
You do know that the water has to be properly cycled before the introduction of fish. And that fish require a large enough space, and if my calculations are correct, this is around 10g of space. Your rainbow crab will make easy work of the fish, since there are no real hiding spots, either that or they will potentially die of ammonia poisoning. If you still have your heart set on fish, please research deeply beforehand, they more work than what people think.

Insteady, have you though of adding more decor to both the land and water section to keep Luna interested in her environment? Plastic plants, logs, hidey holes, rocks are some ideas that you could include. Even a "level' over the water section by using suction cup dishes and a ramp to access the dish... That way, she has more space to roam.

[C_fiesta]

I've done a bit of research on these guys and I think they like to climb as well. You could add more climbing structures.

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