HCA: Hermit Crab Association

I'm really short on cash and need to get a glass lid, a real humidfier and shells so I need to cut some corners. How can I make a DIY hermie hut for my crabs to go into during the day because they try to stay under the paper towel roll ramp and the half a paper towel roll tunnel to do whatever and I can see they want a place to hide so how can I make a hermie hut?

Go to the grocery store and pick yourself up a coconut. The one I bought cost a dollar and some change. Punch out one of the eyes to drain the milk, then find yourself a saw to cut it in half with. I used a Dremel to cut the door, but you could probably do this other ways. Once you get the door cut, then boil to kill germs, then bake to dry. Perfect hermie huts. Can't beat TWO for a buck!

http://flickr.com/photo_zoom.gne?id=156120537&size=l

If you click on that link, that's me cutting the hut door. I also took a grinding stone and smoothed the outside of the shell to remove all the fibers. To add a nice shine, use a buffing wheel.

Other ideas are small clay flower pots turned on their side, half filled with substrate of choice. You could even use a cup if need be.

Thanks alot! [smilie=hail.gif] Could I paint the coconut if I wanted to and if so what kind of paint should I use?

No paint. Bad bad bad bad. Besides, the CocoHuts are very nice looking once you get them sanded down! Look at all that nice striping in that picture! lol

Ok, just wanted to see before I did. Is there any other tools that can be used to cut the coconut because I don't have any of those tools?

Most coconuts are scored around the middle when you buy them to make it easier to break them. You can take a hammer and crack the coconut that way. Then you can scoop out the meat. Make sure you save the meat! Hermies LOVE fresh coconut! For the door, perhaps use a medium size nail and hammer it through the shell in the shape of a door way, then use the hammer to knock it out once you get enogh holes in it. That might work okay. Other than that, perhaps a friend has a saw or something you can use?

What about taking a flat head screw driver and a hammer and hammer the end of the screw drive and keep doing it till it makes a door then hammer it out after you make the indents with the screwdriver, would that work?

Maybe. It's worth a shot. You'll have two halves to experiment with. Coconuts are impressively hard, which is why I suggested the nail method. Give both ways a shot and see which one works best!

Thanks. Guess what? I just put a few small slices of banana's in the tank and shortly after me closing the lid 3 of the crabs are already chewing done on them.

Good! Makes ya feel good doesn't it? I had a ball watching mine fight over the food dish last night.

The same crab still hasn't eaten the banana's is that normal?

Yes, Maybe he doesn't want them, or like them. Or maybe he isn't hungry?

I don't know because other than banana's I've only been able to feed the crabs the crab cakes and they never took a real interest in it. But NarNar is giving me a small sample of each kind of food she has so I can see which one they like then I'll order the food they eat the most of.

They're really not picky. Take a cleaned butter bowl and cut a door in it to use until you can get a coco hut.

Good idea, its to bad I just threw away two of those a couple of days ago.