DARN MITES!

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Jan 10, 2007 8:06 pm

Could someone please post the link for the website where I can buy predatory mites to kill the little white buggers that I've been seeing all over my crabs? StressCoat and salt baths don't seem to be working.

And any tips on the proper use of the "friendly mites" once I get them would be appreciated, too.

Thanks,
Eric

starmaiden · Post by **starmaiden** » Wed Jan 10, 2007 8:28 pm

Here's the link to the company I ordered them from:
http://www.biconet.com/biocontrol/hypoaspis.html

I haven't received my order yet, so I don't know how they do. 1/2 liter should be enough. Just moisten the top of your substrate and sprinkle the dirt in there. You need to be sure and keep the top 2 inches of your substrate moist enough for them to survive for awhile . Occasional misting like you probably already do should be enough. The beneficial mites will live in your tank and eat up the bad mite larvae and eggs until you do your next deep clean. They don't eat the adults though, so you may not see results for a few weeks.

I have those little white buggies too and I can't get rid of them either!

starmaiden · Post by **starmaiden** » Wed Jan 10, 2007 8:30 pm

This site has free 2 day shipping! Depending on where you live, it may be cheaper:
Extremely Green mites

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 12:43 pm

Soooooo if I buy these things and put them in my tank they'll get rid of the mean little things that killed my little baby Zoe???????????

starmaiden · Post by **starmaiden** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 12:52 pm

Yup! But they're not cheap, about $50. And I found out the second site, Extremely Green, doesn't carry them anymore.

I posted links to more info in your emergency topic mamacrab. Since you only have 9 crabs and 1 tank, you might want to try the baths and deep clean first. It would be more work, but a lot cheaper.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 1:39 pm

We did have 13 crabs, till Zoe died......now we have 12 and 2 tanks.....

Can I bake Eco-Earth?????? Cause right now I don't have the money to go out and buy more of anything and I want to get this done ASAP so none of the other crabs succumb to the wrath of these pesky little b*stards....

starmaiden · Post by **starmaiden** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 3:24 pm

I do reuse the ecoearth from my ISO tanks since its not ready to be thrown out yet IMO, but I want to sanitize between crabs too. I just bake it at a lower temp than sand, 250F, which is the same temp I bake found driftwood at. I usually bake mine for an hour, but you probably want to go an hour and a half to be sure and kill all the buggies.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Wed Jan 17, 2007 3:51 pm

Thanks, I'm baking it as we speak.........I never realized how much eco earth i have till today.....ahhhhhhh

OIF_VET · Post by **OIF_VET** » Thu Jan 18, 2007 7:39 am

I Have had quite a few Problems in the Past with what I thought were Mites. Well sort of. It seems I get these Lil White (Teeny tiny) things when I use Eco earth...They dont seem to bother the Crabbies..But rather they do go for the Crab food. I did order Hypoaspis Miles from
http://www.shopgreenmethods.com/ <== Search for Hypoaspis Miles.
The prices seemed pretty good. I have ordered from there and the Shipment was Quick. Unfortunately I dont think the Hypoaspis Helps against these white Mites.
Baking or replacing the Substrate is probably the best thing to do.
Good Luck.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Fri Jan 19, 2007 10:51 pm

Hey Guys,

I got my Hypoaspis mites today, and have applied them. I think I may have been a little too liberal in my application, though, as I have spread the whole half-litre throughout my tank. Will this be a problem?

Also, when do these things die off? Instructions say 7 to 11 days is their average lifespan, but what about any babies they have made. Will I ever be free of all types of mites, good ones and bad ones?

-Eric

HERMEZ · Post by **HERMEZ** » Sat Jan 20, 2007 7:52 am

im going by memory here so---there is an article at CSJ that Julia_crab did that tells you what to do--they should live as long as there are eggs to eat--that does not get rid of the mites themselves--you really should continue baths if you have a bad infestation--I do think that you are to re-apply in 2 weeks and you cant bury them--they only live on the top inch--the canister should stay in the tat as they need warmth and humidity----

Please read the article to make sure what I am saying is right--good luck

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sat Jan 20, 2007 1:05 pm

Wait a second here. You have to ADD mites in order to get rid of mites? I think I'd go crazy if I had little bugs crawling all over my tanks!

Isn't there another option? Like, removing and replacing all your substrate and tank toys and then bathing the crabs?

starmaiden · Post by **starmaiden** » Sat Jan 20, 2007 2:10 pm

chicagohermiemom wrote:Wait a second here. You have to ADD mites in order to get rid of mites? I think I'd go crazy if I had little bugs crawling all over my tanks!

Isn't there another option? Like, removing and replacing all your substrate and tank toys and then bathing the crabs?

Yes, that is an option. But you have to bathe the crabs daily in double strength salt water and then stress coat water and keep them on paper towels in an empty tank for a week before you can add more substrate. And the tank needs to be washed out thouroughly and paper towels thrown out every 2 days because the cycle for mites is 3 days. And everything has to be scrubbed, baked, boiled, or thrown out.

Needless to say, it's a lot of work for you and a lot of stress for the crabs. Especially when you have 46 crabs and 6 main tanks like I do. After I did the mite treatment for one tank back in August, I swore I would give the beneficial mites a try the next time. They are expensive, but much less stress for the crabs. Now, I plan on always trying to keep a culture of beneficial mites alive in my tanks because they also eat fungus and leftover food and poop too!

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sat Jan 20, 2007 2:22 pm

Okay, so they don't actually eat the evil bugs, only the eggs? I really was hoping these Hypoaspis would nix the whole bug problem once and for all, because it's ticking me off. Bathing doesn't help, I've deep cleaned - the little buggers keep coming back. I also only provide food in the tank at night and remove it immediately in the morning, sifting for stray bits in the substrate - I just can't figure where the bad mites are coming from. I don't have any plants near them, so it's not that (but I did treat the plants in the house with the Hypoaspis as well, just in case they are somehow finding their way to the hermitat).

It is driving me nuts seeing the Hypoaspis creeping along the sides of the tank, though. It looks like an evil infestation, but I keep telling myself they'll all be dead before long.

Someone please offer me more solace!

-Eric

starmaiden · Post by **starmaiden** » Sat Jan 20, 2007 3:13 pm

Okay, so they don't actually eat the evil bugs, only the eggs? I really was hoping these Hypoaspis would nix the whole bug problem once and for all, because it's ticking me off.

They'll eat the eggs and the larvae of the bad mites, but not the adults. The bad mites will eventually all be gone though because the adults will all die of old age in about a week anyway and their eggs and larvae will have all been eaten by the good mites. You can do a deep clean to get rid of the good mites if you want, but I would wait about a month or two to make sure all the bad mites are gone.

HCA: Hermit Crab Association

DARN MITES!

DARN MITES!

ummm confused

Actually....

Got my Mites