Combo Crabitat & Fish Tank?

Hello, everyone! I haven't been on this forum in quite some time, but am excited to be back, especially now that I'm starting up a new 10 gallon in addition to a new crabitat!

I've been patiently waiting for a long length and short height tank to pop up on Craigslist for a while now, and I think I've found the one. I'm finally ready to start preparing my crabitat, and had an interesting idea.

What if I made a several gallon freshwater area and used it as a multipurpose soaking/drinking area AND a fish tank! Not sure if this has been covered on this forum before, and if it has been I apologize.

I'd probably do a betta in there, because it likely won't be more than five gallons. The entry side would be sloped for the crabs to get in and out, and I'd have to figure out how to install a filtration system for the fish.

Do you guys think that would work logistically? Would the humidity in the crabitat affect the tank at all? Would the under tank heater for the crabs warm up the tank water sufficiently? Let me know your thoughts!

Thanks!

Ashley

 

I'm not sure how it'd effect the crabs, but I'd be VERY concerned that the crab would chase the betta, assuming it's a crab that switches between land/water. Bettas are slow moving, brightly colored, and have a huge tail. Easy target. I'd do shrimp over most fish.

 

I agree with lorekeeper, a crab and a betta probably aren't going to get along.

What kind of crab are you planning to get? Some require brackish water which a betta couldn't live in.

 

Oh, my bad, I didn't specify! I'm planning on getting standard land hermit crabs, which only go into the water to drink and soak

 

With that in mind, I think a betta would be doable, but maybe not advisable. You could have issues with it jumping out onto the land portion, and I might not put it past a hermit crab to grab a tail if the betta gets into shallow water. It may not happen, but I know that my marine hermits would jump at the chance. I'd still personally advise shrimp, or something like a thaI micro crab.

 

I would suggest to really think things through. I have done similar in the past and the only thing I would reccomend:
- a large tank (over 100g)
- understand that for some species of hermit crabs (do you know what you have) it will simply be a waste of space since they won't use it
- don't use plexiglass - it will fail
- highly reccomend a false bottom in case of emergency
- consider bettas with smaller fins, like plakats
- crabs will drag waste in there, how will you prevent it - food, poo, sand ect

 

I would suggest to really think things through. I have done similar in the past and the only thing I would reccomend:
- a large tank (over 100g)
- understand that for some species of hermit crabs (do you know what you have) it will simply be a waste of space since they won't use it
- don't use plexiglass - it will fail
- highly reccomend a false bottom in case of emergency
- consider bettas with smaller fins, like plakats
- crabs will drag waste in there, how will you prevent it - food, poo, sand ect

The tank is a glass 33g, 48 inches long and 13 high (I've never even seen that dimension of tank before, but thought it would be the perfect set up for the crabs. Not so sure about what the fish area's dimension will look, though.

I'm just planning on getting the standard pet store hermit crab, which I would assume is just the standard type. (I would typically buy any fish or what not from my LFS, but I work at PetSmart and my LFS doesn't sell hermies, whereas my store does.) From my understanding the crabs don't spend a tremendous amount of time in the water; I just like the idea of the combo tank for the aesthetic appeal.

A false bottom is an excellent idea! Thank you for the suggestion.

If I decide to go a standard betta, I'd go with a female. Less enticing to the crabs, more agile to get away.

I'm mulling over some sort of filtration system. HOB probably wouldn't work for what I'm thinking, so perhaps internal or under gravel.

I'm still in the planning stage of all this (well besides the fact that I have the tank, haha), so there's still a lot of logistics to figure out on my part!

 

The tank is a glass 33g, 48 inches long and 13 high (I've never even seen that dimension of tank before, but thought it would be the perfect set up for the crabs. Not so sure about what the fish area's dimension will look, though.

I'm just planning on getting the standard pet store hermit crab, which I would assume is just the standard type. (I would typically buy any fish or what not from my LFS, but I work at PetSmart and my LFS doesn't sell hermies, whereas my store does.) From my understanding the crabs don't spend a tremendous amount of time in the water; I just like the idea of the combo tank for the aesthetic appeal.

A false bottom is an excellent idea! Thank you for the suggestion.

If I decide to go a standard betta, I'd go with a female. Less enticing to the crabs, more agile to get away.

I'm mulling over some sort of filtration system. HOB probably wouldn't work for what I'm thinking, so perhaps internal or under gravel.

I'm still in the planning stage of all this (well besides the fact that I have the tank, haha), so there's still a lot of logistics to figure out on my part!

I mean this as sincerely as possible, but I really think you haven't done a lot of research into this. Which is good that you brought thing up IMO, since it saves any possibility of your pets being placed in an unsuitable environment.

33g is pretty small, and doesn't offer a lot of room - particularly with height. Hermit crabs require a deep substrate in order to moult, and many suggest a minimum of 6 inches in order to keep things from going bad. I want to point out that whenever possible, more substrate is better than less... and 13 inch tall tank doesn't offer the option, considering that they are also avid climbers. Certainly possible in a larger tank, but personally don't consider this feasible in such a small enclosure.

Remember that hermit crabs have the potential to grow to the size of a softball, and at that size they really require deep substrate - many keep them in tanks with substrate depth of 10-12 inches - so the 33g doesn't offer a lot of space.

Most likely the standard hermit crabs that's available in pet stores are purple pinchers (PP, scientifically known as Coenobitia Clypeatus). There's a couple of species commonly found in the US and Canada, they all require similar basic requirements but its important to distinguish between them, since they may require something different - like shell shape or size/stocking level of enclosure - which is important to be aware of. Some species do in fact spend a lot of time around water, so its really important to understand what you're getting into before going out and setting up a tank.

Females are a great choice, but as said... plakat males will also do fine.

I would suggest against a HOB, especially with bettas, since they don't like moving water (currents). I believe you may have more success with setting up a fish tank, and looking into keeping inverts (like many that's suggested above) then a hermit crab tank... the tank dimensions for me personally don't give you and the crabs a lot of room... and I'm saying that after having crabs in 60cm (2ft) high tank and they still use every inch of climbing space!

 

I mean this as sincerely as possible, but I really think you haven't done a lot of research into this. Which is good that you brought thing up IMO, since it saves any possibility of your pets being placed in an unsuitable environment.

33g is pretty small, and doesn't offer a lot of room - particularly with height. Hermit crabs require a deep substrate in order to moult, and many suggest a minimum of 6 inches in order to keep things from going bad. I want to point out that whenever possible, more substrate is better than less... and 13 inch tall tank doesn't offer the option, considering that they are also avid climbers. Certainly possible in a larger tank, but personally don't consider this feasible in such a small enclosure.

Remember that hermit crabs have the potential to grow to the size of a softball, and at that size they really require deep substrate - many keep them in tanks with substrate depth of 10-12 inches - so the 33g doesn't offer a lot of space.

Most likely the standard hermit crabs that's available in pet stores are purple pinchers (PP, scientifically known as Coenobitia Clypeatus). There's a couple of species commonly found in the US and Canada, they all require similar basic requirements but its important to distinguish between them, since they may require something different - like shell shape or size/stocking level of enclosure - which is important to be aware of. Some species do in fact spend a lot of time around water, so its really important to understand what you're getting into before going out and setting up a tank.

Females are a great choice, but as said... plakat males will also do fine.

I would suggest against a HOB, especially with bettas, since they don't like moving water (currents). I believe you may have more success with setting up a fish tank, and looking into keeping inverts (like many that's suggested above) then a hermit crab tank... the tank dimensions for me personally don't give you and the crabs a lot of room... and I'm saying that after having crabs in 60cm (2ft) high tank and they still use every inch of climbing space!

Thank you very much for all of the advice! You're absolutely right; I hadn't really done much research in the area.

I definitely will not be using the 33g as a combo tank, and am now reconsidering using it for hermit crabs in general!

 

I mean this as sincerely as possible, but I really think you haven't done a lot of research into this. Which is good that you brought thing up IMO, since it saves any possibility of your pets being placed in an unsuitable environment.

33g is pretty small, and doesn't offer a lot of room - particularly with height. Hermit crabs require a deep substrate in order to moult, and many suggest a minimum of 6 inches in order to keep things from going bad. I want to point out that whenever possible, more substrate is better than less... and 13 inch tall tank doesn't offer the option, considering that they are also avid climbers. Certainly possible in a larger tank, but personally don't consider this feasible in such a small enclosure.

Remember that hermit crabs have the potential to grow to the size of a softball, and at that size they really require deep substrate - many keep them in tanks with substrate depth of 10-12 inches - so the 33g doesn't offer a lot of space.

Most likely the standard hermit crabs that's available in pet stores are purple pinchers (PP, scientifically known as Coenobitia Clypeatus). There's a couple of species commonly found in the US and Canada, they all require similar basic requirements but its important to distinguish between them, since they may require something different - like shell shape or size/stocking level of enclosure - which is important to be aware of. Some species do in fact spend a lot of time around water, so its really important to understand what you're getting into before going out and setting up a tank.

Females are a great choice, but as said... plakat males will also do fine.

I would suggest against a HOB, especially with bettas, since they don't like moving water (currents). I believe you may have more success with setting up a fish tank, and looking into keeping inverts (like many that's suggested above) then a hermit crab tank... the tank dimensions for me personally don't give you and the crabs a lot of room... and I'm saying that after having crabs in 60cm (2ft) high tank and they still use every inch of climbing space!

Just wanted to let you know that I took your advice to heart and I will officially no longer been using the tank for crabs.

I've decided instead that it would be the ideal set up for a betta sorority, something I've been wanting to start up again since I took my old one down in 2015.

 

I look forward to seeing the build!

 

Exciting! I have hermit crabs, and am curious to see how you plan on doing this

 

Hello, everyone! I haven't been on this forum in quite some time, but am excited to be back, especially now that I'm starting up a new 10 gallon in addition to a new crabitat!

I've been patiently waiting for a long length and short height tank to pop up on Craigslist for a while now, and I think I've found the one. I'm finally ready to start preparing my crabitat, and had an interesting idea.

What if I made a several gallon freshwater area and used it as a multipurpose soaking/drinking area AND a fish tank! Not sure if this has been covered on this forum before, and if it has been I apologize.

I'd probably do a betta in there, because it likely won't be more than five gallons. The entry side would be sloped for the crabs to get in and out, and I'd have to figure out how to install a filtration system for the fish.

Do you guys think that would work logistically? Would the humidity in the crabitat affect the tank at all? Would the under tank heater for the crabs warm up the tank water sufficiently? Let me know your thoughts!

Thanks!

Ashley

Hermit crabs will eat the betta. I have heard of people putting goldfish into a minI crabitat pond, but only for feeding purposes- I would not recommend it. Too bad, though, it seems like a pretty cool idea.

 

Hermit crabs will eat the betta. I have heard of people putting goldfish into a minI crabitat pond, but only for feeding purposes- I would not recommend it. Too bad, though, it seems like a pretty cool idea.

I doubt this, hermit crabs most likely won’t catch up to the betta unless they continuously harass it.