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Hermit Crabs Love Moving Water
Hermit crabs love moving water because it stimulates some of their most basic instincts. In the wild, they live along shorelines where the ocean never stops moving. Not only does the ocean act as their main food source, but it’s also an essential part of reproduction.
Another aspect to moving water is the increased oxygenation. The more movement and/or bubbles, the more oxygen. This helps keep the water healthier and fresher for your hermit crab pets.
There are a few ways to add a moving water element to the hermit crab habitat, ranging from super easy and cheap, to time consuming and expensive.
Easily add moving water for under $15!
- air pump
- airline tubing
- check valve
- airstone or bubbler
- usb/outlet (if pump is usb)
Silent mini air pump set
This is the set we purchased on Amazon and continue to use for this crabitat water bowl.
It came with everything we needed (silent pump, airline tubing, check valve, air bubbler and two glass hanging buckles (we aren’t using those).
Note: some of these small air pumps are powered by USB, so you’ll need to plug it into a USB wall charger that then plugs into your wall outlet. Or plug it into a computer?
You’ll want to use a water bowl that’s over an inch deep. The bubblershould be submerged, so it provides more bubbles. Also, your hermit crabs want to bathe and submerge in the water!
*Remember to always treat the water first, don’t use water straight from your faucet, too many chemicals! Use Amquel Plus or similar water detoxifier to remove the cholorine, ammonia and other chemicals commonly found in tap water.
Want to add Airstones to Fresh AND Saltwater Bowls? Add a 2-way valve
If you want to have TWO airstones, one in both the freshwater and saltwater bowls, that’s easy!
You’ll need to add a two-way valve plus some more airline tubing and another airstone/bubbler.
You only need one airpump for multiple airstones.
Add Plants for even more stimulation!
Want even MORE hermit crab fun and stimulation? Add plants! Hermit crabs LOVE plants! But no, we don’t suggest adding real plants to your crabitat unless you’re advanced and know how to create a crabitat-specific terrarium. Why? Hermit crabs will DESTROY plants within 24 hours!! Don’t believe us? Put a real live plant in your crabitat and see what happens!
Amazon is a great source for inexpensive aquarium plants that can work great in a hermit crab habitat. The plants with the weighted bottoms work great if you want to add a plant or two to your hermit crab water bowls, pools or lagoons.
Within 24 hours of placing 3 of these fake plants in this water bowl, the hermit crabs carried one of them completely out of the water bowl! And every morning when we check on the crabitat, these plants are either knocked down or have moved from one side of the bowl to the other.
Our hermit crabs are stimulated by the plants as well as the airstone that we stick in between the plants inside the water.
Last update on 2024-05-02 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API