Red claw crab help

[jrobinson200]

Hi everyone
I purchased 2 red claw crabs today! i have them settled in their tank but want some help off you guys! I want to know everything i possibly can to keep them alive and healthy.
I have what i think is 2 males, i cant get to them to look underneath yet. they seem to be quite happy wit each other at the moment, they hapily share the rock space together and were nibbling off the same piece of food before, does that sound ok?!
right i know the following,
they need water and land space. check.
they need the water roughly 25c. check.
a filter. check.
can escpae easily. check.
they molt and when they do they wont eat for a few days/week and will hide awya and then eat their shell hopefully.
they eat a variety of foods eg, veg, peas, pellets, blood worms etc.

i need to know how often to feed them and how much?
i am going to get a water tester too to check the ammonia nitrate levels. ive heard of the 1/2 tap water and 1/2 filtered water, is this correct?
and to do a 10% water change daily for the first few weeks?
thanks!

[Cerianthus]

PICS???

[jrobinson200]

heres some piccies

[froglover007]

Looks like they are fine now. Is the tank cycled? If it isnt you might be in some trouble. In the event that it isnt cycled do 25% water changes daily.

[jrobinson200]

hi, no noone advised me to cycle the tank first, but i will do the 25% water change daily, wheni do this should i add more of the aquarium salt or just put the plain water straight in? my brother didnt cycle his tank for his rainbow crabs either and his have been alive a good while :s

[jrobinson200]

hi i have realised i have used aquarium salt and have just read i should have used marine salt???? is this the case? im going to take it back tomorrow and change it, but as for the tank should i change all the water? or just partially change it untill i can do the entire tank in a few days when they have settled in? dont want to unsettle them

[odinthejd]

I don't think it will make a difference

[Cerianthus]

I would think the types of salt does make the differences since NaCl alone is not what compose natural saltwater.

unless what you have are strictly f/w crabs, I would used synthetic salt made for S/W aquarium.

As far as cycling of water, I would not worry too much as i am confident that crabs will avoid water which does not suit them.
Never do complete changes as such changes may cause delays in cycling.
Do small water changes regularly once tank is well established.

If one's set up is filled to top of the tank (no land area), then should avoid exposure to high NH3/NO2.

Had the pleasure of observing females performing dances to release the eggs on numerous occassions. Many variety of crabs including which were caught locally. Released most local offsprings every spring/summer except ones which are too small to notice, hidden in crevices.
I have one crab left about the size of dime growing 10G tank, presumed to be about a 9-12 month old.

Dont kill your self trying to do unnecessary water changes with your lovely set up.

[jrobinson200]

ok, so shold i just change a few tub fulls of water every day then to try and get the aquarium salt out? but then when should i put the marine salt in? trhanks

[Cerianthus]

No, just add the appropriate amt of s/w salt per water changes. Just replace what you took out per water change. Ty keeping your SG steady at all times except during rainy season which shoud indicater lowered SG.
How many gallons of water do you think you have in this tank?

[jrobinson200]

i think appro 7.9 gallons off the top of my head, dont have the info with me right now, does that sound about right?! so do you not need to clean the entire tank now and again anyway? how will i clean the gravel if i dont do this?

[jrobinson200]

hi its has 9.24 gallons, but is only approx half full thanks

[Sploke]

I don't think it will make a difference

This is completely incorrect. Aquarium salt is not a subsitute for marine salt.

Aquarium salt is fine for treating disease, but does not contain all the other minerals present in true marine mix.

To make brackish water, you need to use a true marine mix, something like instant ocean.

You will also want a hydrometer or refractometer, something to measure the salinity/specfic gravity of the mix, so you know how "salty" the water is.

[Cerianthus]

i think appro 7.9 gallons off the top of my head, dont have the info with me right now, does that sound about right?! so do you not need to clean the entire tank now and again anyway? how will i clean the gravel if i dont do this?


YOu can always add more water before vacuuming, that is if need to vacuum. I dont see the need with your tank set up.
Maybe Down the road?

[jrobinson200]

so i dont need to clean the grave? i can see the black pieces of dirt gathering up on the plant and the gravell......

[Cerianthus]

so i dont need to clean the grave? i can see the black pieces of dirt gathering up on the plant and the gravell......

Wait until tank is well matured unless tank produced massive odor /cloudy water due to left over food decaying.

[jrobinson200]

there is poo everywhere!! they seem to have done it overnight! in the food bowl all in the plant, should i just scoop out what i can?

[froglover007]

I would clean the tank just dont overdo it. Vacum the gravel just dont change more than 25% of the water.

[jclee]

Thought this might be a helpful start for you:

http://badmanstropicalfish.com/profiles/profile101.html

[Sploke]

I would clean the tank just dont overdo it. Vacum the gravel just dont change more than 25% of the water.

What's the basis behind this recommendation?

If your tank is not cycled, you should be doing as many water changes as necessary to maintain ammonia levels under .25ppm. Just make sure when you are doing water changes that you're matching the temperature and salinity, usually most easily done by premixing your brackish water in a separate container before adding it after a water change.

[jrobinson200]

one of them moulted!! so proud! ive left it in there, he seems to be pcking at it so will give it a few days. so proud!