How often do you change their water?

[llmercll]

Does this need to be done daily? or every other day?

I know for food its every day, but idk about water =p

[emmac350]

With water, I usually leave it a few days at least. Sometimes if they get too much sand, coconut fiber, food, poo, etc. in it, I'll change it immediately (or if they drag an entire moss pit's worth of moss into it ), but beyond that, I'll let it go no more than a week between changings. If you use an aquarium filter or even an airstone, it will make the water last for even longer than that.

[llmercll]

oh, ok. thats good to hear as changing water every day would be a little annoying. especially because of the way i place the dishes.

[emmac350]

That's the biggest problem with water changing - the dishes are usually underneath upper levels, around corners, etc. I've moved mine so I don't have to move the cholla every time I have to change the salt water, but it still isn't easy to do.

[Salt and Pepper]

Everyday.They.either.knock.coconut.fiber.in.it.or.spill.it,

[raginggnome]

What if the water remains mostly clean? Are there important reasons that I'm not aware of to change the water frequently? I ask out of concern because I normally let mine sit for quite a while at a time - primarily because there's frequently someone burrowing under the water dishes

[CrabbyJo]

Bacteria begins to grow in the water as it stagnates. Not a good thing.
If you think of it this way, it puts it into perspective: Would you drink water that had been sitting in a glass on your dresser for three days? Probably not. Ask yourself why not?

That's how I make sure I give my crabs fresh water every couple of days. I just imagine if it were me and water being offered me that had been sitting for days. Good motivator.

[ladybug15057]

Along with what CrabbyJo has mentioned, hermies do sometimes get the powder or oils from their foods onto their shells. This too is dragged into the water dishes and causes bacteria to grow in it as well.

[mamaturtle2000]

I have used the search and I have read who knows how many posts in the last few hours and none of them seemed to address my question, so here goes.

My water dishes. I know they are supposed to be cleaned daily, and I try, I really do. But the problem is that I have the bigger one fresh water) sunk into the substrate to make it easier for them to get into and less likely to tip. However, this not only makes it easier for them to fling stuff into it, but harder to get it out and back in without a lot of digging and rearranging the substrate. Is there an easier way to replenish the water without having to take the dish out every day and moving the substrate (that falls into the vacated spot) every time? Can I suction the dirty water out or use something to strain the yucky stuff out and then add fresh water?

My salt water dish isn't as difficult to deal with as it is really shallow and sits on the surface.

[CrabbyJo]

Mamaturtle,
I did the same type of thing to myself. My fresh water dish is large, and heavy glass (corningware). It's a pain to remove it, as I have some grapevine over it and some greenery perched around that, and it all has to be moved each time I clean the water dish.
So what I've done (and only because I've been pretty wiped with my Mom in the hospital and working full time and commuting and not having much time or energy left each evening) is added a small water dish, very easy to pluck up, dump, wash, and refill every other day. It has some rocks in it to help the little guys get out, but the dish itself is only about 2" across.
I change the large dish about once a week. There isn't much slime in it most of the time.

I don't feel you need to change the water out every single day, but every couple to three days max I think is fine. Pay attention to whether the dish inside feels slimy at all when you wash it out. That mostly comes from the crab's shells themselves, and their bodies.

Everyone's water is different, so see what works. Some may just have to change it daily depending on their water conditions.