Why do the weird things happen to my tank...

[Rogue951]

So I woke up at around 4am to hear my return pump running dry and my display tank filled to the brim. (But not overflowing, whew...)

Return pipe was clogged by SOMETHING.... I have a center tank overflow with a single outlet drilled halfway down the tank. I bought this 40g breeder like this years ago. Would do it differently if I could.

Anyway, I fed a piece of tubing up from the bottom and figured out the clog was somewhere behind the tank.

I poorly threw this together back then not thinking I'd ever need to access it.
So I had to take a red hot drill bit (flame heated) and slowly burn a hole into the top of my durso style pipe to make some kind of access.
Stuck an inspection camera down the hole and what do I see?


http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk83/Rogue951/IMG-20130517-WA0000_zpsaef023e6.jpg

Somehow he managed to climb the overflow, over the teeth, up the durso pipe, into the opening, make the U turn and fall down the pipe.

Someone please explain what posessed this hermit to do so????

So next question.... how do I get him out...

[Aquattro]

So next question.... how do I get him out...

I had a filefish do the same. I had to dismantle my plumbing.

[Rogue951]

dont say that. =(
would require taking apart my tank and moving the whole thing off the wall.

[Rodney]

Could always try a small plumbing snake to push it out, otherwise I think your stuck
Or if you have a spare pump hook it up to the bottom and try and blast him out, could be messy tho

[FishyFishy!]

Hook a return pump to the bottom of your drain tube and blow him out LOL

I vote for that.... And make sure you take a video!

[Rogue951]

lol yes I thought about the blow out method with either compressed air or with a pump. and yeah the mess came to mind so that was my last resort.
After all that thought and work and hours of wasted time. The most useful $8 tool I have ever bought.

http://i278.photobucket.com/albums/kk83/Rogue951/20130517_115402_zps16bf9dab.jpg

You can see what it had to crawl up and over and around and up again to get into the pipe in the first place.

Serious ninja hermit here.



I wish I took a picture but I actually tried a "long line" rescue, firefighter style. lol.
dropped a string down in some vain hope it'd grab it and pull itself out.
didn't work so well.

[KPG007]

Wow, thats pretty incredible! Good job getting him out

[neven]

since im on LED, i installed a mesh cover that reaches my overflow strainer height so its eliminated all my hermit crab issues, had one do the same thing but luckily i use PVC hoses so it wasn't as bad to fix. But the one that got stuck in the valve, not realizing it and i turned it to hear a big crunch.

[input80]

Ouch Jason, good job, good thing it wasn't worse.

[hfp75]

The shell looks empty where is he?

[Rogue951]

the white thing under the grabber's claw is the hermits claw.

since im on LED, i installed a mesh cover that reaches my overflow strainer height so its eliminated all my hermit crab issues, had one do the same thing but luckily i use PVC hoses so it wasn't as bad to fix. But the one that got stuck in the valve, not realizing it and i turned it to hear a big crunch.

That's a good idea I should make one with old egg crate... but then... it might climb on top of that and out the tank. lol

[neven]

The mesh is over the whole tank, I had to increase the full light intensity time period though to make up for the time reduction. It's a plastic gardeners mesh in a screen window frame

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