im scared

Question
Hello,
    I just bought a hermit crab from the mall yesterday. And I'm so afraid to hold it. Whenever i go to pick it up the crab comes out so fast and it really scares me because i think its about to pinch me, so i usually just drop it back into the tank, and i think it scares him. But today i kinda got a little braver and put some socks on my hands and i held it and then i accidentally dropped it on my bed. But i  picked it back up and i let it crawl on my hand for like 10 seconds and i was terrified. So i tried to gently put it back in the tank but he just kinda fell and fell in there upside down, but he got back up. So now im afraid that when ever i try to hold it in the future its going to pinch me because its so use to me dropping it. What do you think?
    Also.. I put tap water on the sea sponge thing. And now im scared that its going to kill it. But i rinsed it off once i remembered the lady telling me to give it filtered water, so i put some filtered water on it.. But is it too late? Also the water kinda spilled into the sand and i can see that the water went to the bottom of the tank. Is this okay?
     One more thing.. I always put the food and sponge on the little shells but my crab always moves them around and gets the food and sponge all sandy. Is this okay?

Answer
It's totally normal to be intimidated by a larger crab. If you are worried about dropping him, place him in a small tupperware container inside the tank and lift the whole container out, that way you don't have to worry.

Crabs don't generally pinch unless they feel threatened. Just try to be calm and move slowly. If you do get pinched, just place your whole hand inside the tank and hold still and he will climb off.

Using tap water one time won't hurt, you need to use chlorine free water, must at home water filters do not filter out chlorine.

If the sand is just damp, it's okay, if it's slushy and full of water you need to change it out.

If you have damp sand you don't need a sponge.

Read an article about natural moss in the crabitat on my website
www.naturallycrabby.com

You also need to make sure that you have humidity and temperature between 74 and 82. A hygrometer can be purchased at walmart for around $6.

Are you offering ocean-style salt water?