30 gallon clean up

[cheapfish1]

:help: Ok my tank is started on its cycle and i want to look into what i should order as a clean up crew for my tank. My set up is as follows, not going to change so please no more

ing. Three large pieces of "Dead Rock" that i am goin to try and get to grow some coraline algae and zoos, one small piece of fiji rock with mushroom coral, a crushed coral bed, dont

plz, a under gravel filter with a hang on back filter.
My idea for a clean up crew is as follows:
10 scarlet hermit crabs
10 turbo
10 pepermint shrimp
5 blue hermits
plz tell me if this is too much for the tank.
ok and some ?s about these are are they nocturnal, do the snails stay on the glass to sleep?, how much will they need to be feed and will they be ok with my corals that i plan on getting and my fish
thank you for any replies

:scared:

 

[usinkit]

cut the pp shrimp down to 1 or 2. turbos if they are mexican turbos i would only get one or two they are big snails. stick with the scarlets and get rid of the red legs they are a bit aggressive. make sure your tank has completely cycled before you add any of them.

 

[cheapfish1]

ok thats kinda what i figured but good to have input

 

[wax32]

I'd go with 5 blue hermits and 2 Trochus snails. Scarlet hermits are overpriced considering blues do just a good of a job and aren't as delicate. You'd be surprised how many snails you don't need. They usually just end up starving unless you are overfeeding your tank. Leave the Turbo snails out of such a small tank, they get too big. I despise peppermint shrimp ever since one destroyed a Ricordea I had in my tank but some people swear by them.
In my 70 I currently have 2 Astraea snails, 1 Turbo snail, 1 Trochus snail, 2 Mithrax crabs, 1 Fire Shrimp, (Lysmata debelius) and a couple of blue hermits. They are doing a fine job keeping the tank clean.

 

[cheapfish1]

i have heard though that the blues are much more agressive

 

[wax32]

Than scarlets? Sure, but they don't cause problems. Scarlets are the namby-pamby sissies of the hermit crab world. If you only have blues they won't have anyone to beat up. But seriously, my blues never bothered anything, even when I had 6 different kinds of hermits in my tank pre-Katrina.
I did have an orangeclaw that was a bully though!

Orangeclaw Hermit, Calcinus tibicen

 

[addicted2]

like you, I cannot seem to drive by the pet store or pass up a good buy!!! *L*...and because of that I have decided...at least a 75 gal by Xmas.......because my penchant for buying fish will likely never subside. Just to show you...now mind you..my tests are all good and water crystal clear and I am addiment about water changes..Everything is and has been doing great! I have had this set up for 6+ months..I also have started using water from the store instead of tap..which is definitley a plus! ***)
29 gal half hex
Crushed coral substrate
hanging filter on back
2 power heads
inhabitants:
30+ lbs live rock
1 cinnamon clown
1 false percula clown
1 3 stripe damsel
1 domino damsel
1 bi-color blenny
1 yellow watchman goby
1 yellow gumball goby
1 tiger serpent starfish
1 coral banded shrimp
1 scarlett reef hermit
3 blue legged hermits
1 lettuce nudibranch
1 zebra snail
1 cone snail
1 pumping xenia

 

[addicted2]

oh..and I use a coralife 135 watt compact light (Has 65 watt actinic bulb, 65 watt daylight, and 2 moonlights)

 

[fishmamma]

I think your cleaner list is a little long for your tank, especially with so little live rock. I would say to start with a 3 or 4 hermits, the blue legs are more aggressive but they will fit in more nooks and crannies and in my experience live MUCH longer. Only start with two snails of each type....maybe two glass cleaners and two sand sifters otherwise they will starve. You can always add more if they do not get the job done. You could do one or two peppermints and maybe a blood or a pair of cleaner shrimp too. The snails just rest on the glass or equipment periodically and move about to feed during the day (and probably at night too) and my sand sifting snails come out when it is feeding time and then return back into the bed.

 

[pondy]

Well, I just bought a clean up crew and I bought 20 scarlets and I only have 15 in my tank. With 5 blues. Alot but none of them have died yet. I also have 2 turbo snails,and 6 astrea snails. I have 5 sand sifters adn one queen conch and thats all. Things seem great right now, but I think it might be a little over kill, but it is working, I also have 60 pounds of live rock with a 4 inch sand bed. So everything is going well. Good luck.

 

[cheapfish1]

k thank you guys next question is you guys talk about sand sifting snails but i dont dont have sand i have CC so can i just use hermits to rotate the substrate or can i still put sand sifting snails in