clean sandbed

[nicodemus]

Recently, my sandbed has begun extremely dirty. There has been a bloom of cyanobacteria on the sand, but no where else in the tank...It is just super concentrated in one area. What snails or cleaners will keep my bed clean? I put about 6 hermit crabs in a month ago, but i think a few died...should I add more?
20 gallon tank
1 clown, 1 cleaner shrimp, mushroom and polyp corals, 3 margarita snails, 4 hermit crabs

 

[mudplayerx]

Turbo snails should work.

 

[snipe]

Turbos dont really bother with the sand mine are always on the rock or the glass. Nassarius are really good they dig in the sand and come out for food. You can get 50 of them from a famous auction site for around $15 including shipping.

 

[cvk531]

snipe, what site?, i've been looking for snails, and all my lfs are charging over $2 for each snail, they are pretty wacko:notsure:

 

[snipe]

it is a famous auction site.

 

[nicodemus]

ok...so Nassarius snails are good for sandbed. What auction site..----?

 

[snipe]

Well im not allowed to post links to competeting sites it is against there rules. You will just have to find out for yourself.

 

[dailey76]

snipe are those about the same size as mexican turbos?

 

[mudplayerx]

Dunno, my Mexican Turbos go on the sand and kind of "sit" with their foot off of the sand, kind of resting on their shell. They then "scoop" up a pinch of sand with their foot and slowly clean each peice of sand.
I've actually sat and watched this, it is pretty cool. You might want to discipline your Mexican Turbos, they sound lazy

 

[snipe]

They get about half an inch in size when adult so there wont be a bunch of huge snails all over the tank. And they move extremely fast for a snail I seen a couple burring themslevs yesterday after work and there were a bunch of then and bumblebee snails getting read of some leftover stuff.