clean up crew is in the house!

[monalisa]

Well, not in their house yet, but they're in my house...drip acclimating as I speak. They all look great moving about in the bucket, it looks like a little rumble in there. I'm excited! I also did a water test since everything is pulled apart anyway and parameters all look great!
The blueleg hermits from this site are SO much better than the ones I purchased in town here. The ones from my LFS were all about 1/2 inch each at the biggest, and well, we all know what happened with 7 of the 12 :hilarious
I'll keep you posted on how things go.
Lisa :happyfish

 

[malounsbury]

Congrats. Hope they do well in your tank. Only a little while longer here myself until I get me something new for the tank.

 

[monalisa]

One quick question, are my hermits going to battle my poor conchs for their shells? It kinda looks like they're fighting in the bucket already! :notsure:
Thanks,
Lisa :happyfish

 

[monalisa]

OK another question. When I put my critters in, I'm talking about those with shells... snails, crabs...if they land on the substrate upside down, will they be able to right themselves or do I give them a little help? Just a thought...this may just be a long night for me, but exciting.
Thank you!!
Lisa :happyfish

 

[wax32]

If you have Astrea snails you will have to right them, the rest should be ok.

 

[monalisa]

Too late wax, I put my crabs and conchs in, and righted them as I thought they needed. Boy, they go right to work, don't they? Very cool. Only problem I see is that one of my three emeralds is not moving...looks pretty gone. Should I take it out right away and follow the SWF.com instructions on return, or should I leave it in? The other two are very happily consuming and rock climbing.
Let me know what you think.
Lisa :happyfish

 

[malounsbury]

Was he moving before you put him into the tank?
Here's what the acclimation section says:
Sand Crabs: May act motionless when first introduced, move them around

 

[monalisa]

Malounsbury,
When I put the other 2 emeralds in, they went to work toot-sweet, no hesitation. Also, I suspected something wasn't right when I opened the bag with the emeralds in, pee-yuuu, and the water in that bag was cloudy. Another thing that caught my attention was while I was drip acclimating them, that one crab was the focus of attention for the crabs. The final note was putting him into the water and seeing him not even budge...this while his brothers were already rock climbing and munching. I scooped that one out, not a move, and put him back into the acclimation bucket, not a move...I'm pretty sure he's dead. Out of all the critters that I got today, and that's the only casualty...I'm still a happy camper... :jumping:
Lisa :happyfish

 

[drew2005]

congrats! i cant wait to get my clean up crew in. Im a couple days away. My trites finally got to 0. :happy:

 

[malounsbury]

Good deal. Just e-mail SWF.com then and they should hook you up with a credit.

 

[monalisa]

malounsbury,
I thought about that, but with the prices I would have payed at my LFS, shipping, and what-not, is it really worth the 3.99. Besides, I think I have a great crew in there now, so I'm happy. :cheer:
Gonna just enjoy what I have. Question, can you only have one coral banded shrimp in a tank? The one I got today just seems like it has so much personality! I really like him. Just wondering.
Lisa :happyfish

 

[malounsbury]

From everything I'm reading, you should only keep one in a tank unless they are a matched/mated pair. Also, others have said from their experiences that they will attack or kill other species of shrimp.

 

[mudplayerx]

Monalisa, the small-sized "cleaner" hermit crabs won't harm any of your snails. Just stay away from the large hermit crabs that are sold individually....they will eat anything and everything they can catch.
Some people may disagree with me on this:
Do not drip acclimate fish that have been shipped to you. The large amount of ammonia in the bag can become extremely toxic if the ph of the water in your tank is any higher than the ph in the bag. I would say it is safe to drip acclimate if you test the bag for ammonia, and test its ph though.

 

[monalisa]

Yeah, that's what I've heard..but that's ok, he'll have to be an only child.
Holy cow!! that crew has been in for only about a half hour or so, and already my sand is starting to look white again!! I can't wait to see what the tank looks like tomorrow!
Lisa :happyfish

 

[mudplayerx]

Tolda ya that you would like the coral banded shrimp! They get nice and big and thier antennae are magestic-looking. Its worth having them to the exclusion of all other shrimp in my opinion. Good luck with your new buddies!

 

[monalisa]

Mud,
I missed your first post about drip acclimating shipped fish (I had to go back and read a second time to make sure that I was reading right). This site won't stand by their guarantee if the critters haven't been drip acclimated.
So, how do you do it? I didn't get any fish in this shipment, I got my clean up crew, and so far they're living up to their occupation. Already my sand looks whiter.
I was thinking about naming my CB shrimp after my dog, Leo. Leo is a herder extraordinare, and is at work with me every day (and at my heels constantly). Every single time I walked up to the acclimation bucket, the CB would make his way from where ever he was to stand and look at me...he's great! :jumping:
Talk later...
Lisa :happyfish

 

[monalisa]

Sorry Ant,
That thread must be way buried, and I can't find it. Any chance of posting that pic again? I can't wait to start posting pictures, but I want to wait until my tank looks better, clean- up-wise. All things in their time, I guess.
Lisa :happyfish

 

[who dey]

hi mona!
glad to hear you got a good batch of reef critters!!!

 

[who dey]

Originally Posted by MonaLisa
malounsbury,
I thought about that, but with the prices I would have payed at my LFS, shipping, and what-not, is it really worth the 3.99. Besides, I think I have a great crew in there now, so I'm happy. :cheer:
Gonna just enjoy what I have. Question, can you only have one coral banded shrimp in a tank? The one I got today just seems like it has so much personality! I really like him. Just wondering.
Lisa :happyfish
there can be exceptions if your lucky, i had two CBS live in my 120 reef for years back in the day!

 

[monalisa]

Yeah, but Who Dey, my tank is only a deep 37 gal.,
I am so surprised at how FAST my crew is cleaning up the junk!! WOW!! Again, I'm a happy camper...I've been watching my tank between posts constantly..even mid-post :yes: I'm just so glad that the acclimation went so good. Can't wait to see everybody out and about tomorrow!!
Lisa :happyfish