Cucumber or Serpant Star??

[milomlo]

Should I get a cucumber or Serpant star for my sand bed?
I need something extra to help my sandbed.
I have a 29 gal and my clean up crew consists of
10 Nass Snails
5 turbos
13 hermits
I purchased a sand sifting star as the lfs said that if the nass snails weren't working then this would definatley help. Well before I got home it has lost 2 legs. I think it is now dead as it hasn't moved since Saturday.

So I need something to help my sand bed. Any one have any suggestions. I do have hairy mushrooms (my first coral), so whatever I get MUST be reef safe.
:help:

 

[schadiest1]

my sand sifting star would hang out in certain spots for days at a time. i have a serpent star and it doesn't sift the sand, a lot of times it'll hang out in the rocks. so if you're looking for something to stir up the sand i'd go with a cucumber.

 

[milomlo]

So what is a good cucumber to get? I know NOTHING about cucumbers. Would it be better to try more snails?

 

[milomlo]

***)

 

[azocean709]

could go with a brittle star....i call mine the little "MINER"...lol hes allways got his little mining operation goin on...gotta feed it food too though. just sifting the sand won't do it

 

[corally]

I have a pink cucumber and he has never been in the sand, he just hangs out on the glass, so don't try this kind! :joy:

 

[dburr]

I wouldn't do either. How about mini brittles and sand snails. If I could only remember the name of them.

Some one help me out.

The little ones that bury themselves in the sand. (sign of old age)

 

[milomlo]

Originally Posted by dburr
I wouldn't do either. How about mini brittles and sand snails. If I could only remember the name of them.

Some one help me out.

The little ones that bury themselves in the sand. (sign of old age)

Well I bought a sand sifting star on Saturday - but before I got home he had lost 2 legs and I think he is dead. Then after I get home I call the LFS about it and they said "oh yeah that can happen"

Duh! If I had known that I wouldn't have bought he. He acted like it was very hardy.
So if a star is good, did I just get one in bad health? Is this the star you are talking about? He was white looking (pretty much like the sand) or was there another one you were referring too.
I was thinking a serpent star, BUT then someone told me they weren't reef safe. So all of you guys are the ones who know so tell me please.

I need to get something bad. I can not stand the way my sand looks.

 

[dburr]

Any star needs to be SLOWLY acclimized to the tank. Like 3+ hours.
Sand sifters are NOT reef safe. They deplete sand bugs that you need. Serpant stars for the most part ARE reef safe. Just keep them fed. I have only heard of problems with the green brittle stars, they get big.
The mini brittles are very small. Like the size of an eraser on a pensil.

 

[milomlo]

oh those sound perfect. How many should I get for a 29 gal? Maybe 2 or 3? By the way I just realized that I have Cerith Snails not Nass. snails. Would that make a difference? Would Nass. snails be better than the Cerith Snails?

 

[ophiura]

Serpent and or brittlestars should NOT IMO be added to clean the sand. They will not in general do anything to the sand. They MAY scavenge.
Sea cucumbers are not all sand sifters and those that are need specific particle size sand.
BOTH need very particular water quality. How old is your tank? What are your parameters?
The sand sifter star is a very poor choice for any but very large tanks (and IMO even still a bad choice). It losts its arms before you got home? Not after acclimated?
I would also consider finding another LFS that might be a bit more trustworthy. It was probably not in bad healthy but poorly acclimated during transit. It is IMPERATIVE to know what that LFS keeps its invertebrate systems at. If it is less than 1.024 at least then I wouldn't bother buying any seastar, cucumber or brittlestar from them, IMO.

 

[sailfin]

Try some cerith snails and/or nassarius snails. Both do wonders for the sand bed. The ceriths will eat algae type food, while the nass will scavenge for food particles and detritus.

 

[dburr]

Nassarius, thats it!! Drop some of them in there. A dozen is all you need.

 

[mudplayerx]

As was said, sandsifter stars have no place in the hobby. They are actually detrimental to your sandbed. The detrivore/sand-sifting sea cucumbers are a good choice if you ask me. Just make sure that you research them plenty before buying.
I had a sea cucumber once before and that thing was a live sand-vaccuum cleaner. A+

 

[reefreak29]

i would go with a black cucomber there less toxic and they do a great job, oh i also have those little white brittle stars

 

[dburr]

Yes, the darker the better with cucumbers, but on a tank as small as what they have it won't matter how much less toxic. I would go with something else.

 

[sprang]

Ceriths are my favorite. The seem to sift all the time. Brittles are cool but they are scavengers, so they won't help your sand. As far as s.siftting stars, they suck. They will eat all your pods and goodies and starve to death very slowly.