Feeding my cleaner crew

[class clown]

Hello everyone, first timer here. Awesome board you guys have here! I was wondering if my cleaner crew can sustain itself while my fish (two false perculas and a bicolor angel) are staying in my hospital tank. I have 10 snails (not sure what kind), 10 hermit crabs (mix of red and blue), a cleaner shrimp and a horseshoe crab. They do an excellent job of keeping my 29 gal. tank and LR almost sparkling clean. My LFS says I don't have to feed them anything, but I don't know... the tank is pretty clean already, and now without any fish in it... what the heck could they be eating now?
Also, I almost never get to see my horseshoe crab. I've had it for about a month and I see him maybe once every 4 or 5 days (uually when I wake up to find him upside down or stuck to the powerhead intake). I'm new (and paranoid) at this, and I'm afraid he's going to die buried in there and spoil the whole tank. Are these things hardy (LFS says they are, but I saw a dead one in their tank)? If he dies, will I somehow know right away, maybe by the hermits digging him out or him crawling out into the open before he dies? I feel like getting rid of him. Any thoughts?
Thanks in advance, and keep up the good work!

 

[b_ball12_99]

Welcome to the baord! Your lfs is correct about not having to feed your cleaning crew. They are in there to clean the tank after all. You can give them some seaweed selects and regular fish food once every week or 2 as a treat. They eat the food your fish don't get anyways. Just calm down and enjoy the hobby!

 

[nm reef]

Yup.....big welcome to the board.....and yup....clean-up crew don't need much in the way of extra feeding....a lil food now and then but not much.....they will find something to munch believe me.....
but sorry no help here on the horseshoe....don't have one and have never had one.....but someone will be along to speak up on their behalf..........

 

[flydan]

Hey,
I agree with the previous posts...don't bother feeding clean-up crew. They'll just get lazy and stop cleaning!
Don't know too much about horseshoe crabs. Only stuff I've read and they say they are reef safe until they get big, over 12", and start knocking stuff over. They mainly stay in the substrat and are reclusive. HTH
Dan'l

 

[hemmie]

Hi..Im fairly new to the hobbie as well..BUT..I made the mistake of getting a Horshoe crab. Not 2 days later he started knocking over my rocks..theyd be tipped over in the morning.
I read where they eat all the goodies in your live sand too..so as soon as he came out and made an idiot out of himself, I netted him and took him back. he was very easy to catch. I gotta admit..he was hysterical.
Ive also read where they can die and stay buried and foul the tank. Im nervous like you, so I decided not to take the chance. Besides, with my luck..he'd disappear at 2" and reappear at 2 feet!