newb questions

[rylox]

greets guys, Ive started my first Sw tank. 55gal with approx 30 lbs of LR and 40 lbs of LS. one power head and a magnum 350 canister filter. im hoping this set up with get me by for awhile. my next big investment im thinking of is a chiller. at the moment my tank is 8 days old and water temp seems to be hovering at 80 degrees. i do plan to make this a reef tank and also need to invest in lights.
questions:
1) what is the best time to add crabs , snails and shrimp ?
2) ive read that as a rule, to have one fish per 5 gal of tank? if this is true then do crabs snails and shrimp count as fish ?
3) how many crabs and such should i put in to start ?
my kids and i have researched types of crabs we want and came up with this list.
2-emerald crabs
2 scarlet hemit crabs
1-horseshoe crab
1-lettuce nudibranch
2 peppermint shrimp
1 coral banded shrimp
2-queen conch
1-yellow cucumber
questions:
A) is this too much ?
B) will these all get along with each other ?
C) id like fish and corals and such once i get chiller and lights so wil there be room for fish with these things and if so how many ?
im sure ill have more questions soon so be prepared

thankyou in advance
tiffaney :help:

 

[rylox]

hey thanks guys, shortened my list a bit but also saved $$ :happy:
so to start with i should put in only snails ? and you said add as i need. how many should i start with ? and when can i add the crab and shrimp you recommend ? also would a decorator crab be any value to the tank at this time ? and how about urchins ? im looking at things to benifit tank at this point that are unique and/or colorful scarlet hermit, blood red fire shrimp , pepermint shrimp and ive chosen nassarius snails. anything you guys might recommend or would this be enough until im ready for fishies ? also my canister filter enough along with all the LR ?
thanks again:cheer:
told ya id have a bunch:notsure:
tiff.

 

[rylox]

bump :jumping:
busy boards hehe

 

[mike6969n]

ok i have only been doing this for about 2 yrs, but i have a few things to add to your list and a few comments.
first 1 powerhead isn't enough you need to increase it to at least 2 if not 3. i wouldn't recommend a chiller just increase water flow and lower you thermostat on your heater to between 77 and 79 degrees, and as for what everyone is saying about the fire shrimp and the peppermint shrimp i don't agree with my fire shrimp is one of my favorite inhabitants and he comes out a lot during the day and is very active during the day, my peppermint shrimps are also very active during the day, i also love my emerald crab i see him all the time and whether or not he eats the bubble agae isn't important he is still an amusing creature, i agree with them on the horseshoe crab and the lettuce nudibranch. not good additions nor is the decorator crab. good snails to keep, nassarius, cerith, and astrea snails. definately add more hermits scarlets being the best in my opinion and more lr. i would also like to recommend a great book called Aquarium Keeping and Rescue (The essential salwater handbook and log. by Carl DelFavero. i found this book a great source of information. it tells you step by step how to maintain your aquarium, it tells what daily, weekly, biweekly, monthly, semi-annual and annual maintenace, what maintenance animals to get for each problem area, a log for tests, and a log for livestock. its great!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! it's a great book for beginners and professionals.
hope this helps, mike from AL

 

[debdeb]

I definitely recommend the Astrea snails. Non-stop algae eaters. I've only got 9 Astrea's and 3 or 4 Cerith's left in my 37 gallon tank now (some hermit crabs love to kill snails for their shells, especially Cerith snails so I've lost a few). The Nassarius snails hide so much, I don't ever see them.
As for the hermit crabs, I have Scarlets, Blue legs, Dwarf Mexican Red legs & a few other dwarf hermits that have somehow gotten mixed in. They all seem to be fine. I "had" 3 emerald crabs, not sure what happened to them. I haven't seen them in weeks, they never bothered my corals and did a good job with algae.
I have a coral banded shrimp that has a great personality, but I have to agree that I wouldn't recommend one. I've seen him try to grab my fish and he could be what killed my emerald crabs. I won't be transferring him to my 180 gallon when I finish setting it up. I will definitely go with the Scarlet cleaner shrimp in the big tank.
One thing I've learned is to listen to people and their experiences. You can learn a lot from other people's beginner mistakes and not go through the pain yourself.
Read and research, research, research.
Don't cycle your tank with damsel fish or any live creatures.
Don't buy on impulse.
Go slow.
Go slower.
Have fun!

 

[darknes]

I don't think the original poster is still looking for replies 3 years later.

 

[debdeb]

egg on my face

:hilarious

 

[newbietina]

Don't worry about the egg on face, I'm a total newbie and am reading a lot of threads, so I'm glad to see any replies.

 

[blissninny]

Ditto. This may not help the original poster but it will help someone else...the first time I smiled today was when I read Darknes' reply and looked at the dates. Great attitude debdeb!