Reef clean up crew
- Thread starter hobbes
- Start date
mr llimpid
Member
I wouldn't mix crabs with snails, the crabs will end up eating your snails. Personally I like crabs with fish and snails with corals. The amount of them depends on the amount of fish how messy of eaters they are or algae or debris in your tank.
S
saxman
Guest
To add to what Mr. Limpid mentioned...
50 hermit crabs is way, WAY too many...they'll compete for food, run out of it and will start on your snails. If you want to keep hermits and snails, your best bet is to go with scarlet reef hermits (Paguristes cadenati). They're the most docile of the hermits and are the least likely to prey on your snails. It's the only hermit we'll keep in our tanks.
As for how many, I wouldn't stock hermits at more than 1 per 10 gals in an established tank, so no more than 10 - 12 for a 110.
Snail-wise, stocking levels depend on WHICH snails you're getting.
I'd go with a mix of Astrea, Trochus, Nerite (the tan ones with black markings), Cerith, and a few Nassarius (the don't eat algae, but will replace hermits).
Stay away from Margarita snails, as they're a temperate water species that won't live long at tropical temps. I'd also hold off on Turbos, as they get large and are clumsy, and are really best for filamentous algae. However, if you can find T. castanea (smaller, orange Caribbean turbos), I'd add a half dozen of them to the mix.
Stock your CUC lightly, then wait to see what does well for you and what your tank requires as it matures, then add accordingly.
50 hermit crabs is way, WAY too many...they'll compete for food, run out of it and will start on your snails. If you want to keep hermits and snails, your best bet is to go with scarlet reef hermits (Paguristes cadenati). They're the most docile of the hermits and are the least likely to prey on your snails. It's the only hermit we'll keep in our tanks.
As for how many, I wouldn't stock hermits at more than 1 per 10 gals in an established tank, so no more than 10 - 12 for a 110.
Snail-wise, stocking levels depend on WHICH snails you're getting.
I'd go with a mix of Astrea, Trochus, Nerite (the tan ones with black markings), Cerith, and a few Nassarius (the don't eat algae, but will replace hermits).
Stay away from Margarita snails, as they're a temperate water species that won't live long at tropical temps. I'd also hold off on Turbos, as they get large and are clumsy, and are really best for filamentous algae. However, if you can find T. castanea (smaller, orange Caribbean turbos), I'd add a half dozen of them to the mix.
Stock your CUC lightly, then wait to see what does well for you and what your tank requires as it matures, then add accordingly.
flower
Well-Known Member
Hi,
There are other critters besides hermits and snails for a cuc...serpent or brittle stars (NOT green brittle) for example. Peppermint shrimp not only clean up wasted food, but eat aptasia, and skunk cleaner shrimp eat parasites and clean the fish besides the wasted food...get this book.
A page so you can see the info it offers:
There are other critters besides hermits and snails for a cuc...serpent or brittle stars (NOT green brittle) for example. Peppermint shrimp not only clean up wasted food, but eat aptasia, and skunk cleaner shrimp eat parasites and clean the fish besides the wasted food...get this book.
A page so you can see the info it offers:
S
saxman
Guest
Flower,
Remember, the OP has a brand new tank...sure, there are other CUC critters that can be added, but they'd have a tuff time living in a "raw" (immature) setup. However, down the road a piece is when you'd add the more sensitive critters.
Remember, the OP has a brand new tank...sure, there are other CUC critters that can be added, but they'd have a tuff time living in a "raw" (immature) setup. However, down the road a piece is when you'd add the more sensitive critters.
flower
Well-Known Member
Quote:
Originally Posted by saxman http:///t/396034/reef-clean-up-crew#post_3528070
Flower,
Remember, the OP has a brand new tank...sure, there are other CUC critters that can be added, but they'd have a tuff time living in a "raw" (immature) setup. However, down the road a piece is when you'd add the more sensitive critters.
Good point, new set ups are indeed unstable, and sensitive critters could be in danger, a tiny amount of ammonia or nitrite reading, and it's game over for them.
That being said, algae takes time to develop before it's a problem, whereas wasted food will cause all kinds of problems right away. After I got over the idea of putting a "sea bug" in my tank...I have always added a shrimp pretty much from the start.
I would also like to add that after my tank cycled according to my own test readings...I still waited almost two to three weeks before adding any sea life. I also hand picked every piece of live rock, already cured. Call me paranoid for doing that, but I have never lost a new critter to new tank instability. So I don't think it's a new tank that endangers the sensitive critters, it's being in a rush to add life to a tank that isn't quite ready for it.
The formula for success, for me anyway:
Originally Posted by saxman http:///t/396034/reef-clean-up-crew#post_3528070
Flower,
Remember, the OP has a brand new tank...sure, there are other CUC critters that can be added, but they'd have a tuff time living in a "raw" (immature) setup. However, down the road a piece is when you'd add the more sensitive critters.
Good point, new set ups are indeed unstable, and sensitive critters could be in danger, a tiny amount of ammonia or nitrite reading, and it's game over for them.
That being said, algae takes time to develop before it's a problem, whereas wasted food will cause all kinds of problems right away. After I got over the idea of putting a "sea bug" in my tank...I have always added a shrimp pretty much from the start.
I would also like to add that after my tank cycled according to my own test readings...I still waited almost two to three weeks before adding any sea life. I also hand picked every piece of live rock, already cured. Call me paranoid for doing that, but I have never lost a new critter to new tank instability. So I don't think it's a new tank that endangers the sensitive critters, it's being in a rush to add life to a tank that isn't quite ready for it.
The formula for success, for me anyway:
PATIENCE
My own test kits
Cured live rock
In the last few years, I have discovered the magic power of ... Macroalgae. (Thank you beaslebob)