Sand Cleaner....

[ivycharlaine]

Anyone suggest a good sand cleaner? I have hermits and a huge mexican snail, but I really don't like the crabs, I'm tired of them killing off the turbo snails that I had and killing each other. I also have a brittle star but he doesn't clean the sand at all to be honest.

 

[t316]

Diamond Goby

 

[flower]

Originally Posted by ivycharlaine
http:///forum/post/3145707
Anyone suggest a good sand cleaner? I have hermits and a huge mexican snail, but I really don't like the crabs, I'm tired of them killing off the turbo snails that I had and killing each other. I also have a brittle star but he doesn't clean the sand at all to be honest.

All the critters you mentioned are not sand cleaners. Your hermits are most likely fighting the snails for shells. So buy some shells and get a cleaner for the sand.
I don't know your tank size, and am now too lazy to check your profile, since I already started typing...
Here is a list of the ones I know...

• Sand sifting gobies are the best sand cleaners.
• Sand sifting sea stars
  Cucumbers
  Fancy Nassarius Snail

 

[reefkprz]

Originally Posted by Flower
http:///forum/post/3145712
Here is a list of the ones I know...

• Sand sifting gobies are the best sand cleaners. I disagree, sand sifitng gobies , while they do move a lot of sand, dont actually clean anything out exceopt the benificial microfauna. they leave all the detritus. your sand bed only "looks" cleaner, when in fact its less healthy than before the goby got a hold of it.these fish are not detritivores and will not consume waste, they are predators. about the only way they can be responsible for removing detritus would be by kicking it up more often, allowing your tanks filtration to catch more.
• Sand sifting sea starsthis should never be used as a "sand cleaner" its a predator and eats benificial critters in your sand bed, they also tend to starve in all but very large open sand beds
  Cucumbersthere are some great cucumbers that do eat detritus, just avoid the filterfeeding cucumbers. your best options for cucumbers are holothuria atra and holothuria hilla
  Fancy Nassarius Snail nassarius vibex are creat sand shifting snails, there are also some sand sifting crabs that would be a benifit to a healthy sand bed.

I added some comments inside the quote (the colored portions)

 

[mie]

I put in two fighting conch's, and they do a wonderfull job. To combat my crab's eating my snail problem, I bought zebra turbo snails, they are large and do a great job of cleaning, and as said earlier more empty shells will help.

 

[spanko]

Nassarius for detritus in the sand bed.
Cerith for algae in the sandbed.
Florida Fighting Conch for diatome and other algae on top of the sand bed.

 

[ivycharlaine]

yeah i had a diamond goby and he didn't make it lol. and BTW I have a ton of empty shells for my crabs,they just attack the snails and dont' even take their shells

 

[fretfreak13]

Feed them a little. They're hungry. lol Probably not getting enough stuff to eat from the bioload. Didn't read your profile, but your CUC might be too big and they're starving.
Just a guess though. I feed mine cause I only have two fish and they're babies.

 

[btldreef]

Originally Posted by ivycharlaine
http:///forum/post/3145988
yeah i had a diamond goby and he didn't make it lol. and BTW I have a ton of empty shells for my crabs,they just attack the snails and dont' even take their shells

The shells may not be big enough, I've had the same problem. My hermits seem more intent on killing each other and my snails, than taking the shells. I've just come to accept it, and don't keep very many in my tank anymore, snails are cheap enough.
Your profile says that you also have a serpent star, so I think your CUC may be starving, as someone stated above. Feed them a little and see how that goes, but none of what you're listing currently are sand sifters anyways.
Try some nassarius and cerith snails. IMO, try another SMALL sand sifting goby, although I've seen people have bad luck with these if they're tank is less than a year old (especially diamonds). I don't recommend a sand sifting starfish, at least not right now. I have two, and swear by them, BUT, don't think it's the route you should go in this situation.

 

[dreighter1]

Can nassarius snails eat fish or shrimp? i went to my lfs and was adding on to my cuc, and the guy said that nassarus snails can kill my fish and shrimp.. I heard nothing but good things about these snails so i think he's insane in the membrane... but a good person

. but could someone help me out. sorry to steal the thread...