Recomended Cleanup crew?

[Jermz79]

So I was at the LFS last night, getting some goods for the upcoming SW setup, and was talking with the owner (who buy the way cut me some FANTASTIC deals!!!!) and we were talking about a cleanup crew for my 30 gallon ... which is actually a 29. What he recomended was the following, NOW this seems a little much too me, but again I'm new at this and might be wrong? maybe you guys could help me out a bit ... give me some suggestions or changes

Blue Leg Hermits - 29 ... 8O - WOW
Astrea Snails - 15
Tiger Tail Cucumbers - 2
Serpent or Brittle Stars - 1
Peppermint Shrimp - 1


What do you guys think about this?

 

[EJS4]

I would think 29 snails and 15 hermits is more appropiate. Do some reading on cucumber before you decide on purchase. Know the risks. I would only get one cucumber.

 

[Jermz79]

O.k. I talked to the guy at my LFS again and he said "No 29 hermits and 15 snails" so I asked him and he said that he deals with tampabaysaltwater.com and their recomendations are exactly what he told me ....

So I looked at the TBSW site and sure enough this is what he recomends in his "package" for a 29 gallon??????? Still seems like a lot of Hermits for a tank that size!

I also talked to Richard at TBSW.com and asked him about the Cucumber because I had read that they are toxic if injured or killed .... he says his cukes are non toxic? Can that be?

just a side note: It is really cool to have all these nice LiveRock places right here in my area, saves a HEAP OF MONEY 8O !!!!!!!!!

 

[klam]

IMO 29 hermits and 15 snails is too much. I thought i read somewhere that the rule of thumb is 1 hermit per every 5gal and 1 snail per every 5gal of total tank.

 

[thanew]

hrm I have about 15 hermits. and about 12 snails or something like that...

I guess it depends on what snails you get... the turbo snails love to eat algae and everything else, while nassarius love to hide, etc...

 

[Biotoper]

The maximum stocking rate for snails and hermits will of course depend on which species you get - essentially, bigger means fewer. 1 per 5g is a good rule for Turbos, 1 per 2g maybe for Astrea, etc. The on-line stores generally pack in a lot more in their "cleaner-crew packages" than you really need or want, at least to start off with.

 

[Thumper]

I say it depends on the amount of lr and the size of the tank you have. I now after the new addition have somewhere around 80-90 snails, 100-110 hermits, 2 emerald crabs, 1 sand star 3 pep. shrimp,1 coral banded shrimp,1 cleaner shrimp 5-6 pistil shrimp and several small bristle stars. I think the list you named off would be too much at first but in time you would probably need this amount.

 

[seaham358]

In a new tank I would only get a few of each to start till the tank matures and has enough food for them.
I don't think anyone can say what is the best number for your tank, but we can give you an idea on what has worked out for us.
IMO start with small numbers and work up. I cucumber would be fine.