Clean up Crew Philosophy

[sanderson417]

I have read various thoughts/opinions on clean up crews. Some have stated that a clean up crew is mandatory for a reef tank to control algae,etc and I have also read that clean crews aren't needed if you feed,clean, and use your skimmer all appropriately. The latter states clean up crews just add unnecessarily to your bioload I would appreciate the thoughts of you experienced reefers. Is a clean up crew strongly recommended and how large based on take size/volume. Reef2go recommends a huge crew IMHO.

Thanks,

Steve

 

[Nu-Nu the eel]

My clean up crew consists of 1 turbo snail and 2 hermits. Honestly, i dont care about a CUC. When my crew was decent sized they didnt clean much at all and they were just fun to watch. I dont like them because the hermits killed eachother and the snails. It was a waste of money IMO

 

[Newfiereefer]

I have 2 narsassis to stir sand , 3 turbo's and a few hermits, a cleaner shrimp and a arrow crab in a 55g tank. They seem to be doing a great job... IMO 1CuC /liter is a bit much , really if your are not getting excessive levels then your fine. I think it's a good idea to have some CuC since they will clean up any left over food

 

[JustinKBreen]

I like having a clean up crew for diversity. I initially had six turbossix astern snails and about 8 hermits I think. I still have all the hermits but all but two of each snail were eaten by the crabs. All those murders happened within a month but since everything has been steady. I think a good mix makes the tank more interesting.

I also have had a sandsifting star a long time too.

 

[Wy Renegade]

I think that attitudes in part have to do with the system you are running. If you're running a bare-bottom or shallow sandbed system, a clean-up crew is most likely option. If you're running a deep sandbed a clean-up crew is a very good idea.