what clean up crew?

[pomme]

i have got a 100gal tank, and am thinking about the clean up crew that i want to get, so that i have them in their before the algae starts.

in my local lfs in england they have red-leg hermit crabs, turbo (astrea, i think) snails, super (trochus) snails, green mithrax crabs, nassarius snails, and cerith snails.

i was thinking against the nassarius and cerith snails as they like the dsb and i am only going to have a sprinckling of marine gravel, like sand, on the tank floor. Is this right?

so what would you guys suggest to have in there? and when would you put them in just after the mature live rock? and would you put them in all at the same time or in stages?

i was sort of thinking of 24 red legs, 12 super snails and 6 turbo snails.
what do you guys think of this?

andrew

 

[pomme]

i have got a 100gal tank, and am thinking about the clean up crew that i want to get, so that i have them in their before the algae starts.

in my local lfs in england they have red-leg hermit crabs, turbo (astrea, i think) snails, super (trochus) snails, green mithrax crabs, nassarius snails, and cerith snails.

i was thinking against the nassarius and cerith snails as they like the dsb and i am only going to have a sprinckling of marine gravel, like sand, on the tank floor. Is this right?

so what would you guys suggest to have in there? and when would you put them in just after the mature live rock? and would you put them in all at the same time or in stages?

i was sort of thinking of 24 red legs, 12 super snails and 6 turbo snails.
what do you guys think of this?

andrew

 

[triggers]

First of all what kind of fish do you plan on having. Some fish such as triggerfish will devour the entire cleaning crew.

It is good to have a substrate in your aquarium this helps promote beneficial bacteria and good ph levels. You don't have to have a dsb (some people like it and some don't) I'm not a fan of the dsb.

I would go with more hermit crabs, maybe around 50 or so it can control the algae.

Hope this helps

 

[ReefLady]

i was thinking against the nassarius and cerith snails as they like the dsb and i am only going to have a sprinckling of marine gravel, like sand, on the tank floor. Is this right?

If you're not going to have a DSB, then you are correct - do not get the Nassarius/Cerith.

If this is what I had to choose from, I would add the following:

25 Trochus
10 Astrea
10 Red-legged hermits (smallest you can find)

As far as when to put them in, you want your cycle to be almost completely finished - no ammonia or nitrite, and nitrates below 50, and on the downslide. You can add them all at the same time.

HTH!

 

[pomme]

yeah i am going to have a substrate but only a small amount. and the fish i intend to keep are 2 common clowns, a regal tang, a yellow tang, 5 green chromis and 3 wrckfish (anthias). would you just go for 50 red legs? or do you mean 50 red legs + the other ones i suggested?

 

[pomme]

cool thanks for the advice.

 

[roblikesfish]

try to keep the same topics to one forum .. not multiple as well =)

 

[pomme]

sorry, just trying to get as much advise as possible

 

[steve-s]

If your sandbed will be anywhere near 1" deep, the nassarius snails will still be fine and will do a very good job of cleaning detrirus. With that many fish eventually being housed I would not soley rely on the crabs.

With the possible addition of LR even though "mature" I would wait a week or so until after it is added so you can see if it will affect water quality at all. Even though the seller claims the LR is fully cured there is still potential for die off. Once the NH3 and NO2 levels are detertmined to be zero, you can then add the critters. The 24 hermits are plenty (mabye less IMO). For the snails though I would skip the Astrea snails and opt for the cerith. Much the same at algae control but will easily right themselves when flipped.

Here is what I would suggest:
20-25 hermits (10-15 if sand is 1")
10 Nassarius (if suficcient sand)
10 Cerith
10 Trochus

For a 100 gal tank that is a good start. As waste producing animals are added the crew can be increased to match the load. Try not to overdo it in the beginning as there will not be enough foods sources to go around...

Cheers
Steve

edited to correct comment line after nassarius snails...
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[pomme]

cool thaks for the advice steve.