what is my best option for Cleanup Crew??

[MikeL1987]

hey, I have a cycling 65 hex which im going to keep FOWLR for a while until im better educated in reef keeping.

considering I hope to introduce coral at some point (hopefully sooner than later), what are good inverts to use as a cleanup crew? (I don't want to have to remove anything when I make the switch)

I have heard hermit crabs can be a potential problem if they're hungry.
-if this is the general opinion let me known
-if not, what type of crabs would be the MOST compatible with corals (zoas, mushroom, polys, anemone)

also, what about snails and shrimp?
-can these be harmful as well?
-are cleaner shrimp necessary?

any feedback would be much appreciated!

[tatuaje08]

The only crab I've never heard anything bad about is the pom pom crab. My fave crab, too. I can't think of any snails that would cause harm. Although, larger snails like turbos will knock things over. I stick with nassarius and trochus. Cleaner shrimp aren't necessary, but they're cool and won't harm anything.

I still use various hermit crabs. Never had a problem with them messing with corals, but they will kill your snails to get their shells.

[squishifishi]

a good cuc needs a little bit of everything. eveybody has different preferances so i will highlight my favorites and let yo do some more research to pick what's best for you.
snails:
fighting conch: imo the best detrivore. vaccums through your sand efficiently and is very peaceful and entertaining to watch.
Turbo snail: can knock over loose rocks,but is saidto be the best algae eater for glass and rocks.
trochus: like a mini turbo. can flip itself over and defend itself from hermits.
astrea: like a mini turbo.
nassarius: keeps sand airated and cleans under the sand. eats leftover food. fun to watch-these are my favorite
CRABS:
Hermits: theres a big contreversy about these guys, but overall i say most areok. they generally are reef safe and snail attacks are rare so long as your tank is heavily stocked with extra, larger, shells. hermit crabs can clean in a way nothing else canso i say they are a must...despite the risks. my favorites are blue legged hermits(not electricblues) and red reef hermits.
Emerald crabs- they eat bubble and hair algaelike none other! generally reef safe.
SHRIMP:
peppermint shrimp: eats aiptasia. may eatcoral if too hungry. not to be confused with the coral eating cousin-camel shrimp.
Cleaner shrimp: do not eat algaes. their purpose is to pick parasites from fish. i personally prefer cleaner gobies for this purpose as they are more effective and will clean even sensitive varieties of fish.
I hope this helps! to get an idea of quantity, go to reefcleaners and look at the pckage for a 40 or 50 galon tank. that shouldbe more than enough(they like to give you way more than you need)
hope that was helpful!

[MikeL1987]

thank you! very helpful and reefcleaners seems like a great resource!

[Nina51]

i added a xenia frag a while back. got up the next morning and part of it was gone. watched after lights out that evening and saw the hermit crabs mow down the rest of it.

[squishifishi]

what kind of hermits did you have nina? i've never heard of ANYTHING eating xenia...although, some people would be thrilled to hear about acrab that an demolish it

[Nina51]

just blue legged hermits. and tiny ones at that! they were all over the xenia like stink on poop. brats! still have them in my 14g but i'm not putting any in my 29g.

[cloak]

As far as a CUC goes, manual labor is probably your best bet IMO.

[robotman]

Originally Posted by MikeL1987

hey, I have a cycling 65 hex which im going to keep FOWLR for a while until im better educated in reef keeping.

considering I hope to introduce coral at some point (hopefully sooner than later), what are good inverts to use as a cleanup crew? (I don't want to have to remove anything when I make the switch)

I have heard hermit crabs can be a potential problem if they're hungry.
-if this is the general opinion let me known
-if not, what type of crabs would be the MOST compatible with corals (zoas, mushroom, polys, anemone)

also, what about snails and shrimp?
-can these be harmful as well?
-are cleaner shrimp necessary?

any feedback would be much appreciated!

i am fairly new to reef keeping as my tank is 2 months old.
no causalities as i do everything that is right as far as told and everything within power.

Multiple water changes
Temp watch
parameter watch

CUC
Bunch of turbo snails 14 depending how many died from flip over, which i have only seen 3 from me not paying attention.

Nassaruis snails which do wonders for cleaning left over food which i am in the habit of doing better of.

it is so much fun to watch them come out of the sand and pick up the food.

Emerald crabs-4
2 big ones and small ones, i have seen one of the bigger ones pick off a zoa frag but have left the other colony alone.

bunch of hermit crabs

scarlet legs and blue legs.


They do part of the job but you are the main part of the cuc and im young to this,

[mitchelobrien]

Ive been told before that you should have about 1 cleaner invertebrate per gallon to help maintain the tank. That sounds like a bit of an overkill to me, is it true?

[ynot65]

The best cleanup crew is both of your hands, all other animals poo. But if you must know its very small crabs( blue legged) that can access the smallest of areas once they get bigger than your pinky fingernail trade them in for small ones again

[MikeL1987]

Originally Posted by cloak

As far as a CUC goes, manual labor is probably your best bet IMO.

What should I be doing regularly?
so far every once in a while I will use a power head to blow detritus off of the live rock.

also unfortunately had a small surge or green hair algae on my glass. hoping I am able to put it at bay. I assume regular scraping and algae scrubbing on the glass is in order?

I am very new to this so even the most basic upkeep I am fairly foreign to.

I appreciate your feedback.

[cloak]

Using a powerhead to blow the detritus off the rocks is a good start. This should be done every time you do a water change. (weekly/bi weekly) If you have a SSB, (shallow sand bed) you might want to either vacume that on a regular basis, or just use a powerhead/stick and stir it up right before you do a water change. Siphon that muck out. If you have a sump, your going to want to siphon the detritus out of that on a regular basis as well. If your running a filter sock, your going to want to replace that as often as you can. (daily IMO) Make sure your source water is on the level, (RO/DI/great tap water) fine tune your skimmer, don't overstock, don't overfeed, etc. I know this sounds like a lot of work, but if you continue you do all these things from week to week, pretty soon there won't really be anything to clean up. Your tank will definitely thank you in the long run.

Just as an example, I had to do a water change today. The first thing I did was put on a filter sock and then cleaned my glass with a Mag Float. Next, I siphoned out any detritus that might have settled in the sump. I then used a stick and stirred up my SSB. (whatever I could reach) After that, I used a powerhead to blow the detritus off the rocks. I waited for about 5 minutes, and then I did it again. I waited for another 5 minutes, then I did it again, etc. All the while, that filter sock is polishing the water of all that detritus/debris. On the 3rd time though, I did siphon out about 5 gallons of dirty water and replaced it with fresh saltwater. I kept that filter sock on until the water ran clear and then removed it. I cleaned my reflector/bulbs, cleaned my skimmer cup, wipe things down and I'm done. I do this pretty much every Friday, and after almost 4 years, the tank is in tip top shape.

I hope this helps. If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask.

Here's a good article on water parameters btw.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rhf/index.htm

[MikeL1987]

thanks alot for your help cloak