Clean up crew help

[Reeling Reefer]

I have a 180 gallon tank, 4 weeks in has now finished cycling and I need a clean up crew. Everyone (online vendors) seem to have a clean up crew package that varies in contents,Who has the best and what is the best combo to use ( snail types, cucumbers,stars? hermit crabs? What to avoid ? I have a 180 gallon tank , 55 gallon sump , ASM 3 skimmer, mixed reef.
I have heard to stay away from urchins, turbo snails, and sand sifting stars?

[Travis L. Stevens]

The packages that are offered by vendors are nice and are a great deal, but they often are filled with useless or harmful critters. For example, Blue Legged Hermit Crabs are the most common "filler" in packages. But they will eat snails and other hermits for their shells and/or for food if there isn't enough available. Now, why would you want a $1-$2 hermit to eat another $1-$2 hermit? Also, things like sand sifting stars are not ideal because they eat the sand bed fauna, not detritus, and often die in the aquarium due to lack of food or food source. Urchins will do fine in tanks and are actually great cleanup crew, but they eat coralline algae and easily knock things off rocks. Horseshoe crabs are great, but they grow far too large and dig and bulldoze as well.

For your tank, I would suggest a small amount of Red Legged Hermits (10-20) because they will scavenge for meatier food off of the rocks and are relatively peaceful for hermits; Nassarius snails (40-50) for stirring the top layer of sand and eat unfinished food; Astrea snails (30-40) for eating film algae off the glass and rocks, but they cannot right themselves if they get knocked on their back; and a hand full of Mexican Turbo Snails (5-20) to keep macro and filamentous algae under control, but they can push over rocks and frags. This suggestion should be enough of a clean up crew to keep things under control without them eating themselves out of a food source and dying or eating others.

Notice, I do not recommend Emerald Crabs or Cucumbers as part of the crew. Emerald Crabs, like all crabs, are opportunistic feeders. They tend to eat algae, but if given meaty food, they'll eat it too. And that includes sick fish. Cucumbers usually require about one for every fifty gallons to get decent nutrition and grow quite large. Some have been known to release toxins if they die. I also don't recommend brittle stars because as they get larger, they are more prone to predating on your livestock, especiall Green Brittle Stars. Serpent stars are decent, but they often steal food from other livestock and don't do anything for algae. Conchs are great for sandbed cleanup but they get very large and are powerful diggers.

[Reeling Reefer]

I would like to avoid turbos because like you said I hear they constantly push over rocks and frags, any other suggestions ?

[Travis L. Stevens]

They aren't nearly as strong as other things like Emerald Crabs. They are more clumsy then delibrately strong. They devour macro algae and filamentous algae like nothing else (except fish, etc). I also didn't metion, try to avoid Margarita Snails. These are actually temperate species and do not last long in our typically warm reef aquariums. And a great substitute for Nassarius snails are cerith snails. Nerites are also good snails, but they are intertidal and can/will crawl out of your aquarium.

[Reeling Reefer]

I was thinking of ordering 20 red legged hermits, 50 nassarius snails, and 40 astrea snails and 1 serpeant star. You think that should do the job or should I add 5 turbos to that? Also I hear tiger tail cucumbers are good not sure though.

[SeaMac2]

Travis gave you a great list.

I would add a few more nassarius snails (maybe another 10-20), as they scavenge for detritus and uneaten food but also "aerate" the surface or the sandbed.

I like cerith snails too...work on film algae and occasionally cyano on the rocks and sand, stay small and IME are relatively hardy. If possible, try to get the gray-black shelled variety (Pacific?) vs. the cream-white shelled Caribbean type.

Conchs are workhorses on the sandbed, but I have been underwhelmed with queen conchs. Fighting conchs are supposed to be more active and stay a little smaller, but I can't comment as I don't have any. I do have a type called a "turtle sand conch" that does a great job and stays smaller.

Personally, I avoid hermits as a whole. The few I have had in the past ended up offing a snail or two...but others have had better luck.

[Reeling Reefer]

Thank you for your informative help, I am upgrading from a 37 to 180 and just want to do things right.

[Travis L. Stevens]

That sounds really good. I would go ahead and put 5 turbos in there. It's better to keep macro and filamentous algae in check when it is small, soft, and tender before it gets big, tough, and noxious. I would avoid the cucumber. Not because Tiger Tails are toxic. In fact, they are great. But they eat what the nassarious snails eat. Plus, the more animals you have spread around means the quicker it can get clean. Instead of one animal poking around for food. Also, Nassarius, Illyanassa, and Cerith snails are often confused. Just for a little pre-clarification so you know ahead of time, here you go

Nassarius vibex (Good, Sand Sifting Detrivore)


Ilyanassa obsoleta (Good, Sand Sifting Detrivore)


Cerith Snail (Good, Detrivore and Film Algae)


Whelk (Bad, Molusc Eater)

[Reeling Reefer]

Travis , Thank you for the info!