what is a good clean up crew??

jeffscustomcage · 04/16/2010, 05:22 PM

i have 1emerald crab 4 turbo snails 1 fire shrimp and 2 peppermint shrimp. what would be some other things to add to my 125 i am having some algae problems so i guess i am getting my clean up crew first. also have 2 clown and rtba and a few frags of coral. i am doing a reef tank
can i mix these also
what about
Nassarius Snail
RED LEG HERMIT CRABS
NEON BLUE STRIPE HERMIT

what are some recommendations and how many?

thegrun · 04/16/2010, 06:04 PM

I would start with around 20-30 snails. Mix of Nassarius, Astraea, Cerith and Nerite. I stay away from Turbos due to their size and tendency to plow through corals.

Stripe01 · 04/16/2010, 06:27 PM

Stay away from blue legged hermit crabs, they'll make quick work of your snails.

nvdiz · 04/16/2010, 07:08 PM

Red Legs aka Scarlet hermits in my experience pretty friendly. I keep 1 in my tank only cause I think they make my nano a little more interesting. Stick with the snails cause they're way more effective in controlling algae.

100%hydrophylic · 04/16/2010, 07:49 PM

snails may be affective, but theyr also slow and boring

i like having a mixture of crabs and snails. more diversity means more chances of controlling a wider variety of algae, and more nooks and crannies get scavenged.

04/16/2010, 05:22 PM	#1
jeffscustomcage Moved On Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: zion illinois Posts: 294	what is a good clean up crew?? i have 1emerald crab 4 turbo snails 1 fire shrimp and 2 peppermint shrimp. what would be some other things to add to my 125 i am having some algae problems so i guess i am getting my clean up crew first. also have 2 clown and rtba and a few frags of coral. i am doing a reef tank can i mix these also what about Nassarius Snail RED LEG HERMIT CRABS NEON BLUE STRIPE HERMIT what are some recommendations and how many?

04/16/2010, 07:49 PM	#5
100%hydrophylic Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: GA Posts: 1,636	snails may be affective, but theyr also slow and boring i like having a mixture of crabs and snails. more diversity means more chances of controlling a wider variety of algae, and more nooks and crannies get scavenged. __________________ :) Current Tank Info: 75g mixed reef, 28g nano SPS

04/16/2010, 06:04 PM	#2
thegrun Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Garden Grove, Ca Posts: 17,023	I would start with around 20-30 snails. Mix of Nassarius, Astraea, Cerith and Nerite. I stay away from Turbos due to their size and tendency to plow through corals.

04/16/2010, 06:27 PM	#3
Stripe01 Moved On Join Date: May 2009 Location: Napa Posts: 411	Stay away from blue legged hermit crabs, they'll make quick work of your snails.

04/16/2010, 07:08 PM	#4
nvdiz Registered Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Skokie Posts: 1,345	Red Legs aka Scarlet hermits in my experience pretty friendly. I keep 1 in my tank only cause I think they make my nano a little more interesting. Stick with the snails cause they're way more effective in controlling algae.