G
Guest
What type of clean up crew is recommended for a soft coral reef tank with some fishes in it?
-
Welcome back Guest!MARSH is a private reefing group. Comments and suggestions are encouraged, but please keep them positive and constructive. Negative threads, posts, or attacks will be removed from view and reviewed by the staff. Continually disruptive, argumentative, or flagrant rule breakers may be suspended or banned.
Users who are viewing this thread
B
BrianPlankis
I used blue leg hermits, scarlet hermits, astrea snails and turbo snails for my cleanup crew. I made the mistake of using a sand sifting starfish too, extremely good at cleaning the sand, but basically made my sand sterile. I was going to try a sea cucumber next but then I tore down my tanks for the big move. Anyway, the above animals didn't see mto bother my soft corals at all. Although my turbo snails did knock over anything small that wasn't attached to the reef.
B
BrianPlankis
Oh yeah, also kept 2 emerald crabs to eat any bubble algae that formed. However you have to make sure they don't get too much fish food or they'll never touch the bubble algae.
Wildfire
Guest
I have blue leg hermits, scarlet hermits, Nassarius Snails, Trochea Snails, Astrea Snails, Bumblebee Snails, Margarita Snails, 2 Queen Conch, 1 Brittle Star, a few Peppermint (5 I think) shrimp, an emerald crab, a cleaner shrimp, and a myriad of baby snails, starfish, and something which I still have not yet been able to ID (hitchiker on some rock)...
In short, my cleanup crew consists of "some of everything" from the snails / crabs collection of your LFS!
In short, my cleanup crew consists of "some of everything" from the snails / crabs collection of your LFS!
OP
OP
Guest
Wow ... Would it look too crowded in the tank with that many cleaners in it?
OP
OP
Guest
Not his tank, you can't see anything because of the rock. I think he feels that if you have enough rock that maybe it will find a mate and breed. Hahaha
So Wildfire, did the little peppermints make it or did they get eaten?
Nathan
So Wildfire, did the little peppermints make it or did they get eaten?
Nathan
OP
OP
Guest
I only have a 135 gallon tank with 120lbs of LR ... What's the right amount to get?
OP
OP
Guest
Depends on what you want, and how much cleaning your cleanup crew needs to clean.
Or was that question directed about the LR? Wildfire has his filled to the rim for he was getting it ready for his new larger tank. I have about 35 in my 29 gal, and feel I need a few more pounds, but that is me.
Right now for my 29 gal, I have 1 queen conch, 5 Nassarius snails, 7 cerith, 2 Astrea, 1 other, several small black ones, 2 hermits (feel need more of these), 1 peppermint shrimp, one cleaner shirmp, one hitchhiker that looks like some kind of dull grey nubibranch that seems to eat a very small amount of algae, and a red bali starfish.
I want to get a few more things, but yes you can see some snails in my tank.
Nathan
Or was that question directed about the LR? Wildfire has his filled to the rim for he was getting it ready for his new larger tank. I have about 35 in my 29 gal, and feel I need a few more pounds, but that is me.
Right now for my 29 gal, I have 1 queen conch, 5 Nassarius snails, 7 cerith, 2 Astrea, 1 other, several small black ones, 2 hermits (feel need more of these), 1 peppermint shrimp, one cleaner shirmp, one hitchhiker that looks like some kind of dull grey nubibranch that seems to eat a very small amount of algae, and a red bali starfish.
I want to get a few more things, but yes you can see some snails in my tank.
Nathan
OP
OP
Guest
cool thanks
Wildfire
Guest
Narkon said:
They all made it. Plus one of the crabs (which is upstairs in the toy-room tank).
As for the number of my cleaners:
I once saw a quote (can't remember where) which stated:
"If you can count the snails, you don't have enough"
