Clean Up Crew Question??
- Thread starter BUDDYJEFF
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NateHanson
Non-member
People have their various preferences and philosophies about clean up crews, and lots of things work.
I'll tell you what I like. I think a tank should have a really large number of scarlet and blue-leg hermits, like one per gallon. And also a good number of nassarius snails - maybe 1 per 3 gallons. These guys primary job is to clean up food, poop (and the occasional dead body) that falls into the rockwork and onto the sand bed. When that detritus collects in rock crevices, I believe that's what makes algae grow, and while some snails may eat algae, I think it's much more effective to have lots of little crabs to pick all that stuff out of the cracks before it causes a problem.
I think a handful of cerith snails are important to keep the sandbed a little bit stirred (just ~1 per 10 gallons), and I think a fighting conch is good for cleaning and stirring the sand too (and their beautiful eyes are reason enough to have one).
Shrimp are great scavengers when bigger things die, but mostly I'd say they are there for lookin' at. I'm not sure if peppermint shrimp are effective at controlling aptasia. I always had Peps, and never had any aptasia, but I'm not about to conclude anything based on that.
I think astrea snails are useless and then they die on their backs. The glass is better cleaned by a magnet, and after the tank matures, there won't be any film algae growing on the glass anyways.
Turbos knock stuff over, but I have added them once to try to control hair algae. I think they helped some. I'd put these in the "as needed" column. Same with something like a sea hare. Lettuce nudis are powerhead confetti in all but the lowest flow tanks.
I'll tell you what I like. I think a tank should have a really large number of scarlet and blue-leg hermits, like one per gallon. And also a good number of nassarius snails - maybe 1 per 3 gallons. These guys primary job is to clean up food, poop (and the occasional dead body) that falls into the rockwork and onto the sand bed. When that detritus collects in rock crevices, I believe that's what makes algae grow, and while some snails may eat algae, I think it's much more effective to have lots of little crabs to pick all that stuff out of the cracks before it causes a problem.
I think a handful of cerith snails are important to keep the sandbed a little bit stirred (just ~1 per 10 gallons), and I think a fighting conch is good for cleaning and stirring the sand too (and their beautiful eyes are reason enough to have one).
Shrimp are great scavengers when bigger things die, but mostly I'd say they are there for lookin' at. I'm not sure if peppermint shrimp are effective at controlling aptasia. I always had Peps, and never had any aptasia, but I'm not about to conclude anything based on that.
I think astrea snails are useless and then they die on their backs. The glass is better cleaned by a magnet, and after the tank matures, there won't be any film algae growing on the glass anyways.
Turbos knock stuff over, but I have added them once to try to control hair algae. I think they helped some. I'd put these in the "as needed" column. Same with something like a sea hare. Lettuce nudis are powerhead confetti in all but the lowest flow tanks.
Greg Hiller
BRS Moderator
>I think astrea snails are useless and then they die on their backs. The glass is better cleaned by a magnet, and after the tank matures, there won't be any film algae growing on the glass anyways. <
They do die if they fall on their backs and you don't help them up, but overall, for the cost, I consider Astreas to be one of the workhorses in a cleanup crew. I've had some that have lived for many years. They will spread out and clean algae from rocks just as much as the glass.
They do die if they fall on their backs and you don't help them up, but overall, for the cost, I consider Astreas to be one of the workhorses in a cleanup crew. I've had some that have lived for many years. They will spread out and clean algae from rocks just as much as the glass.
FinzAquatics
Non-member
i am a fan of nassarius snails. i got a good amount of those little guys and soon as lights are out, they are all over the sand bed and glass. and when light comes out.... away they go. love my nassarius
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