Soon I will be shopping for a cleanup crew for my 10 gal, 18 lbs fiji LR, 3"DSB tank. What snails/crabs should I be looking for, and how many per gallon? My initial idea is 6 astreas, 2 turbos, 2 blue leg hermits, and a skunk cleaner. Could I add 2 peppermint or blood shrimp as well? The fanworms in my lR are amusing, but I hope this setup cycles fast as I need more life in there.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
Ideal Cleanup crew
- Thread starter acidbaby1
- Start date
I like a larger number of cerith snails rather than the turbos. To me astreas are just a waste. Anything that can't right itself nature did not intend to live. Ceriths are more durable and will graze the sand line against the glass. They also burrow around a little in the sand bed, and seem to reproduce well in many systems. I would go with 7 or 8 in a 10g.
Dewman, I keep an emerald crab in my polyo tank. It does not bother me that he munches polyps every once in a while. There is no way I would keep one in an sps tank or in a refugium. I watched one make a mess of a pocillopora once. When small they are pretty benign and I know of no other small invert that will eat valonia so they are valuable to me. They also eat hair algae pretty well although my strombus gigas is the champ in that regard.
Dewman, I keep an emerald crab in my polyo tank. It does not bother me that he munches polyps every once in a while. There is no way I would keep one in an sps tank or in a refugium. I watched one make a mess of a pocillopora once. When small they are pretty benign and I know of no other small invert that will eat valonia so they are valuable to me. They also eat hair algae pretty well although my strombus gigas is the champ in that regard.
If I could put suction cups on my hermits' feet I would take them over a lazy turbo snail any day of the week.
If you get turbos, take your time aclimating them. And I mean take 2-4 hours to aclimate them before releasing them.
Turbo snails are tough to keep alive because they are so sensitive to changes in conditions. They aren't handled very well by dealers and by the time you get them they are probably on the way to being dead within 3 months. At least where I live, that is the case.
If you get turbos, take your time aclimating them. And I mean take 2-4 hours to aclimate them before releasing them.
Turbo snails are tough to keep alive because they are so sensitive to changes in conditions. They aren't handled very well by dealers and by the time you get them they are probably on the way to being dead within 3 months. At least where I live, that is the case.
I have had good luck with mail-order turbo snails. If they are dry shipped, you don't have to go through the 2 - 4 hour aclimation process. You can just temperature aclimate them, and drop them in. In a small tank, I would get the smallest snails you can find. Nothing will crash a small tank like a big dead turbo.
I have mixed opinion on Hermit crabs. I have had blue legs, and now I have Zebra and Reds. I think I like the Zebra hermits the best, they don't get too big, and in the 3 months I have had them, they haven't gone after any of my snails.
I have mixed opinion on Hermit crabs. I have had blue legs, and now I have Zebra and Reds. I think I like the Zebra hermits the best, they don't get too big, and in the 3 months I have had them, they haven't gone after any of my snails.
Sponsor Reefs
We're a FREE website, and we exist because of hobbyists like YOU who help us run this community.
Click here to sponsor $10:
