Clean Up Crew Help

[daddyhugen]

Hey everyone, well just wanted to get advice on a clean up crew package on what and how many to get for my 55 gallon, 55lb rock. That i plan on adding in a few days

So far i have 2 peppermint shrimp, used to have 11 blue leg crabs and 10 snails but sold them to a friend, since i toke them out to see if my new rock was going to cycle which it didn't. But here is a list of things i see people most commonly added to a tank, my tank at least for the first year is just going to be fish only. So here it is, please add how much of each list.

Blue Leg Crabs: ?
Red Leg Crabs or scarlet red leg crabs?
Snails not sure what kind or how many?
Cleaner Shrimp ?

Thanks in Advice

 

[pscott99]

Cleaner shrimp are great fun to watch. I find crabs a waste of money, they don't live long. Nassarius snails clean your sand. Make sure the snails you buy can right themselves or your crabs will kill them all.

 

[wildcrazyjoker81]

There is no specific number that you need to add to get your CUC up and running. Just pick a number and start from there depending on how much cleaning you think needs done. I personally wouldn't add a cleaner shrimp unless you want one for decoration as they aren't a big part of the CUC and are more ornamental and help for cleaning fish. On another note if you add hermits and snails, be prepared for your snail population to go down as the hermits kill them for their shells. Just a natural part of the game though. I personally buy all my CUC from John at Reef Cleaners| Clean up Crews and Macroalgae - Reef Cleaners. He has good prices and always give far more than what you order. I know I didn't really answer your question, but there is no technical answer for it.

 

[LetItReef]

I like Nerite snails. Does a good job cleaning our glass tank. Maybe 5-8 for your 55g.

 

[CastAway]

You mentioned new rock, and cycling. So to be clear, has your tank gone through its initial cycle - did the ammonia and nitrite peak and are now at 0?

So you already have rock in your tank that you thought would cause a cycle but it didn't, but, you're adding more in a few days?

In addition to the two peppermint shrimp, are there other inverts or fish?

Just want to clarify because there will always be an equilibrium between available food, and the CUC to eat it. Knowing where you are with respect to cycling, or pending cycling as a result of adding more rock, may make a difference in what you add and when.

After the cycle, I suggest adding snails slowly, as the tendency is to add too many too quickly, and then they starve.

It's much debated, but IMO snails are the work horses of any CUC, not hermits. Cerith snails will eat dead matter AND algae, and are therefore good all-round members of any crew. They are the most numerous in my own CUC. Turbos eat only algae and diatoms, but they're big voracious eaters, so add one-at-time, slowly, or they'll starve. A couple large turbos would be plenty for a 55 IMO. Nassarius snails eat dead matter, and will help keep a thin layer of sand stirred. I would suggest they should be a part of any CUC. Emerald crabs are handy, but they will munch on coral tissue on occasion. IMO, Emerald crabs are best for mature tanks. Cleaner shrimp do just that, they pick food off fish, and I would not consider them as a part of the CUC. If you add the typical red leg or blue leg hermits, be sure to add some empty shells of the same size, as they'll kill one another, and snails, for shells as they grow.

Once a tank is mature, and the CUC is in balance with available food sources, some people add a snail, hermit, or two jus tto keep up with natural decline. They don't have the longest life expectancy, in general.

BTW, one thing I learned the hard way is the snails are one of the most sensitive to changes in salinity.

 

[TBAquaculture]

I like to have a mixture of things as some do one job better than others and some are just fun to watch. I personally think the diversity of life in your tank is what makes it so interesting, so I have designed our clean up crews to be diverse. Not just a handful of snails and a few hermits.
This is what our 55 Gallon CUC Contains
36 Mixed Hermits - Blue Leg, Scarlet and Keys Red Leg
14 Astera Snails - Either regular or Ninja Star
6 Nassarius Snails
28 Dwarf Ceriths
9 Nerite Snails
3 Brittle or Serpent Stars
3 Emerald Crabs
2 Peppermint Shrimp
2 Sea Cucumbers
1 Sally Lightfooot

 

[daddyhugen]

You mentioned new rock, and cycling. So to be clear, has your tank gone through its initial cycle - did the ammonia and nitrite peak and are now at 0?

So you already have rock in your tank that you thought would cause a cycle but it didn't, but, you're adding more in a few days?

In addition to the two peppermint shrimp, are there other inverts or fish?

Just want to clarify because there will always be an equilibrium between available food, and the CUC to eat it. Knowing where you are with respect to cycling, or pending cycling as a result of adding more rock, may make a difference in what you add and when.

After the cycle, I suggest adding snails slowly, as the tendency is to add too many too quickly, and then they starve.

It's much debated, but IMO snails are the work horses of any CUC, not hermits. Cerith snails will eat dead matter AND algae, and are therefore good all-round members of any crew. They are the most numerous in my own CUC. Turbos eat only algae and diatoms, but they're big voracious eaters, so add one-at-time, slowly, or they'll starve. A couple large turbos would be plenty for a 55 IMO. Nassarius snails eat dead matter, and will help keep a thin layer of sand stirred. I would suggest they should be a part of any CUC. Emerald crabs are handy, but they will munch on coral tissue on occasion. IMO, Emerald crabs are best for mature tanks. Cleaner shrimp do just that, they pick food off fish, and I would not consider them as a part of the CUC. If you add the typical red leg or blue leg hermits, be sure to add some empty shells of the same size, as they'll kill one another, and snails, for shells as they grow.

Once a tank is mature, and the CUC is in balance with available food sources, some people add a snail, hermit, or two jus tto keep up with natural decline. They don't have the longest life expectancy, in general.

BTW, one thing I learned the hard way is the snails are one of the most sensitive to changes in salinity.

My tank has been running for 5 weeks, ammonia and nitrite have read 0 for 4 weeks straight, and i check all levels daily. and your message made alot of sense, i think the only thing im gonna add as far as a clean up crew, is one large turbo snail, maybe 2 or 3 blue leg crabs, and 4 ro 5 nassarius snails. and thats it, and also 2 peppermint shrimp is all i have, i do have a few tiny baby turbo snails that were on my cured live rock when i bought them.

 

[CastAway]

daddyhugen - Do a little Google researching on everything, especially sally lightfoots, brittle stars & cucumbers. Not everything makes sense or is beneficial, depending on bioload, plans for fish not yet purchased, sand bed, and so on and so on. Everything has a unique job and behavior. Some snails, like the nerites I think, crawl out of the water often, and you may not want that. Find a fellow reefer who can give you a tiny micro-brittle star or two out of their tank. I believe those to be very beneficial.

 

[KorD]

my cuc is a bunch of odd balls
I have a conch, urchin, turbo snail, electric blue large hermit crab, 2 Nassarius snails and an anemone shrimp.

I would defiantly get
Nassarius snails
cleaner shrimp
pepermint shrimp,
and a couple hermits.

 

[Nivagg]

go to reefcleaners they have lists of suggestions for your size tank but its just that suggestions. They are cheap to order from tho and have coupons inline =)