Cleaner clams

[Fishingandreefing]

I am just curious if anyone keeping cleaner clams in their reef tanks for the purpose to maintaining better water quality since they filter water (nitrate and phosphate?)

i would also assume they eat small amount of detritus in the sand bed but if they’re kept in the sump, it’s just probably filtering the water like an oyster.

I kept a few before but now want to again. The only worry I have is if they carry any disease.

 

[Big G]

Check out the "Thorny Oysters" that KP Aquatics sells. Very cool looking. They are on my want list.

45 days in a fish-less QT to keep our any undesirable parasites. Have also seen various "worms" encrusted on the shells too. So a good inspection and observation of the shells are a good idea during the QT period.

 

[Cthulukelele]

Check out the "Thorny Oysters" that KP Aquatics sells. Very cool looking. They are on my want list.

45 days in a fish-less QT to keep our any undesirable parasites. Have also seen various "worms" encrusted on the shells too. So a good inspection and observation of the shells are a good idea during the QT period.

Aren't thorny oysters ridiculously hard to have any long term success with or am I incorrect?

 

[Big G]

Aren't thorny oysters ridiculously hard to have any long term success with or am I incorrect?

Yep. You are correct.

 

[Cthulukelele]

Yep. You are correct.

I hope that one day filtration gets to a place where I can just dump fistfulls of food into a tank and keep nps coral and flame scallops and thorny oysters

 

[Fishingandreefing]

Check out the "Thorny Oysters" that KP Aquatics sells. Very cool looking. They are on my want list.

45 days in a fish-less QT to keep our any undesirable parasites. Have also seen various "worms" encrusted on the shells too. So a good inspection and observation of the shells are a good idea during the QT period.

Maybe it’s not worth it. Id prob just throw that idea out keeping them

 

[MartinM]

Aren't thorny oysters ridiculously hard to have any long term success with or am I incorrect?

I’ve had one grow from the size of my thumbnail to close to 8cm across in about 2 years. They’re not hard to keep as long as you feed your tank a wide variety of appropriate foods. I turn my tank into a plankton soup every night after the lights go out!

 

[Fishingandreefing]

I’ve had one grow from the size of my thumbnail to close to 8cm across in about 2 years. They’re not hard to keep as long as you feed your tank a wide variety of appropriate foods. I turn my tank into a plankton soup every night after the lights go out!

My intention was not to keep or raise them but rather keeping them as part of the cleaning crews to filter out nitrate and phosphate

the plankton soup is that suppose to be good?

 

[Tired]

A better way to remove excess nitrate and phosphate is something like chaeto, that only wants nutrients and not plankton. Your corals and such want that plankton.

 

[Fishingandreefing]

A better way to remove excess nitrate and phosphate is something like chaeto, that only wants nutrients and not plankton. Your corals and such want that plankton.

I am aware of other options on nutrient exports but just curious if others use these type of clams for that purpose

 

[Fishingandreefing]

So I got some and put them in the tank, they’re pretty cool sometimes stuck their mouth out of the sand bed and just siphon water.

 

[Tired]

What species?

Keep us updated on how they do.

 

[Tcook]

Or just add some clams to your sump

 

[Saltyanimals]

IMHO I don't think it does much in terms of benefits unless you have ALOT of them I presume. I saved a few from a seafood store that was destined for the grill. clams and mussels. I assume they're still alive today since I now see mussels pop up here and there on various rocks which may suggest they're alive and even propagating. It was nothing more than a random curiosity event. I have a 8 in Maxima which I assume would be a better filter feeder if I was to look at it from a cleaner perspective vs 2-3 little clam cucs. Add the benefits vs additional bioload to the tank if you want to get

There are plenty of various live clams if you hit up an asian grocery store with a decent size seafood department. Just make sure the ones you pick are "clammed" up tight and not a open nor smells like death. Likely they're alive. Put them in a cup of tank water for a day or so and you may notice they open up.