CUC, how much is too much?

i cant think · Apr 22, 2022

Okay, I figured this deserved its own thread as I’m in a bit of a predicament. I have a 1 year old Red Sea Max Nano with this as its CUC:
2x Nassarius spp
4x Trochus (Black Footed)
1x Strawberry conch
1x Blue Dwarf Legged Hermit Crab
And the last invert that is tenichally a CUC member as it scavenges around for anything uneaten is a Pom Pom Crab.

I was thinking about getting more however I don’t really have a big reason to except to help with a dead fish removal (I can’t do it as it’s wedged right in the back). What would you do? Leave the current ones to do it (I will add the body has been in the tank for 48 hours and there’s a Deresa clam that seems to be stressing most likely due to spikes) or get some more on the next trip to the LFS.

Waters · Apr 22, 2022

I wouldn't add anything additional strictly to clean up a dead fish.....once that fish is gone, everything will be out of food (unless you have a need for more CUC outside of the fish removal).

Chrisv. · Apr 22, 2022

What's the size of the tank? How big is the dead fish?

I agree that I would not add additional cuc for one fish if there is no other need. You can always add come carbon or chemipure blue to help soften the load added by the decomposition of the fish.

i cant think · Apr 22, 2022

Chrisv. said:
What's the size of the tank? How big is the dead fish?

I agree that I would not add additional cuc for one fish if there is no other need. You can always add come carbon or chemipure blue to help soften the load added by the decomposition of the fish.

Size of the tank is a 20g Red Sea Max Nano
The dead fish was 1.5 inches, I removed the body so I don’t think I’ll add any more CUC maybe 1-2 snails though as I have a lot of film algae building up on my glass.

Dburr1014 · Apr 22, 2022

Do you have tongs?

i cant think · Apr 22, 2022

Dburr1014 said:
Do you have tongs?

Unfortunately no, I used a turkey baster after removing 3 rocks as he wasn’t under either of the ones I thought he was.

JumboShrimp · Apr 22, 2022

Just a tangent to the discussion, Bumble Bee snails really know how to work the rocks— and mine seem to multiply like rabbits.

GARRIGA · Apr 22, 2022

I'm having to manually fed my urchin and fear I'm going to lose it because my tank is low on algae. Might increase lighting to compensate, therefore, I consider a limit on CUC based on available food source. Each tank is unique and why there's no blanket number that can be suggested. BTW, I don't remove detritus yet I'm also having to manually feed my nassarius. Always good to have those around should something perish and why having more CUC than required isn't a burden since manual feeding is always an option.

My margaritas are handling the glass algae to the point I rarely pass the magnet and they are reproducing so at some point I'm going to have to welcome more algae to keep the kids fed. Haven't found a solution for manually feeding them and perhaps some Nori.