CUC when to add

[Reefnoob13]

My 50 gallon aquarium has cycled. My question is when I should add a CUC and what are recommendations for a CUC. I plan on having two clowns, Six line wrasse, Royal Gramma, and possibly one more (would like opinion for another) or concerns of list. I plan on just running soft corals to start and possible down the road converting.

 

[Spare time]

I usually wait a week or so after the first fish to add the first hermit. Snails I add when I see algae starting to appear on the glass. Add them slowly and provide extra emtpy (dry) shells.

 

[Dempsey941]

So with cleanup crews, IMO they should be there only once your daily/weekly maintenance cannot contain the issue. Once you have reach that point start small, 1-3 trochus snails, and a couple of nassarius snails. In hindsight I probably would have avoided hermits just because they like to kill snails for their shells, but what ever floats your boat.

Best place for CUC is reefcleaners John and his team are top notch.

 

[PatW]

I like snails. Nassarius snails are good at getting uneaten food. For grazers.... the is cleaning up algae, trochus snails or small turbo snails. They will only eat algae. Hermits can be problematic. Add snails once you see algae and add them slowly. You don’t want them starving to death. Most places that sell packages of CUC give you way more animals for the size of tank.

 

[W1ngz]

Lots of different opinions on this one, but I'd say start small with the cleanup crew and grow it along with your fish. No more than 2 or 3 nassarius snails, maybe 1 turbo or an astrea. I'm a fan of hermits, but get some shells to give other options than them killing snails. Don't be afraid to feed a little extra to keep the crabs fed in the beginning. Another easy and fun fish for a new tank is always the firefish. I'll always have one of those in my tanks.

If you're set on getting a six-line, add it last and know you'll never be able to have another wrasse in that tank as long as the six is there. I just gave my little murderer back to the store. They're smart, quick and hide in the hardest to reach crevices, so once it's in, you'll only have about a 50-50 chance of catching it with a bottle trap later on.