Need help dealing with NITRATES

[sde1500]

I have never vacummed my sand... i have 10 nasrus snails. They vacuum for me

They aren't nearly as efficient as a gravel vac is.

 

[Joshua Agostoni]

They aren't nearly as efficient as a gravel vac is.

I have a gravel vac but when I use it, it sucks the sand out of the tank and that is only using siphoning no pump attached.

 

[Brew12]

Ok so my cleaner crew for a 55 gallon tank includes 10 nasarus snails 1 hermit crab two emerald crabs ( as long as they havnt died, can never seem to find them) and a purple lobster.

What else and how many of each should I get.

This is what reefcleaners.org recommends for a 55 gallon, snail only, CuC. Personally, I would only go with 1/2 of that. Even then, the CuC is only there to help you with maintenance, not eliminate the maintenance.

51 Dwarf Ceriths - small cleaners that get to the nooks and crannies. Feed on diatoms, cyano, algal detritus, and film algae. Nocturnal cleaners that leave the sandbed at night to search for food.

12 Nassarius vibex - scavenger snails that will eat leftover food and some fish waste. They will stir sand, but can also be kept in bare bottom tanks.

26 Florida Ceriths - small cleaners that get to the nooks and crannies. Feed on fine hair algae, diatoms, cyano, algal detritus, and film algae. Nocturnal cleaners that leave the sandbed at night to search for food.

22 Nerites - We are currently offering the longer lived and quite hardy Antillean Nerite. (Nerita fulgurans). It grows to a nice size,and consumes a good deal of diatoms, cyano, algal detritus, and film algae. It will also consume some fine hair algae. A nocturnal herbivore that will feed more often at night, they tend to need some time to adjust to the limitations of the aquarium during their first week.

 

[Joshua Agostoni]

Yeah I've heard one invert to every gallon you have but even half of that seems like a lot, I have bin told that when u use those amounts you risk not having enough food in the tank to sustain them all.

 

[Brew12]

I have a gravel vac but when I use it, it sucks the sand out of the tank and that is only using siphoning no pump attached.

I have a little problem with that, too. I used a dremel to cut a 1" deep notch out of my vac so it can't get a good suction on the gravel but I can use the remaining part of it to stir the gravel. It sucks out what gets kicked up from the stirring.

 

[Brew12]

Yeah I've heard one invert to every gallon you have but even half of that seems like a lot, I have bin told that when u use those amounts you risk not having enough food in the tank to sustain them all.

It is a hard balance to find. Obviously, the dirtier you keep your tank the larger the crew you can support.

Oh, as for the emerald crabs... I thought I lost both of mine. Hadn't seen one for months and he showed up on the rock work one day. Haven't seen him again in the last 2 months. I need to get a red lens for my flashlight so I can look at night better.

 

[Joshua Agostoni]

Yeah the emerald crabs are crazy hiders. I think I'll get a reef pack from live aquria cause I would love to seem for life going through my tank.

 

[Brew12]

Yeah the emerald crabs are crazy hiders. I think I'll get a reef pack from live aquria cause I would love to seem for life going through my tank.

I agree. I really enjoy watching the snails and small hermit crabs. It really brings the tank to life. I'll be ordering a bunch more once I tear down my current system and get the new system up and running.