Sand Sifting Goby

[austin_socal]

I was wondering what the smallest sand sifting goby was in your opinion. I have a 25gal lagoon and want something very small bc i have a jawfish and im going to get more gobies soon.

TIA

 

[Red_Beard]

Wouldnt do it with a jawfish in a 25. Sand sifters need more space and are territorial, not to mention their dietary requirements necessitating large areas of sand.

 

[austin_socal]

Wouldnt do it with a jawfish in a 25. Sand sifters need more space and are territorial, not to mention their dietary requirements necessitating large areas of sand.

I need one bc my sand is getting super disgusting and out of hand and my CUC isn’t taking care of it snymore

 

[AetherealKnight]

I need one bc my sand is getting super disgusting and out of hand and my CUC isn’t taking care of it snymore

Get a Florida fighting conch, they will clean your sand really well!

 

[austin_socal]

Get a Florida fighting conch, they will clean your sand really well!

got two of them and they aren’t working like they used to

 

[AetherealKnight]

got two of them and they aren’t working like they used to

Ah, well then hmm, maybe an urchin?

 

[austin_socal]

Ah, well then hmm, maybe an urchin?

I have a tuxedo urchin too..
the cuc sucks these days if im being honest

 

[AetherealKnight]

I have a tuxedo urchin too..
the cuc sucks these days if im being honest

Well honestly I have no clue what else to get that can fit in a 25 gallon. Does your sand have like some sort algae growing on it or just detritus?

 

[austin_socal]

Well honestly I have no clue what else to get that can fit in a 25 gallon. Does your sand have like some sort algae growing on it or just detritus?

It’s got some cyano and some Dino’s im trying to clear up

 

[AetherealKnight]

It’s got some cyano and some Dino’s im trying to clear up

Ah, well I don’t know what clean up crew can help but assuming your water are parameters have been fixed, you can always take an old fashion turkey baster and blast the cyano and Dino’s And let the filter take care of it. It worked for me during the ugly stages.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

The best thing for algae is to start an algae thread showing pictures and parameters and get some advice how to deal with it. Our reef animals will 'keep things in check' but will not solve a bad algae problem, thats our job.

 

[WalkerLovesTheOcean]

Okay so a few things here

1) You've posted alot of threads just for your stocking list. I think I counted 15? At this point it's gotten hard to follow.

2) I can guarentee that 6 line will become murderous in that tank. Just because its 'very chill' now, does not mean it will stay that way for long.

3) just because you are 'layering fish' in your 25g does not mean you can fit more fish. All stocking lists should have 'layered fish'. 8 is too many fish. You're setting yourself up for disasters.

4) If you're upgrading soon, wait to get fish then. Why risk it? This hobby requires patience.

5) Aren't you already struggling with algae? Adding more fish will just make that problem worse since you will have high nutrients from all the fish.

Sorry if I sound harsh. It's just I and multiple others have told you multiple times that you can't have 8 fish in a 25g and then a week later another thread comes out saying you're thinking of another fish. I know you are young. I know you like this hobby. But you have to remember that you're putting these animals under you're care. So its up to you to keep them healthy and happy.

 

[Red_Beard]

I need one bc my sand is getting super disgusting and out of hand and my CUC isn’t taking care of it snymore

if it is cyano and dinos what you need to do is manually clean the sandbed, sounds like you have a young tank. They do that, especially if you start with dryrock. Syphon your sandbed clean using a python or whatever once a week or so and stir it daily or every other day. Feed heavy and make sure your po4 value isn't at or near zero and this will eventually clear up. It is part of the path to obtaining balance. A sand sifter would likely starve or cause so much chaos in a 25 you would hate it. that is much too small.

 

[austin_socal]

if it is cyano and dinos what you need to do is manually clean the sandbed, sounds like you have a young tank. They do that, especially if you start with dryrock. Syphon your sandbed clean using a python or whatever once a week or so and stir it daily or every other day. Feed heavy and make sure your po4 value isn't at or near zero and this will eventually clear up. It is part of the path to obtaining balance. A sand sifter would likely starve or cause so much chaos in a 25 you would hate it. that is much too small.

Oh ok thanks man. That makes sense. I’m not sure how old a young tank is, but I’ve had mine for over a year now. Is that considered young? Just curious bc im fairly new to the hobby and want to know

 

[Red_Beard]

can be, definitely. Depends really on how much you have in the tank how much light you give it and how much you have been feeding. Sometimes can take a while to settle out, unless you started with live ocean rock, then no, that is way too long. post us some pics so we can see what you are working with. what are your no3 po4 readings at?

 

[indiandyjones]

My observation has been that CUC slows down when what they have to eat becomes less palatable. I would definitely consider taking a peek (under the microscope) at the stuff you're seeing on the sand bed and see if it might be a dino. If it is a dino I'd recommend dosing silica for a bit until you see diatoms start taking over. CUC will eat diatoms all day, but usually slow down and not consume dinos. Also, dinos will coat other algae (like hair algae) and keep grazers who would normally eat it from doing their jobs. Just my two cents...

 

[austin_socal]

can be, definitely. Depends really on how much you have in the tank how much light you give it and how much you have been feeding. Sometimes can take a while to settle out, unless you started with live ocean rock, then no, that is way too long. post us some pics so we can see what you are working with. what are your no3 po4 readings at?

Let me check, and here are those pics.

 

[Red_Beard]

Let me check, and here are those pics.

nice tank! that does look like it is settled in nicely. Wholly guessing here, but i would think you are running a UNLS type environment. those patches are ugly, but not terrible. Usually when we start seeing things like this, it is because we've created an environment in which those undesirable organisms have a competitive edge. you need to find out why and tip the scales back. just a guess, but i would say it is a lack of nutrition the other organisms require.
In the mean time, stirring your sand manually and syphon cleaning periodically can help keep that from clumping up, until you figure out what is causing them in the first place. If your po4/no3 levels are low, don't go crazy with water changes as that will only compound the problem. Also, are you doing regular water changes or dosing trace elements regularly?

 

[SudzFD]

I need one bc my sand is getting super disgusting and out of hand and my CUC isn’t taking care of it snymore

This is a problem for you, water quality and sand cleaning maintenance. If you do add anything to help stir your sand, add some nessrius snails. The fish won’t do well if it survives at all.

 

[Cthulukelele]

Most sand sifting fish who aren't also aggressive eaters do poorly in a tank that small. You could do a goby pistol shrimp combo, but they won't usually turn over a ton of sand and are just more bioload.

Vacuuming sand is an option. Letting it run its course is also an option. Usually your sandbed growing stuff is a problem that works itself out in time if you aren't bottoming out nutrients or letting them getting crazy high.