Which inverts should i get for a clean up crew?

[Scooter21]

I have a 36 gallon FOWLR tank and I'm raising up the salinity to add a clean up crew.

Current inhabitants are:
2 clownfish
3 pajama cardinal
Bicolor blenny
Firefish
Diamond goby


I want to get stuff that will help with algae, uneaten food and detritus. I'm already a little worried about whether my diamond goby will get enough to eat so, I was thinking maybe I shouldn't get a nassarious snail. I do try to spot feed the diamond goby by planting pellets in the sand In the area he likes to hang out.

How would this be?
1 cleaner shrimp
2 trochus snail
2 emerald crabs
1 Scarlett hermit


I don't know what else I could/should add. Would a sexy shrimp be ok?

 

[Spare time]

I wouldn't worry about the diamond goby. They will eat when the other fish eat (typically) and primarily eat zooplankton in the sand. My personal preference includes a handful of nassarius, a few hermits (blue legs are my favorite because they are so tiny), a variety of different snail species EXCEPT astrea), possibly a conch or two, and as many shrimps as you'd like

 

[SlugSnorter]

I have a 36 gallon FOWLR tank and I'm raising up the salinity to add a clean up crew.

Current inhabitants are:
2 clownfish
3 pajama cardinal
Bicolor blenny
Firefish
Diamond goby


I want to get stuff that will help with algae, uneaten food and detritus. I'm already a little worried about whether my diamond goby will get enough to eat so, I was thinking maybe I shouldn't get a nassarious snail. I do try to spot feed the diamond goby by planting pellets in the sand In the area he likes to hang out.

How would this be?
1 cleaner shrimp
2 trochus snail
2 emerald crabs
1 Scarlett hermit


I don't know what else I could/should add. Would a sexy shrimp be ok?

start with stuff thats a bit hardier, so I would say you should get 10 banded trochus, 10 Florida ceriths, 3 Nassarius for now. Sexies would maybe be eaten or swept away, also, they are not cleaners (and besides, I doubt you would ever see them in that tank).

 

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Get 4-5x more CUC than you think you need...

You really can't have too many snails and little guys to be honest.

 

[Spare time]

Also, serpent and brittle stars are fantastic scavengers. 10/10 would recommend lol

 

[SlugSnorter]

Also, serpent and brittle stars are fantastic scavengers. 10/10 would recommend lol

so good at cleaning that they'll clean up the fish too lol.

 

[SlugSnorter]

Get 4-5x more CUC than you think you need...

You really can't have too many snails and little guys to be honest.

I would say 10 banded trochus, 10 Florida ceriths, 3 Nassarius for now. decent start, and will survive most early tank mishaps

 

[Rick's Reviews]

Your aquarium sounds similar to my 45g 200litre, I have 2 clowns 3 firefish, 2 chromis, mandarin, high fin goby, pistol shrimp... plus others (3years old/ new)
my clean up crew are 5-10 nassarius snails (these are great for sand bed turnover) , 3 x false Mexican turbo snails, 10 X dove snails, 10 X fake dove snails, red legged Dwarf hermits, green legged hermits?, electric blue hermits, Halloween hermit, conch snail, sand sifting star fish ( this also a great sand bed turnover animal), pin cushion urchin,

How old/ young is your aquarium?

I use algae wafers and crab cuisine pellets randomly and all seem to go mad for them so look into buying these as an addition

 

[codenfx]

I like scarlet hermit, they're so chill and dont bother anything in my tank but they're not very active. Don't worry about the diamond goby not getting food, mine gets plenty and I don't target feed. He scavenges the sand all day and swims around to eat when I feed the other fish.

 

[Scooter21]

Your aquarium sounds similar to my 45g 200litre, I have 2 clowns 3 firefish, 2 chromis, mandarin, high fin goby, pistol shrimp... plus others (3years old/ new)
my clean up crew are 5-10 nassarius snails (these are great for sand bed turnover) , 3 x false Mexican turbo snails, 10 X dove snails, 10 X fake dove snails, red legged Dwarf hermits, green legged hermits?, electric blue hermits, Halloween hermit, conch snail, sand sifting star fish ( this also a great sand bed turnover animal), pin cushion urchin,

How old/ young is your aquarium?

I use algae wafers and crab cuisine pellets randomly and all seem to go mad for them so look into buying these as an addition

I bought my tank used. I've had it about a month now. When I moved it, I just drained out the water and reuses the sand. So, the sand got really stirred up and then I did a bunch of water changes to get the levels down. So, I don't know how old that would make my setup, but I'd assume you'd count the 2 years or whatever that the previous owner had it


Your inverts are very cool! Are any of them easy to care for in a non reef tank? I've always heard starfish are hard to keep.

I was watching a BRStv video and they said most people get way too many inverts and then they all slowly starve to death. So, I don't think I'll get anywhere near 20 snails, but the algae wafers are a great idea!

 

[andre1879]

We love our cucumber and fighting conch. They both do a great job of keeping the sand clean. It's funny to see little piles of sand, it lets you know where the cucumber has been.

 

[Scooter21]

What about stuff like clams and scallops. Are they hard to care for? Will they survive in my tank? Just wondering what my options are

 

[Rick's Reviews]

Honestly I created my aquriam on a very low budget and just adjusted what live stock I introduced to fit in with my lifestyle, my aquriam and stand was £50, I cut out old sealant and resealed aquriam glass, and painted stand.
My aquriam is not really a reef tank, I have mushrooms, candy cane corals, GSP, clove polyps and more but majority are photosynthetic
It just works for me.

I have recently got into fragging corals but this was not my intention to begin with.
I was happy with my Fowler aquarium
2 clowns, 3 firefish, 2 chromis, high fin goby, pistol shrimp, fire shrimp, skunk shrimp, mandarin.
I love crabs/ hermits, I'm still considering adding a real crab but unsure yet

It's your aquarium and honestly you will decide what's best for you and your lifestyle.
Crab cuisine is deffenitly a great buy for £2
Especially for new aquarium without algae

 

[SlugSnorter]

What about stuff like clams and scallops. Are they hard to care for? Will they survive in my tank? Just wondering what my options are

harder to care for than most corals. You should go basic with inverts for now (mostly snails), and start looking into other stuff once your tank is a little older, and more developed. The worst thing that can happen from waiting is feeling a bit impatient, but getting stuff you/your tank is not ready for yet can cause dead animals.

 

[Scooter21]

harder to care for than most corals. You should go basic with inverts for now (mostly snails), and start looking into other stuff once your tank is a little older, and more developed. The worst thing that can happen from waiting is feeling a bit impatient, but getting stuff you/your tank is not ready for yet can cause dead animals.

Ya. That's what I don't want to do. I definitely just want easy to care for and hardy things. I just didn't know if there is anything like that besides snails, crabs, and shrimp

 

[SlugSnorter]

Ya. That's what I don't want to do. I definitely just want easy to care for and hardy things. I just didn't know if there is anything like that besides snails, crabs, and shrimp

there are! and there are many, many unique animals within "only" those groups. Once you get your first coral or two, Is when I would recommend getting inverts beyond the hardy "basic" CUC snails and/or hermits. But if you want, you could probably get away with a cleaner shrimp now, but IMO its better to wait a little longer. All inverts are sensitive so salinity, to be mindful to keep that stable.

 

[Scooter21]

there are! and there are many, many unique animals within "only" those groups. Once you get your first coral or two, Is when I would recommend getting inverts beyond the hardy "basic" CUC snails and/or hermits. But if you want, you could probably get away with a cleaner shrimp now, but IMO its better to wait a little longer. All inverts are sensitive so salinity, to be mindful to keep that stable.

What's the best salinity to aim for? I was thinking 1.025. I've been slowly bringing it up from 1.022

 

[SlugSnorter]

What's the best salinity to aim for? I was thinking 1.025. I've been slowly bringing it up from 1.022

yup, thats the standard. With a working AIO maintaining salinity is probably the easiest part of keeping. Just make sure to double check salinity when doing a wc.

 

[Mjl714]

I would include an urchin of some type.

 

[SlugSnorter]

I would include an urchin of some type.

not this early in a tank imo. Nitrates aside, not enough algae for them yet.