cleaner clams from the grocery store?

[khaosinc]

so while waiting for RC's updating I was wandering around the internet and stumbled across a couple threads and articals about using 'cleaner clams' that you can pretty much buy at the grocery store. Names thrown out were 'Little Necks, Chowders, Cherrystones.'
Several people attested to their success for at least a year or 2 and a couple people claimed they considered them an important part of their clean up crew.
I tend to think of fish as pets and not food, so I know little about clams, but the thought of a built in living 'filter' in my tank sounds cool, and it wouldn't be particularily cost prohibitive...

Does anyone here have any experience with them, or would I just be buying a ammonia spike and hermit food?

[boxfishpooalot]

I tried it. I think you should try even though it failed on me. They died and did not like the high temperature. I wanted them to remove the green fog(phytoplankton bloom) but did not work and just got a uv sterolizer.

[redfishsc]

The problem doing this is that once they clean up a tank, what are they going to eat next?

I am trying to recall what clam will handle the warmer water better--- I suspect the cherrystones and littlenecks will do fine.


If you try it, acclimate them VERY slowly. Put them in a cooler b/c they will be cold as heck from the grocery. Put some chilled tank water in with them and an airstone. Over the course of the day let the water warm up. Maybe this is overly anal, but no need in risking killing them, either.

Put them somewhere easy to remove, and maybe in a small dish of sand for them to bury and feel comfy. I would NOT put them in the main tank in case they die and nothing can eat them quick enough.

Now, if they die on you, remember they still make great fish and anemone food when fresh! I used to have blennies that were native to SC coastal waters that I fed clams still in the shell--- popped them open and watched them clean it out. Very fun to watch.


Clam shells also make GREAT zoanthid/soft coral frag plugs, upside down or right-side up.

[vito is hooked]

Don't bother, looking for trouble. Not saying it can't be done, but not worth the trouble, hard to tell when they die, most likely to late and foul your water. Need dirty water to thrive and that mean's high nitrate's. Whatever you decide, Good Luck!

[greenbean36191]

Filter feeding is just a description of where they get their food. It does not imply any benefit to water quality. These clams don't do anything miraculous. They capture food (mostly phytoplankton and bacteria) and turn it into energy and waste just like a fish does. They do not take up dissolved nutrients- they increase them. Unless you have a nasty phytoplankton bloom, adding these clams is about as beneficial to the tank as adding another fish. If you don't have such a bloom they aren't likely to last long either.

These clams are very widely distributed from temperate to subtropical areas, so temperature isn't that big of an issue for them, though they aren't truly tropical.

[BigJay]

My angels love chopped clam from the grocery store.

Unfortunately that means I'll probably never be able to keep a crocea or maxima. :(