The Cleaning Crew

[darrylbarry]

Hi all
i am setting up my reef tank and i am using red sea reef mature pro kit..
this makes tanks ready in 21 days ...
anyway i am on day 10 which is time to add the cleaning crew in.
i went to my local stockist and he sold me 3 snails and 2 hermit crabs ...
do i need more or is this enough for the cleaning process
my tank is 230ltrs/50 gallon
it recommends on the instructions ...
brittle starfish,detritus feeding cucumbers and several herbivorous snailssuch as asraea tucta or turban snail...
it doesnt state how many of each tho ???
any ideas ?? if i need more i will get them tomo
thanks

[garyinco]

Eventually you will want more. I'd stay with what you got until the tank is cycled and you have added some fish. IMO you should really be focusing on watching the ammonia, then nitrite test readings, The first will peak, then the second. When both drop down to zero add a fish or two. Then watch both levels and add in testing for nitrate.

As time goes by you can add more snails, and hermits if you like. Don't overload to start with. Just keep vigilant on monitoring test results (keep a log in a spreadsheet file or something) and watching the tank. I like brittle stars, they clean everywhere and I just think they're cool looking. Never been a fan of the cucs.

If you haven't seen the statement on this forum 1000's of times that "you need to go slowly, bad things happen fast, good things happen slowly"
then you're not reading enough!

[darrylbarry]

ok thanks ... just wasnt sure if there was enough in there thats all
why dont you like the cuc ??

[Xavibear]

Have you tested your water? The results of your tests will tell you when it's good to add creatures, not number of days the tank has been cycling.

[darrylbarry]

i just tested the water again ... it says that the readings should be ..
ammonia 0 ppm mine is 0.05 ppm
nitrite 0 ppm mine is 0.2
nitrate 10 ppm mine is 20 ppm
i no the nitrate is a little high ?
i done a 10% water change a few days ago ... it did say do a 5% water change to be fair
i dont know if this is why the nitrate level is up ?
also i did a wrong calculation on the kh coralline grow ... i was only supposed to put in about 5 ml but i put in 32ml !!!!!!!
now i got loads of the coralline algae ... but i was told this wont hurt the tank .. just skip using it for a while ...

any help is great :-)

[Fallling]

Sounds like you still have a little left in your cycle. Ammonia and nitrite need to be 0 before adding any livestock. Nitrate is up because a lot of nitrite has been converted by bacteria to nitrate, indicating you're getting close to end of the cycle. Wait another few days and test again. If possible, I'd also have a lfs also test the water, just to double check before putting in the first livestock (not counting CUC). Every cycle is different, so there is no set number of days it will take... a month is usually a good estimate with some being shorter and others longer.

Eventually, you'll want to add more cleanup crew. I like to stay away from hermits myself (they can be not so nice to snails), but starting out with a couple variety of snails is a good place to start. ReefCleaners.org has a great selection and information for different snails, hermits, and other CUC. Start out on the small side, like a dozen or 2 dozen, and add as needed. Putting too many in (like what comes with the package deals) in the beginning is usually too much, and they end up starving. I personally have Florida ceriths, dwarf ceriths, nassarius, and nerite snails plus one random blue leg hermit (who now wears a snail shell) that got mixed in with an order of snails :)

[kenny1]

I would wait a few more days as well.

[garyinco]

...why dont you like the cuc ??

I don't know, just don't. If they're sick or getting ready to croak you don't know it, and it is possible for a dead one to poison your tank and kill everything else. And they're ugly, look like a turd in your aquarium.

I prefer nassarius snails instead. They clean thru the sand as well and look kinda neat with their little "antennas" sticking out of the sand. Some of the goby fishes burrow in the sand, which cleans it. They are nice fish and I'd recommend someone getting into this hobby to consider them. I don't think you want a tank full of snails and hermits. Hermits are voracious little eaters. They also knock over corals and will eat your coraline algae. And like snails, they don't live very long.

Just be patient and watch your tank a couple of days before doing anything. After a bit you'll be in sync with it and you can judge a lot just be looking at it and its inhabitants. Then you'll truly feel like a reefer.

I seriously doubt you have coraline algae growing already. It takes awhile to get going. It is usually a lavender/purple-with-whitish-tinges growth that occurs on rock and glass. It is a hard substance, can't scratch it off with a fingernail. Being a new tank you will almost certainly go thru a couple of phases where you get some ugly stuff going on. The first is a diatom bloom. You'll see it as patches of a brown slimy coating on things. Kinda like a thin layer of snot. It'll go away on its own. The second is an outbreak of cyano bacteria. It is usually purplish and is not much different in feel than the diatoms. It is more blanket-like in its coverage than the diatoms.

Neither one is a cause for alarm. Its just something that happens with new tanks. The areas where the cyano starts might be areas you want to think about increasing water circulation. It prefers stagnant areas.

Once you get thru your tank cycling consider doing once a week 10% water changes. That keeps a lot of things in check. And is really all you need to do other than keeping an eye on what things look like. If something looks askew, ask on here. Its too easy to throw money at problems which often don't even solve the problem.

What fish/coral/inverts are you thinking about getting eventually?

[catlinth]

I agree. Wait a few more days and test for ammonia and Nitrite again. I wouldn't put anything else in the tank until after both are at 0. Remember, nothing good ever happens quickly in this hobby.

[shesacharmer]

When ammonia and nitrite reach zero you will need to do a big water change to reduce your nitrate below 40 ppm. A week later you can add more cleaning crew. I disagree with former posters. Your clean up crew processes detritus so that the organisms in your live sand can process them. I have a large clean up crew (150+ in my 75 gallon) and my water parameters stay very stable. Read up on what our sponsor at reefcleaners.org has to say about CUC.