Clean Up Crew

[ben1234]

hey guys, well my tank is now mature to start a small clean up crew with a ph at 8.4 nitrates 0 nitrites 0 s.g. at 1.022 my problem is that i went to my lfs and looked for astrea, cerith (sp?) snails and they didnt have any (Do they have alternative names). They carry things like queen conch, red footed and turbo snails will these be alright? I only have a 9 gallon and I know that turbos get big. To be on the safe side i instead picked up a red hermit. Also i know the ideal s.g. for my tank is 1.023 and i was wondering how i could gradually raise it without killing any of my lr/hermit. Any suggestions to these questions would be appreciated

 

[bunjiweb]

to raise the tank salinity, drain the tank a little bit then drip feed higher salinty water back into the tank. This will gradually increase the salinity of the tank.

The snails and hermits will be fine, cerith snails are indeed the best sand sifter you could probably go for, as others like sand sifting slugs and starfish are too big for your 9G.

My only tip is to keep a close eye on the s.g. Test it at least every couple of days to prevent fluctuations. My 5G is causing me headaches due to evaporation but i am going to experiment with a simple auto-top up system.

Ben

 

[JJ1234567]

I would avoid hermits. I had some in my 24g and they really were beastly little creatures, even if they were kinda cute. They would on a simi regular basis kill and eat snails. Stick with snails, mithrax crabs and possibly a shrimp.

 

[ben1234]

thanks for you guy's advice..... I think i am gonna try my luck with my hermit and if he becomes a problem i'll take him back. Would it be alright if i just left the s.g. at 1.022 or is that bad? Also i just found out that my tank overheats a bit with my lights on (78 at night to 79/80 in day) would this be alright? if not is there any simple solution, possibly without fans....thanks

 

[steelhealr]

I don't think that is overheating at all. I wouldn't fret too much about a 2 degree fluctuation. If you are concerned, you could always carefully notch up your heater.

Bunjiweb is correct....to slowly increase your s.g, just do your weekly water changes with SW that has a higher s.g. Eg, if you are at 1.022, do you next water change with 1.023 and continue until your tank is 1.023 (remember, salt doesn't evaporate). Bump up to 1.024 next time. Another way would be to allow evaporation to slowly bring your tank up to the s.g. you want to reach, then topoff with SW with the same s.g. After that, do your topoffs with pure water to maintain that s.g.

IMO, 1.022 is too low if you are planning a reef tank. Aim for 1.025 if that is your future plan. JMO. SH

 

[Fish Fingers]

Just to add my opinion on your salinity, I reccomend keeping it at 1.027. That's what it is on the great barrier reef, so I keep my tnak at that.