Yes: you need CUC in your tank, some snails, worms, urchin, conchs, crabs etc... just a few of them, they add biodiversity and help with algae and most important detritus, I love amphipods they are the best CUC I ever had, they keep detritus at bay and at the same time they are food for your fish.
What is the best clean up crew for a 55-gallon reef tank?
The best clean up crew for a 55-gallon reef tank: 1 2 Turbo snail 2 8 Trochus snail 3 6 Blue Legged Hermit Crab 4 8 Cerith snail 5 4 Nassarius snail 6 8 Bumble Bee snails 7 1 Peppermint shrimp or Cleaner shrimp 8 1 Fighting conch
What do CUCS eat?
The goal is to have your CUC eat the leftovers others leave behind as scavengers. Bumble Bee Snails: The Bumble Bee Snail pack a lot of benefits into their tiny size. They can get into small cracks and crevices in your live rock, removing leftover fish food and detritus.
Should I add more nutrients to my saltwater reef tank?
This can compound your algae problems by adding more nutrients to your reef tank. As a saltwater reef enthusiast, I’ve been making bonehead mistakes and researching how to fix them since my first reef tank in 2001.
What is the best fish to clean a saltwater aquarium with?
The best clean up crew for detritus in a saltwater reef aquarium are Nassarius snails, Hermit crabs, sand sifting starfish, and copepods. The snails and sand sifting starfish clean the sand bed, the Hermit crabs work your rocks, and the copepods populate every other nook and cranny of your tank.
Do I need to feed my CUC?
You want a CUC that will start working on the algae. Hermits and snails mostly. But you could just feed a little fish food every couple days.
Do I need to feed my cleanup crew?
6:0210:37Clean-Up Crews | Answering Beginner Questions Part 5 - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipActually miss they will find something to eat I wouldn't worry about. It.MoreActually miss they will find something to eat I wouldn't worry about. It.
What should I feed my reef tank?
It's important to offer a variety of foods to find one or more that your coral will accept. This can include diced small fish, thawed frozen plankton, phytoplankton, krill, pieces of shrimp, squid, or clams. These are also known as octopus foods and many saltwater aquarists believe this simplifies coral feeding.
What do I feed my clean-up crew?
The job of a clean up crew (CUC), in a saltwater aquarium, is to keep the tank clean by eating the leftover food, algae, and detritus in your tank. A clean up crew typically consists of a mixture of crabs, snails, and the occasional shrimp.
When should I add CUC to my saltwater tank?
3) When To Add A CUC Wait until the tank is cycled and you are noticing adequate algae growth. I always recommend adding a small amount of CUC members at a time, just to make sure there is enough food for everybody. You can always add more later, but not the other way around.
Will clean-up crew eat diatoms?
These guys burrow into the sand during the day, and emerge at night to clean. They are able to keep the sand bed aerated while also directly consuming diatoms.
What do I feed my saltwater shrimp?
Saltwater cleaner shrimp are carnivores and therefore need to be fed meaty foods, like brine shrimp, mysid shrimp, and other prepared foods. They will also learn to eat flakes or pellets that drift by in the current, using their antennae to either detect and/or direct floating food towards their front pincers.
Can you feed coral everyday?
Spot feeding I'd recommend a couple times a week at most. Feeding the fish daily will also give the euphyllia some food as well.
How often should corals be fed?
1-2 times per weekWe generally recommend feeding coral 1-2 times per week when keeping photosynthetic corals in the evening after your aquarium lights have turned off.
What eats detritus in reef tank?
Sea cucumbers, snails, sea stars, shrimp, and conches are a few well-known inverts that will consume detritus in a reef tank. Your sand bed is an absolute magnet for leftover food and detritus and can be a real pain to keep clean.
When should I put snails in my saltwater tank?
For grazers.... the is cleaning up algae, trochus snails or small turbo snails. They will only eat algae. Hermits can be problematic. Add snails once you see algae and add them slowly.
What do I add first to my saltwater tank?
Starter fish are some of the first fish you add to your aquarium, and as a result, they might be the fish you have for the longest period of time. No sense picking a mild-mannered or drably-colored fish. A great saltwater aquarium fish for beginners should come in vibrant colors and patterns.
When should I feed my reef tank?
2:495:46How to FEED a Saltwater Tank Properly - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipI. Usually try to aim for around 50% when it comes to flake and pellets. I like to feed a smallMoreI. Usually try to aim for around 50% when it comes to flake and pellets. I like to feed a small quantity of each firstly in the morning on alternate days.
How much should I feed my reef tank?
Feeding your fish a little bit of food several times per day is closer to the way they eat in the wild than feeding them a bunch of food every 2 or 3 days. Most fish (even sharks) will only eat what they need to survive.
When should I feed my corals?
The best time to feed corals is in the evenings or at night. In the evenings, the polyps of the corals go out to eat, making it the perfect time to feed them. During the feeding, corals also benefit from less intense light. However, every coral species might have particular feeding habits.
Do you have to feed soft coral?
Corals are animals. Animals like to eat. In addition to providing a good source of reef-building aquarium light, you may also want to feed your corals. While there is a common belief that soft corals do not require food, that is actually a myth and is quite untrue (Borneman 2001).
What & Where They Clean
Each of the clean-up-crew animals has a niche based on their particular diet and area of the tank they will target. They will clean up leftover food, decaying organic matter (dead animals), fish waste, and algae. They can scavenge the surface of the sand bed, sift through the sand bed, clean the glass, and scavenge among the rocks.
The Limits Of A Clean-Up-Crew
CUC animals do a great job supporting your efforts in keeping the tank clean and healthy but cannot do it all by themselves. Think of them like teammates that "fight the good fight" alongside you. Filtration and maintenance are still a critical part of keeping your aquarium looking good and healthy.
Common Mistakes
Too much too soon: Clean-up-crew animals need food to survive. If the tank is still very new with very little algae and food waste then you need to be conservative with what you add. It's not a terrible idea to gradually increase the clean-up-crew as you stock your tank.
When To Add Your CUC
Some hobbyists have strong feelings about when exactly is the best time to add a clean-up-crew animals. It is a delicate balance that will be very particular to your tank. Most will agree it is safe to start adding CUC animals at the first sign of nuisance algae growth in the aquarium.
BRS Recommended Clean-Up-Crew For Small Aquariums
Adding a good variety is the key to an effective CUC. Here is a great place to start for aquariums up to +/- 20 gallons. If your tank is larger, you have room for more and an even greater variety, simply add more as your tank matures.
Replenishing Your CUC
Pay careful attention to your tank, if you see more algae, add more algae-eating animals. If you notice detritus starting to build up, add more scavengers and carnivores. A dirty sand bed might be solved with a sand sifting goby.
