A complete newbie who needs a way to start!

[little_fish]

It should be fine

 

[Laz]

Added a couple of turbo snails today. I very amateurishly acclimated them and added them within 15 minutes which I shouldn't have done, but they seem to be alive and fine. I definitely need to find out better ways of acclimating, though.

I also just noticed this now, but I've got Amphipods around my sand and on the glass. Not sure if they've come out of the substrate or the snail and a little bit of the LFS water, but I'm guessing it's more likely the substrate and the live rock. Quite exciting to see the life come up now. Just more and more signs of a cycle becoming complete.

 

[chichimom79]

Here's an acclimation guide for you :)
Acclimation Procedure for Aquatic Life: Welcoming Home New Arrivals

 

[Laz]

Thanks Chichi, that's very useful!

Q, I've got this digital thermometer at home and it has a thin metal probe. I was wondering, would this be safe to keep in my tank 24/7?

HygiPlas Multistem Multi Purpose Probe Food Thermometer -50 to 200C Each | eBay

 

[cvcdrk]

I wouldn't leave that in the tank. It may be fine, but that isn't really designed to work with salt water (which can have funny effects on equipment). Also, I wouldn't want to leave something like that in my tank all the time. You never know what it can affect. Just get a regular aquarium thermometer imo.

 

[Laz]

Yeah, funnily enough, it started going haywire after 30 minutes, giving me all sorts of crazy readings, so I took it out. Thanks for that.

I contacted Reefcleaners and they recommended

10 Dwarf Ceriths
3 Nassarius
7 Florida Ceriths

Only thing is, I have two turbo's and would prefer a CUC with crabs. Can anyone give me a rough idea as to how to work around that?

 

[little_fish]

Did you actually call reefcleaners? They have always been willing to work with people in the past on specifics.

 

[Laz]

I live in the UK, little, so call rates are pretty high, and I did mention crabs in the email. It's fine anyway, I've got a rough idea of what I need now.

 

[little_fish]

Ah, I see

 

[Laz]

Say hello to my newest resident. Are blue hermit crabs meant to have blue legs, because for some reason, this fella has legs with a orange ting to them but a blue face. He also has one massive claw and one small one.

 

[little_fish]

Very cool, its probably a male then

 

[Treezer8]

It could be a polkadotted hermit, I have one that matches your description exactly. Does it look kinda like these? Rare, but very cool hermits.

Phimochirus operculatus The Polka Dot Hermit Crab

 

[Laz]

I just did a little research. It's an Electric Orange Hermit Crab, Treezer.

Wish I had the one you have! :)

 

[Laz]

I went out to the LFS today, and got another couple of turbo's and a red hermit crab. I also asked if they had any blue hermit crabs and for whatever reason I didn't know they were absolutely tiny. I thought they were the usual size like the Electric's and the red's, but they were like little dwarfs.

Anyway, I just wanted some input, I've got 4 Turbo's and 2 Hermit's. Should I increase on the snails? I personally don't think I should as I've already got four good sized turbo's covering the 3KG of live rock in the main display and it seems like they've got it well covered and there's not a whole lot of algae for them to devour. I was thinking of a couple more crabs and leaving it at that. Could anyone add anything?

Thank you.

 

[chichimom79]

I personally think thats a few too many turbos and not enough variety of snails. Turbos will devour a lot of algae. Different ones like to clean different surfaces. I like the ceriths for rock, glass and sand, nassarius for sand and astraeas for rocks and glass. I had a few turbos but they didn't make it. Not sure why.

 

[Laz]

I messaged ReefCleaners, Chichi, and asked them about it. They said that's fine as they're rock cleaners at most and I don't need anymore.

But, apparently, the one's he mentioned are still needed, which is:

10 Dwarf Ceriths
3 Nassarius
7 Florida Ceriths

Wouldn't that be a little much, seeing as there's four turbo's and two hermit's as well?

Another couple of q's, my water in the tank has developed a bit of a haze in it for some reason. I thought maybe it's just me becoming a little paranoid with the clarity and maybe it was just the light, but I noticed that when the powerhead is blowing the top of the water, it actually creates an opening where the water will be clear, so it's definitely gone hazy. I tried the filter floss again, but I don't think it's that. Could it be a bacterial bloom or something of the sort?

Second q, I'm having quite a big evaporation problem, I think. Could just be the waves that create a salt line, but there's is definitely some significant evaporation day to day. Are there any affordable auto top off systems anyone may know of?

Thank you.

 

[chichimom79]

I personally don't think you need that many ceriths, but the nassarius are a must for the sandbed IMO.
What size tank is this again? You haven't updated your current aquaium description. Are you running a skimmer at all? I would get that film in my ten gallon and I think it's because I wasn't running a skimmer on that tank. Disolved organics rise to the top of the water.
The cheapest way to make an ATO is to use a jug and airline tubing with a drip regulator. That's what I am using on my cube. If you want specifics, pm me. I'd be glad to help you make one. Keeping your water levl/salinity constant is a great thing to do for your tank. :)

 

[Laz]

It's a 55L, which is 12 Imperial Gallons. No skimmer, I'll look into one. Interesting, I'll take you up on that. Thank you, Chichi! :)

 

[Laz]

Guys, do any of you ever have a problem with your hermit crabs going ninja?

Mine has gone 90% up the corner of my tank (holding onto the silicone). Any solutions? Lol.

 

[chichimom79]

Let them? It's not really a problem as long as they can't climb out of the tank. I've seen mine do this as well.