cleaning crew

Tifoez

Reefing newb
Can you pair a Blue Spotted Watchman Goby, with any pistol shrimp, like the candycane pistol, or?? Any advice on a beginner cleaning crew welcome

I'm doing research on my livestock while I'm in final set-up prep

85 gal Display Tank,
40 gal SUMP,
20 gal QUARNT.

Thanks
 
For snails in my opinion the best ones are:
nassarius, nerite, dwarf ceriths, and ceriths
Some people also like turbo snails, but I dont have any experience with those. I think just a couple of hermit crabs will be fine. Too many and it will get pretty bothersome. Shrimp aren't really part of a clean-up crew. Those are more for decoration kind of.
I believe any pistol shrimp is fine, but let's wait for others to chime in.
 
Crap.. well, the bumble bee snail from liveaquaria is neat lookin.. what's care/maintenance, comparability with coral, etc..

Thanks for the advice.. I have a notebook of information so far.. I can't wait until this time next year!!
 
Those gobies need the Tiger Pistol shrimp as a symbiotic partner according to what I'm reading. Most of these pairs are very specific on what shrimp goes with which goby.
 
That's what I heard when I first looked into the mated pairs, but I've also heard of the rare exception.. Snails don't look as bad as I thought, how many/size for a short 85 gal??

I was considering the goby/shrimp part of my cleaning crew choice to rotate/agitate the sand bed??
 
I have all kinds of snails in my tanks, turbo, nerite, cerith and limpets. I also have lettuce nudibranchs and sea hares that have wiped out most of my algae.
 
ok, so snails arent that bad, but they still have to prove themselves to me, i was always against them because of maintenance, and their ability to jam ATO's, etc..

Wait.. Sea hares?? You mean (don't laugh) sea rabbits??

Like I said, newb here, fresh out of the box.. I'm familier with snails, shrimp, basic care, testing material, and can quicky learn & adjust.. so far a knowledge of mechanics doesn't hurt..

Again, thanks everyone

After I'm ready, where do you find TRUSTED cheado for the refugium?? I do not want hitch hikers, I'm trying to remove as many variables as possible, to build confidence, and to learn with my wife as we go..
 
Sea hares are a type of nudibranch. Chaeto is relatively safe, there is usually a few people on Craigslist selling it cheap. If you are close to me, I have 3 balls of it right now.
 
I was never fond of snails either. I knew that I had to have some to stir up sand, etc. I have ceriths and Astria as my CUC.
 
Turbo snails a the best at eating hair algae but they knock everything over and if the fall and land on their backs the get stuck and can die. Astira snails are good for slime algae but won't eat hair algae. Star Astira will eat hair alge and are kind cool ceriths are good to have. Nassarius are the sand stirrers. Nerites are for eating diatoms cyano and algae. Each has it's own function in our systems that's why diverse cuc work best.
 
I checked a few sites for which shrimp to pair with what goby, but I don't seem to be finding an accurate listing.. has anyone found something along these lines??
 
I love my turbos...I have 3 in a 35 gal and theyre awesome...also have 3 blue hermits and 2 peppermint shrimp....tanks always clean (i also change 10% of the water every two weeks)....
 
Reefcleaners.org is the place to go for your CUC. They have pre-made orders for tank sizes. You can either choose to go with hermits for the package (most don't) or without. People say nay to hermits simply because they are nasty. They kill things for no other reason then just because. Even if you put plenty of shells in there for them to move into as they get bigger, they will still kill other hermits and snails. They are great for left over food clean up though. I.M.O. I'd recommend Nassarius Snails, Astrea, Nassirus, Cerith/Dwarf Cerith, a couple of cleaner shrimp (more for cleaning any parasites off fish), and a sea hare. That should keep your tank looking pretty good.
 
I put larger shells in for my hermits and so far soo good...I do plan on adding a starfish and some more snails soon...just to stir up the sand a bit...its card keeping a good flow with a hex tank
 
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