Clean up crew in an aggressive tank?

[nIx_tank]

I posted this in the aggressive topic area, but I thought that I would pick the brains on the club members also.

I figured I would turn my 10 gal into a lionfish & puffer tank....I jest, I jest....

So I have been racking my brain trying to figure out a good clean up crew for my FIL's agressive tank. I have just pulled out his CC bed, and replaced it with a DSB. (First step in reducing his nitrates).

He is stocked right now in a 100 gal cube with a Porcupine Puffer, Luna Wrasse, and a Bicolor angel.

Obviously the typical cleanup crew, snails, crabs, etc. are just tasty snacks to these guys.

I was wondering, has anyone had any experience in placing a cuke (for sand shifting, tiger or black) in this scenario?

I had ordered a serpent star for my tank, but since they sent me a brittle (dolt!), I am going to drop him in his tank. I have him acclimated to eating prepared foods, so I am not too worried about him finding food.

I also have a pencil urchin in there now that is not bothered, but it is really not doing anything. I have another pencil urchin, about baseball/softball sized from my tank, that I think I will drop in there also.

I am tired of watching the urchin just plowing through my coraline. lol

Ideas?

Thanks!

 

[kpk]

Hey Nick did you mean your 100g? If not a 10g is no where near big enough for neither a butterfly or a puffer. If you meant the 100g IMO the only thing you could really keep with success not getting eaten would be the big red lobster hermits or whatever they are called. I think BigB posted a pic of his the other day.

 

[nIx_tank]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8683615#post8683615 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by kpk
Hey Nick did you mean your 100g? If not a 10g is no where near big enough for neither a butterfly or a puffer. If you meant the 100g IMO the only thing you could really keep with success not getting eaten would be the big red lobster hermits or whatever they are called. I think BigB posted a pic of his the other day.

No, I am talking about my father in law's 100 gal cube that he has, which he has it as an aggressive tank.

I would never place anything that big into a 10 gal. Sorry for the misunderstanding, I was just being a smartass about turning my 10 gal nano into an aggressive tank.

Besides, that would just be bad karma! lol.

I thought about one of those large lobster hermits, but I was afraid of their aggressiveness to a starfish/cuke/ dwarf angel. It is a good possibility, as that should be able to withstand the wrasse and the puffer.

 

[abigdog1976]

We had lobster crabs and xl snails from aquariums. The crabs are very aggressive but had 4 in the 90 gallon and they survived the puffer.

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

Those large hermits get pretty aggessive, and have more tendecies to be like most of their other non-shelled brethren about being opportunistic feeders. I would advise against those types of hermits.

I really think that the cucumber would be fine in the tank. The Urchin that is in there, I'm surprised it hasn't been flipped over and eaten by the Lunar Wrasse, but then again it always could. But given the fact that none of the fish have touched an urchin in a long time (year?) should lend well to your cause. I think you pretty much have your answer almost.

--Cucumber - Sand Sifting for all types of food. They pick up anything and eat anything in the open areas of the sand.
--Brittle Starfish - Sand and rock for meaty foods. Since this is a FOWLR, then their will be lots of meaty foods, so having a brittle starfish able to pick any leftovers off the rocks and hidden parts of the substrate is worth it.
--Urchin - Rock and Glass for algae. Most likely you won't have much of an algae problem with good tank maintenance, but anything that does spring up will be devoured by an urchin.

So with a variety of those three things you have the rocks, glass, and substrate covered for algae. You also have the rocks and substrate covered for meaty foods.

 

[nIx_tank]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8684150#post8684150 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Travis L. Stevens
Those large hermits get pretty aggessive, and have more tendecies to be like most of their other non-shelled brethren about being opportunistic feeders. I would advise against those types of hermits.

I really think that the cucumber would be fine in the tank. The Urchin that is in there, I'm surprised it hasn't been flipped over and eaten by the Lunar Wrasse, but then again it always could. But given the fact that none of the fish have touched an urchin in a long time (year?) should lend well to your cause. I think you pretty much have your answer almost.

--Cucumber - Sand Sifting for all types of food. They pick up anything and eat anything in the open areas of the sand.
--Brittle Starfish - Sand and rock for meaty foods. Since this is a FOWLR, then their will be lots of meaty foods, so having a brittle starfish able to pick any leftovers off the rocks and hidden parts of the substrate is worth it.
--Urchin - Rock and Glass for algae. Most likely you won't have much of an algae problem with good tank maintenance, but anything that does spring up will be devoured by an urchin.

So with a variety of those three things you have the rocks, glass, and substrate covered for algae. You also have the rocks and substrate covered for meaty foods.

The biggest thing that I worry about in regards to the urchin is that I have never really seen mine eat algae. Granted, once I put it in my FIL's tank, which has no coraline, it might force it to eat algae. Plus, that urchin has been in his tank for at least a year, with no predation.

I do think that anything I add, I will need to attach the creature to a rock, and then put the rock in the tank. This can help disguise the creature from the puffer and the wrasse.

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

You might want to look into something like a Long Spine or Globe urchin instead of a Pencil.

 

[abigdog1976]

My puffer went through a long spine and a pencil urchin. I never had any trouble with the hermits for over a year and they were about the size of a baseball.

 

[nIx_tank]

I had posted this question in the Agro forum, and somebody mentioned Cowrie Snails.

Anybody have any experience with them?

I have seen them in tanks, and know that their foot strength is amazing. Also that they are bulls in the tank in regards to rock, but since I have urchins in there, I don't think that would make much difference.

 

[Travis L. Stevens]

I didn't even think of that. A Cowrie would be a good addition since you won't have any corals in the tank. Money Cowries can get pretty big and are well protected.

 

[nIx_tank]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8698781#post8698781 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Travis L. Stevens
I didn't even think of that. A Cowrie would be a good addition since you won't have any corals in the tank. Money Cowries can get pretty big and are well protected.

I was looking at those and the chestnuts. I definitely would prefer an omnivore.

I think that if I had one or two of those in there, along with a brittlestar, that would definitely cover the cleanup.