Is Reef Cleaners still in business

[JTL]

Actually they are in business. I sent John 3 emails and apparently he did not get the first two. Anyway all is good. He recommended the following for my recently cycled 100g:
80 Dwarf Ceriths
26 Nassarius
38 Florida Ceriths
32 Nerites
Seems like overkill to me. I am afraid most will starve. Also the Nassarius apparently need fine sand to burrow into. I am using Tropic Eden Mesoflakes which is aragonite crumbs and pretty course. Do you think that is a good substrate for them?

 

[JonCubb]

I like Reef Cleaners, and John. But. Any time I buy the "recommended" sized cleanup crew, I always end up with a huge die off from a lot of the crew starving to death. Especially in a new tank. My advice, and I'm sure a lot of people will disagree, but take the recommended # of crew and cut it in half.

Also keep in mind, when you order dwarf ceriths, you WILL get more than you pay for. It's a nice thing, but if you order 80 of them, expect well over 100, even significantly more than that.

As for the Nassarius snails, I have had them for 4 years and they do fine in my more coarse substrate.

 

[mcgyvr]

My advice, and I'm sure a lot of people will disagree, but take the recommended # of crew and cut it in half.

A lot of people actually agree with your statement.. few will disagree..
Their clean up crew sizes by gallon are overkill IMO for the most part..

So yes order half of what you need and yes it is a great company to order from with very reasonable prices..

I'm about to place an order for my new 80G tank and will probably order the 40Breeder crew (if that)


Nassarius should do just fine/ok in that substrate mentioned above too..
They are my favorite with their "trunks" sticking out of the sand and how they magical rise out of it seconds after any food goes into the tank..

Nerites need a screened top or they will just be all over your floor/outside of tank,etc...
I find my cats knocking them around all the time because they climb right out..

I also recommend avoiding crabs too.. They will eat half your snails too.. Those jerks..

 

[AlSimmons]

Actually they are in business. I sent John 3 emails and apparently he did not get the first two. Anyway all is good. He recommended the following for my recently cycled 100g:
80 Dwarf Ceriths
26 Nassarius
38 Florida Ceriths
32 Nerites
Seems like overkill to me. I am afraid most will starve. Also the Nassarius apparently need fine sand to burrow into. I am using Tropic Eden Mesoflakes which is aragonite crumbs and pretty course. Do you think that is a good substrate for them?

Do you have any LFS in your area? If so, I think your best bet is to just buy your CUC there if you can. IMO for a tank that size 12-15 Trochus snails and maybe 5 Scarlet hermit crabs should be plenty. Use something like a Mag-Float to clean the glass and either stir up or vacuum your sand bed on a regular basis too. Don't forget your the best CUC member that tank will ever see. It's amazing what a little elbow grease can accomplish sometimes. Good luck!

 

[MuShu]

Start with half. Buy more as needed. For what John charges, and with his low shipping charges, it can be a lot cheaper to order from him 1-2 times a year than to buy locally.

 

[JTL]

^ Agree.