My CUC is DOA

[coachfraley]

Well, here is my fist post!

I have a problem with my CUC.

I started out with 3 narite snails, 3 nassarius snails, and 2 dwarf red tip hermits. Over the past few days, I have lost 2 of my narites.

I haven't seen any hitchhikers in my rock other than a 4-5" bristleworm and some peanut worms, so I am starting to suspect the hermits as the culprits. If this is indeed the case, I would be willing to take them back to the LFS, but I would need to pick up something else to pick up the slack (the red tips have been cleaning my LR like crazy). What are some of my options:

1. Do some people go with a snail only CUC?
2. Would a scarlet hermit be a better choice than the dwarfs?
3. If decided against 1 and 2, would an emerald green crab be ok (I really like the way they look).

In case you were wondering...My tank is a 12g cube that cycled about 5 days ago. I plan on having a pair of Ocellaris Clownfish and a Red Headed Goby. It will be a FOWLR tank (at least for a while). Might get some shrooms and zoes once the tank settles.

Thanks in advance for the help!

 

[lat0403]

Mantis?


1. Yes. Lots of people don't like hermits.
2. I've never had problems with my dwarf hermits, but my scarlets drive me crazy.
3. I hate my emerald crab, too!


Are you sure the tank is actually cycled?

 

[Snowboarda42]

Re: My CUC is DOA

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10250108#post10250108 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by coachfraley


In case you were wondering...My tank is a 12g cube that cycled about 5 days ago. I plan on having a pair of Ocellaris Clownfish and a Red Headed Goby. It will be a FOWLR tank (at least for a while). Might get some shrooms and zoes once the tank settles.

Thanks in advance for the help!

Elaborate on this.

Give us Water parameters (Nitrate, Nitrite, Ammonia, SG, Temp, Alk, Ca)

What do you mean cycled 5 days ago? I am hoping you mean that it FINISHED cycling 5 days ago.

Most CUC's require a tank that is relatively well established.

 

[coachfraley]

Yes the tank is cycled. I meant that the tank completed the cycle 5 days ago. I am new to saltwater, but I know about the nitrogen cycle.

I have been trying to watch the tank at night and I haven't seen or heard a mantis. Since my tank is so small, I would assume that a mantis would be fairly east to notice (but of course I could be wrong).

Both times, I have found the empty snail shell in the morning.

 

[Grins]

I've renamed one of my dward hermits to Killer after witnessing him take down a black turbo snail this week. He and his compadres are going back to the LFS.

 

[Grins]

Forgot to ask...how did you acclimate the snails?

 

[coachfraley]

20 min. float, then added a cup of tank water to the bag every 5 minutes (3 times). Then pulled the guys out and dropped in my tank.

This was the recommendation of my LFS. I had never acclimated inverts, just fish.

 

[iwishtofish]

Welcome coachfraley! I am about to purchase a cleanup crew, so I am also interested in the replies to your first thread. Maybe someone can tell us who are the BETTER cleaners - snails or hermits, or if one performs different tasks better than the other?

 

[Grins]

Not saying it was the cause but I acclimate them by drip and for a bit longer than the 15 minutes.

Iwish, my snails do a great job and different kinds will do different jobs.

 

[coachfraley]

Here are my parameters:

SG: 1.022
NH3: 0
NO2: 0
NO3: 5 and falling (I am using the soap dish chaeto!)
Temp: 80F

I know the temp is not ideal, but the room temp forces the tank up to 82 sometimes, so I keep the heater at 80 to prevent a 78-82 fluctuation. I am trying to find a cheap solution to keeping the tanks cooler (I do not want to have to buy a chiller). I will probably get some type of small fan and hook it up to a timer. BTW, my lighting is not the source of my heat problems. I have t5's, and I run them in the early morning before the house heats up.

 

[coachfraley]

How do you suggest I acclimate them...please be detailed

 

[Grins]

I drip acclimate them for 1-2 hours depending on what it is. At the rate of 1 to 2 drops per second.

To do the drip you'll need a length of airline tubing and a regulator. Very inexpensive and your LFS should be able to show you where it is. You'll place one end in your tank...start a syphon and then put the other end of the hose in the container you are floating. Some use the sump for this. Be careful if you use an external bucket because the temperature will drop lower than the tank water.

If you need more information you can run a search on "drip acclimation methods"