acclimation for crustaceans

[digitalsteve]

thanks, i think i will at least give them an hr and then let them play, secondary topic , what do you guys(girls) think about cleaner shrimp , worth getting or is there another shrimp that will do the job just as well?

[Aquattro]

Originally Posted by digitalsteve

or is there another shrimp that will do the job just as well?

I have some, and the job I want them to do is look cool. They're quite good at it. My fish don't need cleaning, so the shrimp are decorative only.

[digitalsteve]

ok, on the subject of cleaning , what else is a good cleaner for a sand bed and other detrius other then hermit crabs and snails, i have a 10 gallon tank dont forget

[Aquattro]

are you using a sand bed, or just putting sand on the bottom? If the latter, a gravel siphon works wonders. If the former, maybe a small star or something.

[digitalsteve]

i have a 3 inch sand bed , ive noticed a fair bit of algae in the middle of the sand bed as well, are there any crabs ( non hermit ) that could deal with this and what size star would work , i dont want it to attack my coral or anything

[Aquattro]

hermits won't do much for algae under the surface. Maybe reducing nutrients is a better path than trying to remove algae. If you go the star route, a 2 inch sand sifting star might work.

[digitalsteve]

how large will they get , or do they max out at that size?

[Aquattro]

I've seen them get too big for a 10g. You'd have to trade it in at some point.

[digitalsteve]

is there a star that could remain in my tank , or a crab or something , i want to stay away from the nudibranchs i have heard to many horror stories about them but i want a really good clean up crew

[Aquattro]

snails will be your primary crew. Get some astrea and some cerith. You shouldn't need more than that. Oh ya, a turkey baster. You're all set. You won't get a bunch of critters to keep things clean for you, you're gonna have to help
Ina 10g, you're limited, such that you can't really keep conches, brittle stars and other common cleaners. Even urchins will move things around too much in a smaller tank.