What Cucumber to Buy?

[Beverly]

Originally Posted by Tigger

I am looking for something to stir up the sand. I am thinking of buying a cucumber, but I heard that if they die, they give off a toxin that will kill all of your fish.

Yes, I have heard the same thing about cucumbers and am staying away from them.

Originally Posted by Tigger

Do you think I should just get nassarius snails instead?

We have nassarius snails in three of our small reefs, but they don't stir the sand as much as I would like them to.

I have seen white star fish at the lfs that stir the sand, but am not sure whether or not they are toxic when they die.

Some of the sand stirrers eat the smaller animals in the sand, but am not sure which do so. Maybe someone with more experience will help you out here.

I stir the sand by using a turkey baster to gently blast at the sand. If you have mechanical filtration in your tank, you will trap a lot of crud doing this. Weekly, or twice weekly, cleaning of the media will help export the crud which will reduce algae growth.