CUC dieing, some advice please, newbie on board

[naesco]

Unless your cycle did not complete it is likely your hermits died of starvation.
Hermits are predators, they eat all the tiny critters that coral and small fish eat so they are never a good idea. Keep one or two and return the rest to the LFS.

Your snails will die of starvation as there is nothing in your tank to feed them. Keep 6 or so and return the remaining ones to the LFS.
If there is no algae in your tank soak some nori and place it on the bottom with a small rock to hold it down.

Remember to resist the urge to go out and stock your tank with fish. In a couple of weeks buy a fish (ask here for advice before you buy) and only place one fish per month in your tank.
A good reading source which you can buy at the LFS is Robert Fenner, the Conscientious Marine Aquarist.
A great online source is www.wetwebmedia.com

Good luck and thanks for posting.

[Zoaelite]

Has the tank ever been treated with Copper?

[don.ald]

there may have been something wrong with the crabs prior to putting them into your system. i would think that the crabs, if healthy to begin with, would have eaten the snails before starving.
just a thought

[horteco]

Originally Posted by don.ald

there may have been something wrong with the crabs prior to putting them into your system. i would think that the crabs, if healthy to begin with, would have eaten the snails before starving.
just a thought

donald

yes that was also the thought of a LFS I trust. He thought if they were weak to begin with there may have been a disease that took over. But his main thought also was that they starved. I have read that the crabs will kill snails for there shells. The snails I bought are alot bigger than the crabs. I don't know if that makes a difference.

I really didn't think that I would have been sold something (really an obvious NEWBIE) without being told that I may have to supplement the food supply. I would have happily bought food for them. I guess I chaulk this one up to lesson #1 GO SLOW AND TRUST YOUR SOURCE

Thanks for your input.

[Myka]

Hmmm, this is interesting. It doesn't make sense...unless we are missing some sort of pertinent information (that you may or may not realize lol). The hermits eat algae mainly, and should start killing snails if they are starving to death. As well, it should take longer than a week for the hermits to starve to death. If copper was the culprit it should kill the snails too, and probably be quicker than a week. My guess is that you may never know what killed them.

I agree that you should try to return 6-8 snails. While the tank is new you will not need very many critters to clean up. As you stock your tank, you will probably need to slowly add a few more critters here and there. A Fighting/Strawberry/Orange Lip Conch (sand sifting bivalve) would be a good candidate for your tank in 4-6 months when the sandbed has matured.

[Zoaelite]

Agreed with Myka but to many people are supporting this 1 critter per gallon CUC rule and it's way over board.

IMO don't but hermits again they are not reef tank safe, now that your cycle is completed some blenny or goby and a few snails will work well for algae control.

I'm a little baffled about the crabs though as hermits are far from finicky. I was helping Colby @ elite clean out all of the old snail shells from his tanks and I missed 3-4 live hermits out of a whole pail, after rinsing with BOILING hot water a few times and letting it sit for 2 days I found live hermits chilling on the top.

[horteco]

Originally Posted by zoaElite

Agreed with Myka but to many people are supporting this 1 critter per gallon CUC rule and it's way over board.

IMO don't but hermits again they are not reef tank safe, now that your cycle is completed some blenny or goby and a few snails will work well for algae control.

I'm a little baffled about the crabs though as hermits are far from finicky. I was helping Colby @ elite clean out all of the old snail shells from his tanks and I missed 3-4 live hermits out of a whole pail, after rinsing with BOILING hot water a few times and letting it sit for 2 days I found live hermits chilling on the top.

zoaElite

I guess the information I have been gathering is wrong. I was under the impression that crabs were reef safe. The LFS employee did know that I wanted a reef tank. I don't blame the employee of the LFS, he too has been misinformed. Unfortunately he was wrong not only about the numbers of CUC needed but also what criters were reef safe.

I'm glad I didn't add the 1 per gal. that the LFS employee and other sources recommended.

I do like gobys so maybe in the near future I'll be able to get one.

I think this forum will be a good source of information for future purchases.

Thats incredible that those hermits lived through that cleanup process. youch!!! boling hot water.

Thanks again

[horteco]

Originally Posted by Myka

Hmmm, this is interesting. It doesn't make sense...unless we are missing some sort of pertinent information (that you may or may not realize lol). The hermits eat algae mainly, and should start killing snails if they are starving to death. As well, it should take longer than a week for the hermits to starve to death. If copper was the culprit it should kill the snails too, and probably be quicker than a week. My guess is that you may never know what killed them.

I agree that you should try to return 6-8 snails. While the tank is new you will not need very many critters to clean up. As you stock your tank, you will probably need to slowly add a few more critters here and there. A Fighting/Strawberry/Orange Lip Conch (sand sifting bivalve) would be a good candidate for your tank in 4-6 months when the sandbed has matured.

Myka

Being new to the hobby, it is very likely I've missed something. I sure hope I didn't, but...

The hermits appeared to be eating what ever they could find. It seems though that the tank was cleaned up so fast that the amount of cleanup crew recommended was to high. Now I'm scrambling to make sure the remaining snails don't die.

The snails are cruising around the tank so fast, the crabs may not have been able to catch them.

The fighting conch sounds like a great addition.( in the future)

Thanks for your advice I will for suren take it slow from here on.

[Myka]

Ya, it is a shame that so many LFS will sell unsuitable critters to people (whether they are naive or not). Another shame is selling critters without asking questions about the tank to make sure the critter is a good match. Some people don't like the LFS people to ask questions, but I think it is important in the big picture (save the reefs rah rah rah lol).

Btw, hermits are kind of reef-safe. They can cause troubles, and many people either aren't aware or think their pro are better than their cons.

[horteco]

Originally Posted by zoaElite

Has the tank ever been treated with Copper?

zoaElite

I have not treated the tank with copper, all hardware is new, i don't know if anything can come in on the live rock?

thanks for your input