Looking for CUC that will eat uneaten pellets in new tank.

[Monad]

As the title says, I have a new tank. My livestock consists of two clowns, two nassarius snails, and two cerith snails. I feed the clowns pellets and mysis shrimp (not at the same time. The mysis are a treat). The nassarius snails do a great job on the uneaten mysis, but they really don't go after the pellets. My clowns will miss some pellets when I feed and the uneaten pellets land on the sandbed. Since the tank is young, I'm still worried about ammonia build up. I'm still in the stage where mini cycles can occur. I know clowns are tough but I do not want to stress them and I don't know how snails handle ammonia in the water.

What would people suggest for a CUC member or fish that will eat the uneaten food the nassarius snails are not touching. The first ingredient in the pellets are krill meal so I would think the nassarius snails would be attracted to the smell of the pellets. I also do not want the snails to starve because the tank is so new. I haven't even begun the ugly stage yet.

I've also never noticed the clowns eating the pellets once they're no longer in the water column. Will they eat pellets off the bed or is food on the sand a no go zone for them?

I also do not want to get a herrmit because of the snails. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[JoJosReef]

As the title says, I have a new tank. My livestock consists of two clowns, two nassarius snails, and two cerith snails. I feed the clowns pellets and mysis shrimp (not at the same time. The mysis are a treat). The nassarius snails do a great job on the uneaten mysis, but they really don't go after the pellets. My clowns will miss some pellets when I feed and the uneaten pellets land on the sandbed. Since the tank is young, I'm still worried about ammonia build up. I'm still in the stage where mini cycles can occur. I know clowns are tough but I do not want to stress them and I don't know how snails handle ammonia in the water.

What would people suggest for a CUC member or fish that will eat the uneaten food the nassarius snails are not touching. The first ingredient in the pellets are krill meal so I would think the nassarius snails would be attracted to the smell of the pellets. I also do not want the snails to starve because the tank is so new. I haven't even begun the ugly stage yet.

I've also never noticed the clowns eating the pellets once they're no longer in the water column. Will they eat pellets off the bed or is food on the sand a no go zone for them?

I also do not want to get a herrmit because of the snails. Any help would be appreciated.

A skunk or a fire cleaner shrimp will happily eat any leftover pellets. Peppermint shrimp, as well. You don't have any corals yet. Perhaps time to start adding so you have some organisms eating up the nutrients going into the water? Otherwise, nuisance algae will happily fill that role.

I wouldn't add too many herbivores yet. There isn't much for them to eat. In your shoes, I'd probably go with a cleaner shrimp.

 

[Monad]

A skunk or a fire cleaner shrimp will happily eat any leftover pellets. Peppermint shrimp, as well. You don't have any corals yet. Perhaps time to start adding so you have some organisms eating up the nutrients going into the water? Otherwise, nuisance algae will happily fill that role.

I wouldn't add too many herbivores yet. There isn't much for them to eat. In your shoes, I'd probably go with a cleaner shrimp.

My LFS recommended waiting another couple of weeks for the corals. I put the fish and snails in two days ago.

I'll definitely look into getting a cleaner shrimp of some kind.

I'm waiting for the inevitable diatoms to kick in. Now that my lights are on during the day, I suspect they're already starting to reproduce and I don't see them yet. I'm not adding any more ceriths. All they have to visibly eat right now is a thin biofilm on the acrylic. Hopefully there are other sources of food for them. I did add an algae pellet the other night that disappeared by this morning. Hopefully the ceriths got some of that, but they move like you expect snails to move. Unlike the nassarius who I have learned are speed demons.

 

[JoJosReef]

My LFS recommended waiting another couple of weeks for the corals. I put the fish and snails in two days ago.

I'll definitely look into getting a cleaner shrimp of some kind.

I'm waiting for the inevitable diatoms to kick in. Now that my lights are on during the day, I suspect they're already starting to reproduce and I don't see them yet. I'm not adding any more ceriths. All they have to visibly eat right now is a thin biofilm on the acrylic. Hopefully there are other sources of food for them. I did add an algae pellet the other night that disappeared by this morning. Hopefully the ceriths got some of that, but they move like you expect snails to move. Unlike the nassarius who I have learned are speed demons.

Diatoms are no big deal. In fact, a tiger/strawberry conch will vacuum them up happily.

Waiting to add coral is very debatable. You are adding food to an empty aquarium. Fish are eating it and pooping it out. What is there to eat the resulting dissolved nutrients in the water? Algae will do it. But then you will have algae all over everything which is not a happy environment for corals. I try to get ahead of it a bit. There are many easy corals that will happily lap up the nutrients and grow into larger colonies. All it takes is careful planning and decent husbandry. If you are planning an SPS tank, you might want to start with easy soft corals on islands that can be removed 1) so they don't spread to the main rocks and 2) to trim the corals or completely replace them. That will help build up you little biome while you start to add more sensitive corals and shift the focus. If it's a mixed reef, that's the best place to start anyway. That's what I would do in your shoes at least.

 

[Monad]

Diatoms are no big deal. In fact, a tiger/strawberry conch will vacuum them up happily.

Waiting to add coral is very debatable. You are adding food to an empty aquarium. Fish are eating it and pooping it out. What is there to eat the resulting dissolved nutrients in the water? Algae will do it. But then you will have algae all over everything which is not a happy environment for corals. I try to get ahead of it a bit. There are many easy corals that will happily lap up the nutrients and grow into larger colonies. All it takes is careful planning and decent husbandry. If you are planning an SPS tank, you might want to start with easy soft corals on islands that can be removed 1) so they don't spread to the main rocks and 2) to trim the corals or completely replace them. That will help build up you little biome while you start to add more sensitive corals and shift the focus. If it's a mixed reef, that's the best place to start anyway. That's what I would do in your shoes at least.

It's a project me and my dad are doing together. However, he's not really interested in some aspects and he's busy with life. The tank is at his place and I spend half my time there. He will not do daily testing. So I'm trying to make this tank "low" maintenance. Hardy soft and hardy LPS only. But you're right, getting a simple coral in there sounds like a good idea. I have two islands in the tank. One is for a nem and the other will be a zoa garden. The main rock work is going to have at least one leather.

You can see the tank in my tank thread. Any further advice is always appreciated. Thank you!

 

[JoJosReef]

It's a project me and my dad are doing together. However, he's not really interested in some aspects and he's busy with life. The tank is at his place and I spend half my time there. He will not do daily testing. So I'm trying to make this tank "low" maintenance. Hardy soft and hardy LPS only. But you're right, getting a simple coral in there sounds like a good idea. I have two islands in the tank. One is for a nem and the other will be a zoa garden. The main rock work is going to have at least one leather.

You can see the tank in my tank thread. Any further advice is always appreciated. Thank you!

That's a nice project. Leathers are great. Some grow very large, though, so give them their space or they will shade out your other corals. Careful with GSP and xenia. They can get out of hand. Kenya trees can also start dropping branches everywhere. Branching GSP is a great one. Gorgonians are excellent and give a very natural reef feel.

A nem (BTA?) is best added once your tank is humming along and growing coral well. They prefer high light, a good place to plant their foot and stable water parameters. I've never had success with BTAs when my tanks have algae problems--all the work combating the algae seems to tick them off. Anyway, goal should be to NOT need daily testing, meaning the tank has reached a nice level of stability.

Good luck and keep asking questions. Lots of knowledgeable people on R2R.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

maybe your feeding too many pellets.... fish can only eat 4-5-6 pellets, anything more will fuel algae growth.

 

[UtahReefer]

If you don't want the pellets laying around try Benepets pellets. They dissolve completely after about 12 minutes and become food for the corals also. I have Anthias, Tangs, Clowns, Gobbies / Blennies, Fox Face and an Angel and they all love them.

 

[BristleWormHater]

Bristleworms and hermit crabs are the best for uneaten food IMO.

 

[Monad]

maybe your feeding too many pellets.... fish can only eat 4-5-6 pellets, anything more will fuel algae growth.

For two clowns I only put in ten pellets. Sometimes they eat them all, sometimes a couple drop to the sandbed.

 

[Tamberav]

Sounds like you need some Pods and bristle worms and the microfauna that keeps live rock clean and eats rotting food/debris.

 

[Monad]

Sounds like you need some Pods and bristle worms and the microfauna that keeps live rock clean and eats rotting food/debris.

Yeah, I need to introduce one of the tiny species of bristle worm. I do have an order of pods coming from algae barn.

 

[Monad]

Sounds like you need some Pods and bristle worms and the microfauna that keeps live rock clean and eats rotting food/debris.

I forgot to mention I did add some chaeto to serve as a home for the pods, also from algae barn. I’ll need to watch my nutrients since the tank is so young and the bioload at the moment is not enough to maintain it long term.

It’s also really wants to exit my refugium and enter my main display so I’ll need to look for a CUC that will eat chaeto in the DT.

 

[exnisstech]

Bristle worms will most likely show up on their own at some point. Maybe feed just a couple of pellets at a time instead of 10. My clown won't go far from her spot to chase food.
My peppermints will chase food down and are fun to watch. I've read of them bothering coral but mine have been fine. I only have two fleshy lps in the tank which is what I've read are the ones they damage.

 

[JoJosReef]

Yeah, I need to introduce one of the tiny species of bristle worm. I do have an order of pods coming from algae barn.

I find an excellent way to introduce a diverse microbiome and get some smaller bristleworms is to dose Fiji Mud slurry into the return flow. It contains bacteria and other microscopic fauna, and I'm pretty sure bristleworm eggs. Unfortunately, the Walt Smith Fiji Mud is no longer readily available, but AquaForest LifeSource is also mud from Fiji. Caveat is that there are magnetic particles in the mud from their region of collection, so what I do is mix a small scoop of mud with saltwater in a plastic Tupperware holding a very strong magnet below it. All the magnetic bits stay at the bottom, and then you can pour the muddy saltwater into the tank (while keeping the magnet on the Tupperware).

 

[BristleWormHater]

Bristle worms will most likely show up on their own at some point. Maybe feed just a couple of pellets at a time instead of 10. My clown won't go far from her spot to chase food.
My peppermints will chase food down and are fun to watch. I've read of them bothering coral but mine have been fine. I only have two fleshy lps in the tank which is what I've read are the ones they damage.

They always show up

 

[Monad]

They always show up

I’d rather get the small and good ones first so they can populate in case I accidentally introduce a bad one latter. The bad ones won’t be able to reproduce with competition, unless they eat the good ones.

 

[BristleWormHater]

I’d rather get the small and good ones first so they can populate in case I accidentally introduce a bad one latter. The bad ones won’t be able to reproduce with competition, unless they eat the good ones.

First of all they are all bad (just kidding) (or am I?)
I wouldn’t worry about "bad bristleworms". I assume you mean fireworms and Eunice worms? They are pretty rare and having bristleworms won't stop them from reproducing. I don't know of anywhere you can buy bristleworms, unless you are planning to buy them from someone local. So don't worry about it too much.

 

[Tamberav]

You can buy them on https://ipsf.com/

along with many other beneficial critters like micro brittles, medusa worms, snails, pods, mud, etc.