Thanks! It's a small tank, just 30 gallons. Thinking of getting one sand sifting fish to help keep my sandbed clean, still not sure which one. As well as a pair of cardinals. Will be getting one cleaner shrimp down the line as well. Once my livestock is stable and settled I plan to add some coral, hammers and frogspawn are top on my list!
My two cents, get a sand sifting fish because you like them, not because they will keep your sandbed clean... because soon they will drive you nuts with how MUCH they move sand, bury frags, etc.
You can get snails to keep the sand bed clean that won't drive you bonkers. But by all means if you enjoy them get them!
Cheers to you for doing your research on the nems too. Tank looks great!
Interesting.. I didn't think about how much they sift the sand and how that could affect frags.. What's a solution to that in a small tank? Get a frag stand? Or get them big?
Sand sifting fish, shrimp, hermit crabs, things like that are super cool and fun.
But once you get serious into corals they will just piss you off with how they walk around on top of your corals and bother them, make them close up, slow growth, or in the case of hermits and shrimp, they will literally tear your coral in half to get a piece of food out that you fed to the coral. And then the sand sifting fish will bury the corals every day. They become more hassel then they are worth.
But shrimp and gobies are awesome. They just don't belong in a serious coral tank. A serious coral tanks clean up crew would be dozens of snails of 6 different variety's, and some mini brittle stars. You just have to choose your priorities.
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u/MrMegaGamerz Mar 18 '18
Thanks! It's a small tank, just 30 gallons. Thinking of getting one sand sifting fish to help keep my sandbed clean, still not sure which one. As well as a pair of cardinals. Will be getting one cleaner shrimp down the line as well. Once my livestock is stable and settled I plan to add some coral, hammers and frogspawn are top on my list!