[Reefer769]

Hey Everyone!

I just have a quick question.
how many turbo grazers, and how many blue leg crabs can i keep in my 30gal cube?
heres a pic of my tank, for those of you who havent seen it.

[Poseidon]

Do a search on Blue Legs and Snails....

I don't think you'll like what you see, Blue lega are NOTORIOUS for EATING snails and taking their shells. I watched 3 blue legs MUG a snail in my tank once.... Nasty little critters, I think you would be better off with a variety of snails and NO CRABS... Nassarious Vibex (NOT THE ONES ON E-BAY), cerith, Astrea, Nerite are the ones I keep in my tank, along with a couple Strombus Alatus, (fighting Conch). That critter package will do a very good job of keeping the glass clean and stirring the sandbed...

[Reefer769]

then how come everywhere they sell clean up crews with both hermits and snails together? wow i already have 5 blue legs and 3 snails, what do you think i should do?

[Poseidon]

If you were a store, why wouldn't you? If the blue legs eat the snails, you will have to come back and buy more snails... Something you HAVE to learn in this hobby is a LFS is NOT the BEST source for information. Very few stores have the knowledge required to keep a successful tank. The few that do will almost ALWAYS sell JUST fish and corals, no drygoods or supplements. The stores that stock a ton of drygoods are following the business model to make money.. (not a bad thing by itself) but rather they will follow the approach that there is SOMETHING to CURE EVEYTHING... Not the let it be approach that is always so successful... Look at Ninong, Zhenya and Reeflands tanks, NONE of them keep hermits, neither do I... I would take the blue legs back to the store and get more Astrea snails instead. Also ask about getting some Cerith and Nassarious Snails. You can get a great deal on critters at www.reeftopia.com but even there, the packages include hermits. Just create your own crew and leave out the CLAWS!!!

[Reefer769]

what about just having ALL hermit crabs?

[Reefland]

Snails are better algae eaters and are therefore preferred however you could keep all hermits.

[Reefer769]

what are some snails that are out all day instead of the turbos which hide all day and come out at night? becuase if im gunna get rid of my crabs then i want snails that are out during the day. any suggestions?

[Poseidon]

Most snails are Nocturnal that I've seen anyway... I see Truchus snails and Mexican Turbo's on my front glass every once in a while during the day though. But most often they come out at night....

[Reefer769]

alright thanks!