Sand sifting Star??

[Afrashz]

Hey guys Ive been having some diatoms form in the middle of my tank and my nassarius snails don't seem to be stirring the sand lately as much as I would like. I was curious if you think a sand sifting starfish is too big/destructive for a 14 gallon biocube. I was also curious whether they climb on rocks and glass or strictly stick to the sand which I would prefer. I have a couple mushrooms on the sandbed and wasn't sure if the star would mess with those at all. Thanks!

 

[hijinks7]

there's not enough sand bed for a star fish in a 14g. It'll starve to death.

 

[Dancingmad]

14G? I would try like 3-5 ceriths maybe. They're pretty small, can right themselves if they get flipped, and have always done a great job for me.

I wouldn't do the sand sifting starfish.
+ 1 to not enough bed for it to sift through for sure. It'd starve to death, cause a nutrient spike, and bam more algea/diatoms/etc.

 

[jd371]

If you want to forgo the snails and try a fish the Rainford Goby is what I have. He sifts the sand all day without making a mess, and when he's not sifting the sand he's eating algae off the rocks. My Goby and two Conch snails keep my sand spotless.