TEAM CUC: What does your CUC team (clean up crew) look like and who's your MVP?

[revhtree]

Happy Monday Reef Fam! This week we're going to be discussing CLEAN UP CREWS or CUC to keep it short! 100% of us have some type of CUC whether it is a group of inverts that are housed specifically to keep the dissolving organics clean (eat poop) or it's a pretty fish that just so happens to love the taste of unsightly algae! Let's talk CUC!

1. What cleaner inverts, cleaner fish and micro cleaners do you have "on the team" in your reef aquarium? Please list them!

2. Who's the MVP of your clean up crew and why?


image via @OceansGarden

 

[Jekyl]

Cleaner package from reefcleaners.org, cleaner shrimp, tuxedo urchin. Diversity is key.

 

[shakacuz]

my CUC in a 40B (50G total water volume) - will be transferring over to a 75G soon!:

1 tomini tang
1 yellow coris wrasse
1 sand sifting starfish
1 pitho crab
1 tiger/strawberry conch
1 fighting conch
1 scarlet reef hermit crab
1electric blue hermit crab
1 royal tuxedo urchin (in fuge chamber in sump)
4 tonga nassarius snails
4 astrea snails
4 trochus snails
4 dwarf trochus snails
4 money cowrie snails
5 nerite snails
handful of dwarf blue legged hermit crabs
handful of mexican (keys) red legged hermit crabs
handful of cerith snails
handful of dwarf cerith snails
handful of zigzag periwinkle snails
handful of dwarf planaxis snails

big shoutout to reef cleaners for such a diverse CUC!

slowly trying to convert to an all snail CUC. i don't consider my cleaner shrimp to actually be a cleaner. and my peppermint shrimp went rogue finally, so i have to catch and sump it.

 

[ChiCity]

most crabs other than scarlets and mini blues turn into pests…

snails are the real mvp’s of the reef cleaning game.

trochus and turbos are my favs for larger snails.
stomatellas are the 6th man coming off the bench.

 

[Scottrshoe]

I also have a CUC package from ReefCleaners...Assorted snails, hermits and an emerald crab

Snails seem to always be on break....

 

[Roli's Reef Ranch]

Mine looks like dozens of empty shells on the bottom of my tank.

 

[Cell]

I love Tongan Nassarius for my sandbeds.

Mostly trochus, nerite and cerith for everything else.

I always have at least 1 emerald crab.

I pick Tuxedo Urchin as the MVP. Tirelessly mows down algae. Doesn't sting. Doesn't kill coral. Peaceful. The worst it does is pick up the occasional frag, but it just wants a fancy hat.

 

[SaltwaterandLime]

Cleaner packages from reefcleaners in all of my tanks. Snails and hermits mostly

 

[Fishy888]

I have 4 hermits, several limpets, at least 1 brittle star, Asterinas as well. I also have pods of all kinds. I also voted "other" because bristle worms are a must in my CUC. Spaghetti worms and small feather dusters help too.

 

[i cant think]

Well, in my 4’ tank I have;
- 10+ Trochus Snails
- 4 Nassarius Snails
- 3-4 Hermit Crabs
- 2-3 Turbo Snails
- Stenopus scutt
- Halichoeres iridis
- Halichoeres chloropterus
- Chelmon rostratum
- Ctenochaetus binotatus
- Siganus magnificus

In my Nano tank:
- Lysmata wurdemanni
- 2 Trochus Snails
- 2 Astraea Snails
- 2 Nassarius Snails
- 1 Strawberry Conch
- Macropharyngodon bipartitus

Both of my tanks have a decent pod population due to some of my fish only eating pods.
I chose other because really, I don’t care about an invert Cleaning up something I’d rather choose an invert that I like and can enjoy for a while.

 

[kingoftheHiLLpeople]

I also have a CUC package from ReefCleaners...Assorted snails, hermits and an emerald crab

Snails seem to always be on break....

Found the water cooler!

 

[exnisstech]

Turbo snails are my stars. I have hair algae and they are doing good job fighting it. Couple tuxedo urchins to but they don't eat it like the turbos. Thing I like about the turbos is being able to pick them up and put them right on the alage I want them to eat.

 

[cdnco2004]

Snails, Crabs, Shrimp, Pods and cleaner fish but the MVP award goes to my Saltwater Acclimated Mollies.

 

[ReefGeezer]

I've gone around and around with this issue. I've come to the opinion that all those snails, crabs, and etc. aren't worth the expense or trouble. I have a few left over Nassarius and a couple Turbo snails and a Tuxedo Urchin in my tank, but I probably won't replace them once they are gone.

 

[rtparty]

Trochus, cerith, nassarius, dwarf cerith, giant knobby creeper, peppermint shrimp, pods galore, little seprent stars all over

But the best clean up crew in my tank is my "tang gang" which has a convict tang, two spot tang, rabbitfish, and foxface Lo.

 

[monkeyCmonkeyDo]

Pods are not members of the cuc. They are fish food.
Top crown snails are the mvp of cuc.
Although I do believe diversity is best and balance

D

 

[cdnco2004]

Pods are not members of the cuc. They are fish food.
Top crown snails are the mvp of cuc.
Although I do believe diversity is best and balance

D

You are are completely incorrect in your statement that pods are not CUC. Study up on pods and learn a few things.

 

[tweeter]

Emerald crabs from reef cleaners, and tangs hands down!!! There is no amount of snails/crabs that will do the amount mowing and weed eating that tangs will do, IMO

 

[ScubaFish802]

I really like the weird little cleaners that are often not for sale with all the snails and crabs - such as limpets, chitons, stomatella, worms, etc - they get in all the tight places and I feel the 'clean up power' per 'lb' is unmatched

(not my image)

 

[GobyGuy]

pods for dino seems goated, as do snails, i love snails and blue legged hermit ( i like to think the blue legs are nicer than the mexican and red leg ones haha at least from small experience) it is pureley survival of the fittest with 2 tiger pistols in my 5 gal lol