Something to stir and sift sand

[DeltaUguy]

I need something to sift and move my sand around. Is there anything besides hermit crabs and gobies that would do well in a 25 gallon? All I have is a clown fish and some live rock (getting more this weekend) and base rock as well.

[JohnMemorialHS]

Nassarius snails do wonder.
Also, cucumbers when you can find one, they do a fine job.

[DeltaUguy]

I bought 2 Nassarius today (along with 5 more lbs of LR) and plan on buying 3 more on Friday (along with more LR). So far they're neat little critters.

How hardy are sea cucumbers? The one's I've seen are pretty big and are probably too big for my tank. Where's a good place to get info on them?

Thanks for your input.

[rift-n-reef]

sand sifting stars of course, but depending on the depth of your sand bed, it may not need to be "stirred" up all that much. Also, just a small word of caution, if you do have a deeper bed of sand, and are getting a good deal of rock on top of it, be careful that the rock is placed in a manner that if it shifts a bit, it won't collapse. I had that problem in my 40g reef once. My dragon gobie stirred my sand a bit too much in one area, and my rock come tumbling down... smashed a couple corals...:( HTH.


"J"

[Water World]

DU. Just my opinion. I would steer clear of a sand sifting star (tiger star). They will move the top layer of you sand around but they will do a number on your "pod" population. I had one for almost a year with a healthy supply of pods (white bugs). Now I hardly see any. I would suggest a number of Cerith Snails, or Nassarius Snails. This web site had good prices. http://www.reeftopia.com/ There were 3 of us that went in on a $350 order and they shipped next day free. At night they come out scrubbing the glass, rock and sand. A conch would be a good choice as well there are several kinds check them out.

[syngent]

Newbie Question. Is it really necessary to stir the sand? Are the little bugs in the sand enough to do the job?