Snails or hermit crabs?

[AC2020x]

Hey, I'm in the process of making a 29 gallon salt water tank which I will fill with a couple clown fish, an anemone and I'll move on from there with whatever else draws my attention. Should I get any snails, Hermit Crabs or anything that would help clean the tank? What are other things I could get that would clean the tank? And what do snails and hermit crabs eat, just stuff already in the tank or do I need to buy any food? and what type of snails or hermit crabs should I get?

 

[TropicalNorth]

It depends on the hermit and the snail as to what they eat. Nassarius snails and most hermits are scavengers, they will eat leftover food mainly and detritus. Nassarius snails are great for aerating the sand bed as the bury themselves in the sand and come up for food. Cerith snails will also do this.

Turbo snails will eat algae, as will trochus but trochus can get pretty big. There are other types of snails but ceriths, nassarius, turbos and trochus are the main ones. A couple of each, or whatever you fancy is fine, you can get more later on if you need them to eat more algae etc. There are other types of cleaners like urchins, starfish, cucumbers but for the beginner its best to stick to snails and hermits, plus they do the job anyway.