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What's a good goby to get to keep sand clean? but...

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pathakm

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So here's the deal. I'm new to the hobby and have just setup my new 30 L IM Nuvo. And as a rookie, I went with some really good looking fishes which I could get my hands on for a bargain (nothing is cheap in this hobby as it turns out). I ended up getting a beautiful Yellow Head/Blue Streak Goby. Honestly this thing is great looking. But here's the problem - my frogspawn, acans, blastos, some other corals aclimating, zoas in low places - absolutely hate the sand storm this little beauty creates. Honestly, it's painful seeing a beautifully opened up zoa colony just close up as sand just pours over it right in front of my eyes. So I'm netted it and kept him in a breeder box for now and this beauty goes back to LFS tomorrow (I only knocked over 2 corals trying to get this fish out).

One thing I really liked about this goby was that it constantly kept my sand turned. Honestly, my sand looks really nice and fluffy but I don't like it's habit of taking a mouthful of sand and going up to the top to dump it right in front of my powerhead or wave maker.

So I do still want to keep a goby which can keep my sand clean and oxygenated but I also don't want it to disturb my corals on the sand bed. Am I looking for some kind of utopia that does not exist? Is there a goby out there specially designed for me? Or do I give up hope of keeping a goby and look for something else?

Please help!

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Diamond watchman goby
I have one and it dose a good job keeping sand bed turned. Also stays at the bottom when doing so. Recommend get a screen on top of tank as they are known to jump out.
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You could get a cucumber to keep the sand somewhat clean, they eat dirty sand and poop out clean sand, but they're not some magic pill by any stretch, and they're not going to dig down into the sand either if you're worrying about it remaining "oxygenated". But the big downside is it may look like you had a party and some drunk guest dropped off a "Baby Ruth" in the tank :D
 
sfsuphysics said:
You could get a cucumber to keep the sand somewhat clean, they eat dirty sand and poop out clean sand, but they're not some magic pill by any stretch, and they're not going to dig down into the sand either if you're worrying about it remaining "oxygenated". But the big downside is it may look like you had a party and some drunk guest dropped off a "Baby Ruth" in the tank :D
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LOL.
 
Eventually, the more your system mature the less you will care about how white your sand is. You can vacuum, use snails and other cuc like cucumbers who are good with cleaning sand.
But I advice for you not to stress too much about how clean the sand is and focused on good husbandry habits like feeding, water change and filtration efficiency.
 
Bruce Spiegelman said:
Worst fish ever may be a Sleeper Goby. Second worse may be a Diamond Goby. Try Nassarius snails and Fighting Conch's to help.
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+1 these goby's are such a pain down the line, they will prevent you from having the option of adding coral on sand or on low levels..
Nassarius and sea cucumbers especially tiger tail cucumbers are way better options.
 
This information is super helpful folks. So I'm going to resist my urges to get a goby and try the Nassarius snails and Cerith snails. My tank is not that big so I'll also hold out on Sea Cucumbers for now. Thanks again so much.
 
If you want clean sand you have to clean it manually, there is no animal that will do a good job of it for you without causing problems. If your sandbed is thin, like 0.5", it is easy and fast to clean manually with a siphon. The tanks you see with white sand all clean manually.
 
My sand bed wasn’t super deep and I would just stir it up a bit each day when I fed. I still had fighting conches, tiger cucumbers, nessarius and cerith snails, and sand sifting sea stars. Even with all this I occasionally would have to vacuum it.
 
ofzakaria said:
+1 these goby's are such a pain down the line, they will prevent you from having the option of adding coral on sand or on low levels..
Nassarius and sea cucumbers especially tiger tail cucumbers are way better options.
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I agree. they're a pain in the butt.
 
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