# Freshwater Sand Sifters



## ar1_pyroboy

Hi all, can anyone tell me what are some good sand sifters I can put in my 35 Gal tank? I really like crayfish but I was told they only sift the top part of the sand. Is this true? I plan to stir the sand up once a week when doing partial water changes. Can I get away with some kind of shrimp or crayfish?


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## Ciddian

What kind of fish do you already have in there?


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## ozi

My suggestion would be a bunch of corydoras catfish and some MTS (Malaysian Trumpet Snails). The first will always stir up the upper layers of the sand, whereas the latter will actually dig into and aerate your sand.


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## ar1_pyroboy

Ciddian said:


> What kind of fish do you already have in there?


Hi, I don't have any fish yet. I am currently cycling it with some guppies that will go back into my 10 gal tank once I introduce some Green Tiger Barbs I was planning to buy.

Ozi mentioned MTS. I might look into that, but do you know of any shrimp that I can also introduce in there that won't be harmed by the tiger barbs? I have built a bunch of caves made with pvc and plan to use it. Also, there are a lot of crevices for hiding that i made with my 3D background.

thanks guys I really appreciate your help.

Edit: Scratch the MTS, I just did some research and found out they can be quite troublesome as they multiply faster than rabbits.


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## Ciddian

they arnt really an issue for me.. They keep all my sand tanks stirred up. The trouble happens when I over feed but the only trouble i run into is a population explosion. 

I just take some time and bait with cucumber to cut the numbers down. If you stop feeding as well they drop down in numbers too.

but if you just dont like the snail in general its pretty difficult to get them all out once they are in there.

I agree with Ozi's advice.

Shrimp would be hit or miss, I have odessa barbs and they really enjoy the shrimp but if you start with enough and have enough hiding spots you might be okay.


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## Tropicana

I have had problems with barbs and shrimp before they dont mix well. imo.


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## ar1_pyroboy

Tropicana said:


> I have had problems with barbs and shrimp before they dont mix well. imo.


NOOOOoooo  . I was looking forward to having both. There goes my dream. I guess I'll just get the barbs alone then.

Thanks for all your help guys.


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