Hermits to cycle 20g?

[Kratos1]

Over the break I thought I'd start up a 20G that I had kicking around. I got it all set up with base rock, very fine (almost sand) crushed coral, 100w heater, lighting, and powerhead. I also put some CC from another of my reefs under the new CC. I had an AC 300 as a HOB fuge on my 33g (going to replace it with a AC 500 HOB fuge) that I put on the 20 so it could seed the new tank with coraline and other algae as well as support the tank with denitrifing bacteria. Now the question: could this tank/crabs handle say 3 red legged hermits and some red macro for the cycle?
The AC 300 fuge should have enough denitrifing bacteria to handle the crabs until the bacteria transfers into the new CC, right? There wouldn't be any fish going into this for 3-4 months. Three hermits to start then snails as algae starts on glass. Then a few more more clean up crew as needed until the tank is 'stable'. A fish, but what kind, in about 3-4 months with extra clean up crew as needed. Finally in about 8-10 months I'll be starting into corals.
Now before I get yelled at yes the crabs would get small feedings and the macro would be food as well. The macro should also keep nuisance algae from popping up, I think. So am I far off in my thinking or am I close? Has anyone cycled with hermits before? This will be my first nano (I don't count my 33g as a nano), with no idea what I'm going to put in it yet, so I hope it goes good.

 

[Len]

I'd still wait until the cycle is complete to add the hermits. Crustaceans are pretty sensitive to water conditions and chances are your hermits won't live through a cycle experience. Of course, the HOB fuge that is already established (along with the seeded sandbed) will help speed up the process, but I couldn't say with any degree of certainty how much of a cycle the tank is going to experience. It's simply safer to wait if you can. Crabs and other inverts really aren't good to cycle with as they are sensitve organisms. A few chucks of live rock will accomplish the cycle just fine.

No one's gonna yell at you

 

[Kratos1]

The reason why I thought this way of getting my tank to cycle is that there is nothing to cause a ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, spike really as there is nothing ‘dieing off’. The fuge is established and so is the seed CC. There is no other life in the tank other than the hermits and macro algae. So, as long as the hermits can feed the bacteria in the fuge and the fuge can denitrify the waste from the hermits, should it not be only a waiting game until the dead base rock and new CC becomes part of the denitrifying filtration system. Slowly add a bit here and there in relation to the tanks filteration ability and the bacteria should compensate just as if this was a well established tank getting a new critter. My thought was that the fuge is already established and by starting small ie hermit, the cycle would be slow and steady rather than the spike’s in the normal cycle of a new tank. I would guess that the slow and steady way would be less stressful on the hermits and the tank as a whole. Longer to finish the whole process but less stress and possibly less problems, I would think. But hey that’s why we post in these forums, someone has done what another is thinking and we learn from each other.
Does this sound way off, or should it work?

 

[ReeferAl]

I am not advocating that you use hermits for cycling, but I really don't think they are very sensitive at all to changes in water conditions if they happen slowly. A few years ago when I did a cross-state tank move I set up part of the system including sump and refugium and then left it for about 2 weeks. When I came back a connection had come undone and the refugium had about 1/2" of water in it and was dirty with dead stuff like algae and snails. Undoubtedly there had also been alot of evaporation concentrating the water. The hermits were all alive though! Frankly I think they can tolerate some amazingly harsh conditions as long as the changes occur slowly.
Allen

 

[Anonymous]

Iwould think it would take a really long time and when you added fish you would still get a mini cycle,

WHen I setup my tank I just threw in 2 frozen cubes of frozen mysis. Cycle was over in 4 weeks.
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[spsmike]

Yeah I have seen hermits in god awefull water but then again I have had them die for no reason too.