Isopods and other microfauna

[mallooorryy]

Hi all! I have some questions/concerns about critters in the tank and I would love some advice!

I've been dealing with fungus gnats in the tank for around 3 months now. I constantly spot clean, and have switched to dry foods only for a bit now. I've got a sticky trap that catches the majority of them, but Im trying to find anything short of an all-out substrate change to get rid of them for good. They arent a HUGE problem, more of an annoyance than anything. Ive only seen ~30 in the tank in total (most of which have fallen to my sticky trap )

I added spring tails to my set up (20 gal long w/ 25 gal topper) about 2 weeks ago. I rarely see them, but Im hoping that given enough time they will repopulate and start cleaning the tank more. Im now interested in getting isopods for the setup, but Ive got a few questions I cant find a good answer to. I plan on ordering them from the same place I did springtails- Josh's Frogs.

-Which species of isopod is best for a hermit crab set up?
-Will the clean-up-crew bugs help with my fungus gnat problem?
-How many should I put in the tank to start?
-Will they escape out of the crack between the doors of my topper? (Besides the crack, my tank is sealed and maintaining 80^F and 75-80 humidity)
-If so, what is the best way to seal the crack?

Thank you so much for any help! <3

[JoeHermits]

Fungus gnats need organic matter for their eggs so as long as there’s coconut fiber and other materials in your sand they’re going to keep reproducing.

To get rid of them you need to let the top inch of substrate dry out, which won’t bother the crabs but is not conducive to a clean-up crew that needs moisture (although your springtails will likely congregate under wood and other items). The gnats won’t disappear right away but with your sticky traps nearby and nowhere to lay their eggs they’ll dwindle.


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[mallooorryy]

Thank you! Should I remove the leaf litter from my tank?

[JoeHermits]

Probably not necessary, fungus gnats need more soil than whole leaves and letting the soil dry out would make anything the leaves add unusable anyways.


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[mallooorryy]

Alright, Thanks for the help!