Cali Kid Corals

Sand bed

MarAquatic

MarAquatic

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I have been thinking of siphoning about 1.5 inches of sand from my aquarium. Right now at the deepest it's around 3.25 inches what are your opinions on this matter
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Take this reply with a grain of salt, since I am a noob, but I was reading that you want ~.5 in of sand for a ssb, or ~4-5 in of sand for a dsb. Something about needing anaerobic pockets for denitrification, and anywhere in between just collects lots of detritus. Hopefully we can get some pros personal opinions, because the chemistry of the sand bed really intrigues me, but it is confusing as well
 
Sand is a personal choice, if you siphon a little less than half of it, then great... if YOU like it. It's already not deep enough to really get much in the way of anaerobic areas. Right now it's basically surface area for bacteria to live and critters to crawl in.

Personally I think it looks fine as is, but again sand is a personal choice.
 
I've always been a fan of sand. Mike is right it's a personal decision to keep or not. Some wrasses need it if you ever go that route.
 
Yeah I'm going to keep it how it is. I will eventually be getting some type of fairy wrasse and more sand sifting snails. Thanks guys for the input. Do you guys suggest sifting the sand during water changes ?
 
Given the "in between" depth, I would suggest gently siphoning and sifting a bit, yes.
But sudden massive stirring of that sand bed could be very bad.

PS: I rather like the look of yours.
Shallow send beds looks a bit flat and boring. (Mine does. I may add sand)
 
Yes, I like the way it is too. Mine is just about 1 inch, and it looks pretty flat. I've been thinking about adding more as well; have some lying around that I didn't place initially. Also with the two MP40s on each side, the center sand is getting blown away. I have "#3" sand, might need to go a bit bigger in the center.
 
Fairy wrasse (Cirrhilabrus spp.) do not need sand.

Halichoeres spp. wrasses prefer a sand bed to sleep in.

I like a deeper sand bed myself. 3-4" is nice


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Gablami said:
Yes, I like the way it is too. Mine is just about 1 inch, and it looks pretty flat. I've been thinking about adding more as well; have some lying around that I didn't place initially. Also with the two MP40s on each side, the center sand is getting blown away. I have "#3" sand, might need to go a bit bigger in the center.
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In the exact same boat. Was thinking of adding another 10-15lbs in my Reefer 250. 1" just seems too flat.
 
RandyC said:
In the exact same boat. Was thinking of adding another 10-15lbs in my Reefer 250. 1" just seems too flat.
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Any tips on adding sand without having it fly everywhere and cloud up the water? Tried using a pvc pipe to apply the sand just where I need it but quickly gave up on that. Might just turn off the pumps and dump it in and let things settle a bit before restarting pumps. Easy for me cause I got nothing in this tank...besides 5 hermits feasting on dead snails.
 
Gablami said:
Any tips on adding sand without having it fly everywhere and cloud up the water? Tried using a pvc pipe to apply the sand just where I need it but quickly gave up on that. Might just turn off the pumps and dump it in and let things settle a bit before restarting pumps. Easy for me cause I got nothing in this tank...besides 5 hermits feasting on dead snails.
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Your case, I might just deal with the cloudiness for a night and dump it in. Maybe grab the crabs and put them in the sump while you're doing it. For me since I have livestock in there, i'd prolly use a pvc pipe with a funnel or scoop it in with a solo cup. Gotta make sure to clean the sand really well though before you put it in.

I also used a larger grain though, so it's not as prone to blow around (1.25-2mm)

CaribSea Dry Aragonite Special Grade Reef Sand 15 lb https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002APLCU/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_EnSbyb5R2TBTD
 
Gablami said:
Any tips on adding sand without having it fly everywhere and cloud up the water? Tried using a pvc pipe to apply the sand just where I need it but quickly gave up on that. Might just turn off the pumps and dump it in and let things settle a bit before restarting pumps. Easy for me cause I got nothing in this tank...besides 5 hermits feasting on dead snails.
Click to expand...

Assuming you are adding dry sand, I usually would rinse the sand to remove really fine particles.

Put some sand in bucket, stir fast with equal amount of water, dump out the water before the sand settle and it will take the smaller particles along with it. Do this a few times and your sand should have minimal dust. Then just turn off pump and scoop it into place.
 
roostertech said:
Assuming you are adding dry sand, I usually would rinse the sand to remove really fine particles.

Put some sand in bucket, stir fast with equal amount of water, dump out the water before the sand settle and it will take the smaller particles along with it. Do this a few times and your sand should have minimal dust. Then just turn off pump and scoop it into place.
Click to expand...


Thats exactly what I did to rinse my sand. Also I had a long 4inch diameter PVC tube that I aimed at the bottom of my tank, then poured the sand in the tube to allow for the sand to fall down slowly. My tank was clear in minutes.
 
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