Vacuuming Sand

[Jeff Rehling]

Are the wide nozzle sand vacuums effective? I haven't cleaned my sand and there are numerous brown spots that is really irritating. I use a PVC pipe with a ball valve to create the siphon for hands free water changes and want to add a sand vacuum to this device.

I currently use 1/2" PVC. Do you think that creates enough siphon to lift the sand?

Thanks reefers and happy Friday

 

[Bruce Spiegelman]

I'm sure a lot of people use those effectively, but I do it differently. I tried those early on but found I could never really get the places where detritus builds up the most. When I clean I first take a turkey baster and And stir up the sand everywhere. This allows me to get along the edges of the aquarium where the sand gets dirty and in all those tight to get to laces where there's less flow. Note: Do this with all the pumps off so that that the lighter detritus then immediately settles down on top of the sand. I then take a one inch tube and siphon off that top layer. I do lose some sand every time I clean, but simply buy a new bag once every four-six months or so to replace it. Note: Do not do it this way if you have a true deep sandbed of 6" or more.

I know you have Mike helping out at your place and lord knows he's cleaned a million sand beds. Have him show you how he does it.

 

[Jeff Rehling]

thanks. my bed is about 1.5-2"

 

[JVU]

The proper sand siphon cleaners are really cheap and made for the job, so why not just use them? You need the tube to be clear so you can see what you’re doing.