Sandbed advice requested...

[JennM]

Hi all!

I guess it appears that I am doing lots of things backwards..you're right!

I would like some ideas about building up my substrate.

I presently have a too-thin layer of crushed coral as substrate, and in the reading I have done, I see now that Nitrate could cause a problem as the tank matures....SO...

Here's what I would *like* to do, and I thought I'd run it up the flagpole here first.

I can get the argonite sand at Home Depot, so that's not a problem. I would remove the LR and anihabitants to temporary quarters for this procedure, and put the sand directly on top of the existing crushed coral. Then I would add some LS (how much, proprotionately?) and when the dust settles, return the inhabitants carefully to the tank.

I've written it out in a simplified way, but in a nutshell, with careful acclimation, is this a good way to go? I'd like to do it in one day, if possible, so as not to stress my livestock too much.

FYI there are currently visible critters in the crushed coral, and I realize it's the microbes that do most of the beneficial work in the substrate, so I can safely assume that some of them are present in what's there now...but any thoughts/opinions/experiences are welcome.



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JennM

Our Evolving Tank
http://home.earthlink.net/~grashoppr

[ATLANTIS]

Jenn,
It looks like you have a good plan in place.
Since your existing sand bed is not really deep enough to be benificial... you will lose some life in this "cover up" but not all. Topping off with LS is a good idea. Add as much as you can afford.
You may see an ammonia spike / mini cycle... keep an eye on your parameters and plan a water change to combat the spike.

PS if you can see it, it is sand bed fauna... not microbes..

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Brian

http://atlantisaquatic.com

[JennM]

Thanks for the reply!

Re-reading my first post, I wasn't clear enough...Yes, I do realize that visible critters aren't the microbes. I was suggesting that if I have visible varmints, I likely have invisible ones too

I'll probably be doing that this week then.

Thanks again

Jenn

[Yam]

If you plan on adding the HD Playsand, give at least three to four days for the tank to clear, if you do not rinse it which is the suggested method. Keep this in mind when you setup your temporary tank. When I added 150 lbs (3 bags) it took over a week for it to clear. Of course, you don't have to wait for it to clear completely, and when you place your livestock back in, you will stir it up again.

Danny

[JennM]

Thanks!

I didn't realize it would take so long to settle....guess I had better make decent living arrangements for a few days for the fish.

LR will be fine in rubbermaid with lights and circulation, but the fish....OY! Good thing there's only 3 of them...

What about inverts?

Am I biting off more than I can chew here?

Jenn

[horge]

Are we talking about a DEEP sandbed?
If not, plow right on ahead

But if you are aiming for a Shimek-style DSB, you need to correct a few (big) things about your rough plan before you ever start.

Let us know

[Fudge]

Hijennm,
Why couldnt you add it in small increments?
Like say a cup at a time,It would certianly take a little longer,
But imho would be preferable to storing fish\inverts elsewere.
This method would not be nearly as hard on your original sandbed fauna.
$ .2 worth of fudge.

[This message has been edited by Fudge (edited 07-24-2000).]

[JennM]

Hi,

Thanks for all the input.

Not sure what is meant by "deep"...I think we will try for 3-4" of sandbed, as we only have about an inch or so of substrate right now.

I'd like to know more about adding a bit at a time....if it's doable without tearing everything apart, IMO that would be a better way to go, especially since there is some life in existance already in the substrate.

Enlighten me, please

Jenn

[Rob]

Hey Jenn,

Tanya and I did just this. The only difference was that our tank had only been up for three weeks before we added an average of 4" of "live" sand to the existing crushed coral substrate. We hated the look of the crushed coral... too much like the kitty litter that we take turns cleaning every day!
What's left of the crushed coral is behind or under rocks, or inside a cave.

The primary thing to worry about is chemical spikes, if you remove your existing substrate, take rocks out... there will be die-offs! Please don't forget that you spent your valuable time cycling this tank to get it stable...

What I would do is carefully move most of the crushed coral to one side... say, behind or under your rocks. We made a deep, dark, crushed-coral-lined cave, after getting creative. Anyway, this should preserve most of your sandbed fauna as well as your denitrifying bacteria, allowing it to re-seed the new sand. You might also consider doing this in stages instead of all at once.

Commercially available "live" sand packed in seawater has one advantage... you can pour it directly from bag to tank, and it doesn't cloud the water. We didn't expect anything "live" in it, especially after transport and storage. We paid the high cost for its beauty and its good ergonomics. Others braved the traffic and long lines at Home Depot to get dead sand cheaper, then spent time rinsing it, then had to add ph buffer... I wonder if it really was cheaper!

We're very happy with the appearance and
function, and our consistent ammonia 0, nitrIte 0 and nitrAte ~5ppm levels would tell us that something is working properly on the bacterial level... this is a 55g tank stocked with 10 damselfish, and 12 or more snails. There is also about 30# of live rock.

We're finally starting to see wormsign now, after about six weeks of the sand bed being in, and adding goo and muck from a few different sources. Very exciting! Here's a few great benthos links, my personal favourites.
http://www.reefs.org/library/talklog...ek_090698.html
http://www.animalnetwork.com/fish/li...=&RecordNo=166
http://www.animalnetwork.com/fish2/a.../1/default.asp
http://saltaquarium.about.com/pets/s...+sand+benefits



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Cheers,
Rob
New York City

[Fudge]

Hi again jenn,
What i meant by that was,just take a cup at a time,rinse it,then place the cup at the bottom of your tank and slowly tip it out.
You could probably add a few cups a day without stirring up to much trouble,until sandbed depth is reached.
IMO would just fill the front section,and around your front rocks,that way there is less chance of sulphide pockets occuring behind your rockwork,and also providing a more stable structure for your rocks. HPH,Fudge

[JennM]

Wow good ideas, thanks to all.

I think I like Rob in NYC's idea...but we will consider all the ideas before we do it.

I really don't want to have to relocate my livestock if possible, and I don't want to kill off the good stuff that's in the substate already...so Rob's plan seems the most appropriate for our situation.

Jenn