Admonition Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 I know this is a highly debated topic, so please don't kill me lol. I have done a few hours researching the pros and cons and I think I want to try switching my shallow sand bed to a bare bottom. My main reason is that I'm simply tired of sand everywhere. Keeping good flow for my SPS in my small tank gets sand everywhere, including my corals. And I am constantly blowing sand off my rocks, which in turn make their way onto my corals again. My question is geared more towards how realistic and difficult it would be to switch my 0.5-1inch sandbed to a bare bottom without causing negative effects on my tank. Is it as simple as sucking out the sand, or does the sand removal need to be gradual? Link to comment
WibblyPig Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 I had black sand in my old 65 gallon and hated it after I got my MH lights because there was almost no shimmer. I just sucked out some sand with every water change and then when it was gone, added white sand. You'll be able to skip that part. There is bacteria on the sand so don't remove it all at once or the tank could crash. Just remove some with every water change until it's gone. Did you put your rocks in first and then add sand or sand first and then rocks? If it was sand first, be prepared for some movement as things settle to the bottom. Eventually, coraline will cover the entire bottom. Link to comment
Admonition Posted February 16, 2015 Author Share Posted February 16, 2015 Okay, so what percentage of the sandbed is safe to remove every week during water changes, 10%, 20%? Yeah I assumed there would be some shifting. S'why I plan to remove the rocks once it gets that low. Link to comment
WibblyPig Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 It will be more of a function of how much sand you can suck up with a normal water change. I think mine was 10 or 15 percent with each water change - remember, you're sucking out water as well as sand so that's your limiting factor. Start taking it out of the problem areas first and then work your way around the rest of the tank. Link to comment
Arce Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 How dirty is your sand? I used to have sand in my system, maybe an inch. Pulled it all out at once with a fish net. Only issues that may arise is if your sands full of junk it may cause a spike in your nutrient levels. To be safe, just slowly remove it over two weeks or so, do it during your water changes. I never had any problems when i pulled my sand out, but i kept it pretty clean. Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 I removed my sandbed all at once when I went BB, but I have pretty extreme filtration capacity. Link to comment
Lawnman Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 Suck it all out. Think a tanks going to crash from removing funk? You have plenty of life on your rocks. Link to comment
Mr. Microscope Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 Yes, so if you have a gravel vacuum, remove the vacuum part or just use some hose. You'll be able to directly siphon out sand/gunk through the hose into a bucket along with water. In my 25 gallon cube, I sucked out a five gallon bucket's worth of sand/water every day for five or six days (could only make 5 gallons fresh water/day from a logistical standpoint) and in the end I removed the sandbed without disturbing it/releasing bad stuff into the tank. Granted, I took nutrient levels down very fast with all those water changes. It's great no having to worry about sand piling up/blowing around. I used to have that problem too. The flow in my tank is now handled by an MP10 at full blast in LPM, and supplemented by a WP-10 in Else mode at 75%. My corals are loving it! Link to comment
jedimasterben Posted February 16, 2015 Share Posted February 16, 2015 I just siphoned all of mine out into a bucket and put the water back in (through a 1 micron filter sock, though, so it basically caught every particle). Link to comment
Admonition Posted February 17, 2015 Author Share Posted February 17, 2015 Thank you all for the great advice. My rock is easily removed and so I was thinking about relocating the rocks (with attached coral) to seperate 5gallon buckets. Then I would simply remove all the sand while essentially doing a 75% water change (my rear chamber comprises 25% of my total volume). Then I would add my fresh saltwater back to the display section and place the rock with coral back in the tank. I assumed this approach would eliminate the possibility of leeching anything bad from my sand into my water column because I'll be simply removing the water with it. Because I accidentally turned over some sand the other day and the sand was black as coal =\ Is this a safe plan, or is it too drastic of a change? Also, you guys who run BB tanks, do you have any problems with them that make you regret going BB? Link to comment
NorthGaHillbilly Posted February 17, 2015 Share Posted February 17, 2015 I like your idea of removing all the rock, i think thats your best bet Down sides of BB No sand dwelling wrasse Less PH buffering Its not a look for everyone Upsides Everything else we concern ourselves with about our tanks Link to comment
Admonition Posted February 18, 2015 Author Share Posted February 18, 2015 Awesome thank you. It seems that I keep reading positive opinions from reefers who switched to BB, but I figured I would ask. On a side note, is this also a safe way to simply replace the sand bed? I am still on the fence about BB, and a friend suggested I try a larger grain size of sand (as my tank is currently the fine Figi pink stuff) to help with my sandstorm issue. Link to comment
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