DSB Cleaning
 

Im getting the tell tale signs of deep sand bed nutrient buildup: algae on the sand, reduced coral and coralline growth, etc so it's time for a teardown.

This time around I won't be doing a DSB but I would like to reuse some of the sand. What does everyone think about giving it a good rinse (salt/fresh?) and reusing or just toss it and replace?

Also where is a good place in the Vancouver area to get large'ish totes for temporary tanks?

TIA
Ron

Muh!

Ron, I don't think you can clean the sand. I kept about 5 pounds of my original sand during my teardown.

Forgive my ignorance, but why get rid of the sandbed? Low coraline growth might just mean low alk and calcium.

Re: DSB Cleaning
 

use all your old sand that you need to make it 1 to 2 inches.. sell the rest.

I did that and all the problems disapered, I don't think it is a factor of the sand its self getting pluged up but rather the bed getting full. Also having a shallow bed is no excuse for not having critters to maintain it, I have a fighting conch and two tiger tail cucs in my 90 and they do a heck of a job.

Steve

Beverly the thoughts are that nutrients (particularly phosphates) bind to the sand and then begin to release once it reaches a certain level.

FWIW alk and Ca are 3.0 meq and 400ppm respectively and NO3 is undetectable.

Steve what grain size are you using? Do you do maintenance on your sand bed or is it fill-and-forget?

I was thinking of mixing in some larger grain sand and start a vacuuming routine though I would be concerned about how that would affect critters.

all sugar sized, fill and forget , thats what I have critters for.

Steve

I'm with Steve, maintaining a DSB can be a chore, recent articles quoting a number of studies have shown that you get de nitrification in a 2 inch sand bed. Fill and forget sounds like a heck of a good idea. Although I love my tanks I also like convenient and easy.

Doug

Re: DSB Cleaning
 

What's the rule of thumb with tiger tails and amount of open sand bed per cuke? I've always wanted one but not sure I have enough open sand bed. (Waiting for the bigger tank first... :rolleyes: )

Ron, I believe that PO4 is irreversibly attached to the sand. An acid bath would fix it, but then your sand would dissolve. If you're going to tear down the tank, don't waste your time by saving $50 on new sand. @ bags is likely enough to give you a decent sand bed about 1-2 inches deep. Put your rock in first and spread sand around it.