Vacuuming Sandbed

[globaldesigns]

Originally Posted by DiverDude

It goes well enough !

I've been hearing a lot of people say they vacuum their sand lately. This came as a bit of a surprise since I'd imagine the the standard gravel siphon would suck sand right out of the tank with the water...

Do you just suck a little off the top or right to the bottom and what do you use to do it ? Has it made any difference to the overall health of the tank ?

I have a hose clamp that restricts flow, and I will bend the hose slightly while vacumning to slow down things further if needed.

I hold the valumn at a 45 degree angle, I find it cyclones the sand in the tube better, cleaning better, while not sucking out too much sand. You will always suck a bit out.

You should see how dirty the water taken out is, very black... over time with weekly cleaning, the water removed becomes tan in color.