Going from sand to BB

Rikko · #1 07-23-2006, 03:55 AM

Hey all,

I'm thinking of going BB - I'm sick of the crap growing on the sand and the hair algae that I'm sure isn't helped by the nutrient sink that is my shallow sand bed.
I'd like to pull the sand out over the next few months but was wondering if anyone had done the same and had any pointers.

I'm mostly concerned about rockwork shifting now that the sand isn't there to help keep the base of the rock a little more stable.. Does anybody/everybody who goes BB put anything on the bottom to prevent pressure points, or is that just an overcaution that isn't an especially big deal?

Moogled · #2 07-23-2006, 04:02 AM

As long as your rockwork is stable and spread evenly, I wouldn't worry about it too much.

Try to ensure that there are medium sized spots below the live rock to help with circulation. Plus, most of those spots become dead spots for detritus, so I find it handy to just stick a tube in several dead spots and have at least 50% of my detritus siphoned already.

Skimmer Juice · #3 07-23-2006, 04:03 AM

I had a similar issue with my sand.I just sucked a little lair out at a time.Soon the problems were under control.

Chin_Lee · #4 07-23-2006, 04:42 AM

for what ever reason, after i sucked out my sandbed, i had a lot of algae problems and some STN on my acros. I believe disturbing it releases some sort of nutrient or something into the water column. Make plans to suck it out as soon as possible and do as many biweekly water changes as possible for a few weeks to a month.

Chad · #5 07-23-2006, 05:11 AM

I simply ripped everything out in one shot. I also added some pre-cured liverock to compensate for any loss of bio filtration. I never noticed a problem with the corals. But I had things going down hill at that time anyways. so.

christyf5 · #6 07-24-2006, 03:59 PM

I just restarted the tank, took everything out, used half the original water and half new. Seemed easier than trying to get whatever I stirred up into the water column out later on with monster water changes. Worked for me

Beverly · #7 07-24-2006, 05:58 PM

I removed all the rock, corals, fish, inverts from the tank as well as enough water to keep them all happy for a day or so. I shovelled out the sandbed, scraped all the coralline off the walls (it would die anyway without water), siphoned out the remaining crud, then gave it a good rinse with tapwater before siphoning again and refilling.

This whole ordeal gave me the chance to reaquascape the tank, as well as make sure no toxins were released from the bottom of the sandbed into a stocked tank.

Chad · #8 07-24-2006, 06:38 PM

ya, maybe I should mention. I removed as much water as possible and all live before I tore out the sendbed