New tank purchase concerns

96p993 · 05/29/2009, 10:48 AM

I went with a buddy of mine to look at a tank he wants to buy. The guy hasnt really been taking care of the tank so it doesnt look all that great but he is letting it go for a decent price. After looking over the tank all looks good except for one thing...There is this black growth underneath the sand that concerns me. I have seen plenty of sandbeds come alive and change colors but have never seen this black. Im afraid there is something wrong but not sure what, we clicked some pics of the black and I told him to hold off til I got some opinions on what the deal is..Hoping someone can help

Thanks

eho72 · 05/29/2009, 11:12 AM

I would just toss out the old sand and buy new sand since you will be taking everything out to transport it anyway.

nikon187 · 05/29/2009, 11:14 AM

yeah if removing the sand to make the move i would just use entirly new sand when you set it back up

JustinReef · 05/29/2009, 11:15 AM

I forget what that's called but yes it can be bad if you disturb the sand bed. But you wouldn't want to reuse the sand anyways, so why is this going to hold your friend back from buying the tank?

96p993 · 05/29/2009, 11:18 AM

Not really holding him back just didnt know what it is....Needless to say we just wanted to do some homework on it before purchasing

96p993 · 05/29/2009, 07:24 PM

Alright we started breaking down the tank and all the sand is black underneath the top layer...We are sucking it out but have found all the rock that was under the sand is black as well...this is quite a bit of rock. I really need to find out what it is and now whether any of the rock can be saved...Please someone help us out on this situation.

Thanks

andyrm66 · 05/29/2009, 10:10 PM

leave the rock outside in the sun for a week? Should fix it maybe scrub it too, I wouldnt worry

scottwhitson · 05/29/2009, 10:13 PM

I would suggest scrubbing the rock as well as you can in saltwater and then using a powerhead to blast all the crevices clean in the rock.

nikon187 · 05/29/2009, 10:45 PM

What it is is anerobic bacteria that is toxic. This is why we don't disturb deep sand beds when they are running on a tank. The gas produced is also toxic to us if we breath it in

drummereef · 05/29/2009, 10:53 PM

How many fish/inverts were in the tank and are they currently QT'd?

96p993 · 05/30/2009, 07:13 AM

there were no fish or inverts in the tank....From the looks of it when we first looked at the tank a powerhead was hitting the front glass and causing the sand to move around a little. Will that small distaurabance cause the bacteria to come out and "poison" the tank?

Imzadi · 05/30/2009, 08:48 AM

Could it be actually Black Sand? It could be that he used the ominous Play Sand as a base, and true Aquaria Substrate on top.

Take a sample, and see if it rinses clean... If it does, its anerobic black death... if it doesn't... then it is probably just the color of the sand that was used. The picture show the dark matter really close to the surface of the substrate... not likely would anerobic activity be that close to the top... I don't think... unless he has an absolute swamp of a tank.

screwsloose · 05/30/2009, 11:36 AM

it is an anoxic pocket of sand. once it is stirred and re oxygenated it will turn back to the normal color more then likely. as stated it may release some nitrogen gas so try not to breathe it to much but it is still reusable once it is rinsed. i wouldnt worry to much baout it if there is not any livestock in the tank.

Peter Eichler · 05/30/2009, 11:51 AM

It's sulphur dioxide that causes the sand to turn black. My guess is that's just cheap silica sand and it has a tendency to do this, especially if there is nothing to work the sand bed and lower flow. If it was simply anoxic I kinda doubt it would be that bad, it's probably coming from anaerobic pockets.

walkthedog · 05/30/2009, 02:12 PM

Close.... It's hydrogen sulfide that turns the sand black. Smells like rotton eggs and is not good for a reef tank. It don't really hurt anything unless the sand is mixed and is released into tank. If you are going to toss the sand then I wouldn't worry about it.

96p993 · 05/30/2009, 06:24 PM

Is washing the rocks and getting all sand out of them good enough to use them over or does he need to "cook" the rocks???

thanks all for the help

P.S. definitely NOT black sand!!

DaveMorris · 05/30/2009, 09:24 PM

The rocks will be fine. Rinse them off in saltwater and throw them back in the tank. I would not re-use the sand. The fact that it turned black doesn't matter to me because it happens in most tanks to some degree. I just don't like using old sand. A cup here or there to seed a new sandbed is fine, but I like to start out fresh.

05/29/2009, 10:48 AM	#1
96p993 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Mckinney, Tx Posts: 1,130	New tank purchase concerns I went with a buddy of mine to look at a tank he wants to buy. The guy hasnt really been taking care of the tank so it doesnt look all that great but he is letting it go for a decent price. After looking over the tank all looks good except for one thing...There is this black growth underneath the sand that concerns me. I have seen plenty of sandbeds come alive and change colors but have never seen this black. Im afraid there is something wrong but not sure what, we clicked some pics of the black and I told him to hold off til I got some opinions on what the deal is..Hoping someone can help Thanks

05/29/2009, 11:14 AM	#3
nikon187 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Edmonton Alberta Posts: 4,717	yeah if removing the sand to make the move i would just use entirly new sand when you set it back up __________________ ----------------- Current Tanks: New 210 custom 84 x 24 x 24, 60g sump, SWC 250 extreme with bubble blaster 5000, 2 vortech mp40, 2 vortech mp10, 12 T5, Water blaster 5000, warner marine bio pellets, 60g clownfish cube, red carpet anemone with a 25g sump,SRO octopus 1000sss, 250w radium, lumenarc large.

05/29/2009, 10:45 PM	#9
nikon187 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Edmonton Alberta Posts: 4,717	What it is is anerobic bacteria that is toxic. This is why we don't disturb deep sand beds when they are running on a tank. The gas produced is also toxic to us if we breath it in __________________ ----------------- Current Tanks: New 210 custom 84 x 24 x 24, 60g sump, SWC 250 extreme with bubble blaster 5000, 2 vortech mp40, 2 vortech mp10, 12 T5, Water blaster 5000, warner marine bio pellets, 60g clownfish cube, red carpet anemone with a 25g sump,SRO octopus 1000sss, 250w radium, lumenarc large.

05/29/2009, 10:53 PM	#10
drummereef Team RC Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: STL Posts: 14,754	How many fish/inverts were in the tank and are they currently QT'd? __________________ -Brett 180g Marineland Starfire In-Wall 278 gallon system

05/30/2009, 08:48 AM	#12
Imzadi Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Toronto, Ontario Posts: 1,038	Could it be actually Black Sand? It could be that he used the ominous Play Sand as a base, and true Aquaria Substrate on top. Take a sample, and see if it rinses clean... If it does, its anerobic black death... if it doesn't... then it is probably just the color of the sand that was used. The picture show the dark matter really close to the surface of the substrate... not likely would anerobic activity be that close to the top... I don't think... unless he has an absolute swamp of a tank. __________________ If you don't agree with me, that's fine... just go, think about it some more, and come back when you do. Current Tank Info: 120g Freshie, 55g salty with a 2/3 BeanAnimal. BA METHOD - TESTIFY! I am a DIY Disaster, but I am saving money! Damsel FREE since 07/08/09!

05/29/2009, 11:12 AM	#2
eho72 Registered Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: San Diego Posts: 322	I would just toss out the old sand and buy new sand since you will be taking everything out to transport it anyway.

05/29/2009, 11:15 AM	#4
JustinReef Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 3,715	I forget what that's called but yes it can be bad if you disturb the sand bed. But you wouldn't want to reuse the sand anyways, so why is this going to hold your friend back from buying the tank?

05/29/2009, 11:18 AM	#5
96p993 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Mckinney, Tx Posts: 1,130	Not really holding him back just didnt know what it is....Needless to say we just wanted to do some homework on it before purchasing

05/29/2009, 07:24 PM	#6
96p993 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Mckinney, Tx Posts: 1,130	Alright we started breaking down the tank and all the sand is black underneath the top layer...We are sucking it out but have found all the rock that was under the sand is black as well...this is quite a bit of rock. I really need to find out what it is and now whether any of the rock can be saved...Please someone help us out on this situation. Thanks

05/29/2009, 10:10 PM	#7
andyrm66 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Colorado Posts: 517	leave the rock outside in the sun for a week? Should fix it maybe scrub it too, I wouldnt worry

05/29/2009, 10:13 PM	#8
scottwhitson Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Lewiston, Idaho Posts: 1,395	I would suggest scrubbing the rock as well as you can in saltwater and then using a powerhead to blast all the crevices clean in the rock.

05/30/2009, 07:13 AM	#11
96p993 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Mckinney, Tx Posts: 1,130	there were no fish or inverts in the tank....From the looks of it when we first looked at the tank a powerhead was hitting the front glass and causing the sand to move around a little. Will that small distaurabance cause the bacteria to come out and "poison" the tank?

05/30/2009, 11:36 AM	#13
screwsloose Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: searcy, arkansas Posts: 496	it is an anoxic pocket of sand. once it is stirred and re oxygenated it will turn back to the normal color more then likely. as stated it may release some nitrogen gas so try not to breathe it to much but it is still reusable once it is rinsed. i wouldnt worry to much baout it if there is not any livestock in the tank.

05/30/2009, 11:51 AM	#14
Peter Eichler Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Milwaukee Posts: 6,081	It's sulphur dioxide that causes the sand to turn black. My guess is that's just cheap silica sand and it has a tendency to do this, especially if there is nothing to work the sand bed and lower flow. If it was simply anoxic I kinda doubt it would be that bad, it's probably coming from anaerobic pockets. __________________ April 2015 TOTM

05/30/2009, 02:12 PM	#15
walkthedog Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Charlotte,NC Posts: 370	Close.... It's hydrogen sulfide that turns the sand black. Smells like rotton eggs and is not good for a reef tank. It don't really hurt anything unless the sand is mixed and is released into tank. If you are going to toss the sand then I wouldn't worry about it.

05/30/2009, 06:24 PM	#16
96p993 Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Mckinney, Tx Posts: 1,130	Is washing the rocks and getting all sand out of them good enough to use them over or does he need to "cook" the rocks??? thanks all for the help P.S. definitely NOT black sand!!

05/30/2009, 09:24 PM	#17
DaveMorris VP, SDMAS Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Sunny San Diego, CA Posts: 1,309	The rocks will be fine. Rinse them off in saltwater and throw them back in the tank. I would not re-use the sand. The fact that it turned black doesn't matter to me because it happens in most tanks to some degree. I just don't like using old sand. A cup here or there to seed a new sandbed is fine, but I like to start out fresh. __________________ Dave My 130g tank: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2387989 Current Tank Info: 130g build in progress