Doing reef tank. I have crushed coral for sandbed. Will it be ok. 6 mo old

[cirionrc]

I have a sandbed that is crushed coral, and 6 months old. Will this still be ok for a reef tank? Got a 8x54w for a 90 gallon today but don't want to start unless all is right. I mean, is it going to hurt if I leave the crushed coral?

[haitwun]

The problem with crushed coral is that the pieces are big, therefore small pieces of food, detritus and other rotting material can get stuck in between. You can still use it but be aware that you will have to gravel-vac the substrate regularly.

[cirionrc]

Am so mad I got this crushed coral sand. The lfs guy told me its the best cause it keeps water stable. How am I supposed to change this now?

[James404]

If this tank is up and running already I would slowly remove a little of the substrate at a time over a period of a few weeks, then add some aragonite sand.

[Ethan_W]

Originally Posted by cirionrc

Am so mad I got this crushed coral sand. The lfs guy told me its the best cause it keeps water stable. How am I supposed to change this now?

i made the same mistake too but i changed it out by scooping it out with my net. however i did it before i put any LR or livestock in my tank

[AquaReeferMan]

I was told them same thing about "Crushed Coral being the best". Once I figured out it wasnt I just replaced it. I bought a few bags of dry sand and a bag of live sand. Pulled all the water out into rubbermaid containers along with my livestock and removed the crushed coral. I put the dry sand in and layed the live stuff over top. I placed 2 trash bags over the sand and pumped my water back in. Once the water was back in I removed the trash bags and put my livestock back in the tank. You can add some bacteria back in via Microbelifts special blend if you want but I didnt need it. I never say any ammonia spike.

[alten78]

what kind of reef are you looking at to start? softies,lps,sps?

[dots]

Originally Posted by alten78

what kind of reef are you looking at to start? softies,lps,sps?

That was the right question to ask.....

Crushed coral can be used as a bed, and does stabilize a tank.....that is nutrient poor.

A high flow SPS tank, that uses a SSB of about an 1" can add the right amount of nutrients back into the water column slowly.....it also is large enough so that if large powerheads are low and point across, they will not kick up the sand as with smaller grain.

So if one has a BB tank and they get tired of the BB look and want to add a SSB, but have too much flow this is a great alternative.

But it grows coralline over time, which is its only real drawback.......

For a lower flow turnover in the display or going for a DSB system, it is the wrong choice.

[cirionrc]

Planning some anemones, lps, for now. Have a BTA and some polyps now. So at this point, should I change it out or keep it? If I change it, will I have problems with anemones with spikes in water parameters? What does BB, and SSB stand for?

[dots]

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=1672798

A BTA probably won't care, but a LTA might prefer a sand bed......

I think the aesthetic point I mentioned with it turning green and purple is going to be the worst of your problems.

Keeping it only requires you to maintain it by stirring it up weekly so a skimmer or sock can pick it up and not allow it to accumulate, especially right before a WC. No big deal and prefer that over the potential time bomb a DSB can be myself....


Here is more on the subject:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh...hreadid=803688

You will probably be happier with taking some/most/all and adding some fine grain to create an SSB. But can wait until you are sure and just do it slowly when you do.