sand

bighead · 01/13/2007, 03:39 PM

I am thinking of removing my xrushed coral and adding a DSB can I just scoop out my crushed coral and dump in sand or do I need to do a bit at a time and what kind of sand do tou sugest line sand or like HD sand this tank is cycled and established and stocked

bertoni · 01/13/2007, 03:54 PM

Is this for the 75g tank?

You can probably scoop out the crushed coral, although I have always taken tanks down to replace the substrate. How long has the tank been running and how deep is the crushed coral? How many inches of sand do you want to add?

bighead · 01/14/2007, 08:18 AM

the tank has been set up for about 5 months but everything came out of a tank that was set up for aroun 3 years used same water substate and rock the crushed coral is about 3 inches ans I was thinking the same for the dsb 3 inches

bertoni · 01/14/2007, 03:00 PM

I'd remove the crushed coral and replace it with an inch or so of sand for looks. 3" isn't enough for a DSB, in my opinion.

SuperNerd · 01/14/2007, 03:03 PM

Yeah, 4 inches is I think the minimum for a DSB.

bighead · 01/14/2007, 04:10 PM

well I guess I will get a 5in sandbed instead I was thinking about getting 150 lbs of hd sand an around 50 lbs of some live sand like fiji sand I guess does that sound about right

SuperNerd · 01/14/2007, 04:15 PM

HD silica sand?

The finer the sand the better for DSBs.

I would just go for regular aragonite oolitic dry sand instead of the live. It will technically become "live" in less than a day if there is already established LR and mature tank water.

Check out the DSB calculator here on RC for exactly how much you'll need.

TriggerHappyDude · 01/14/2007, 07:39 PM

Forgive me guys, I'm new, whats DSB stand for?

bighead · 01/15/2007, 01:52 AM

shoul I use all aragonite oolitic or just some like 50 pounds and the rest hd sand

SuperNerd · 01/15/2007, 02:39 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by ChrisMc73
Forgive me guys, I'm new, whats DSB stand for?

Deep Sand Bed.

SuperNerd · 01/15/2007, 02:41 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by bighead
shoul I use all aragonite oolitic or just some like 50 pounds and the rest hd sand

I would personally go with all aragonite oolitic. Some people use silica based sand from supply stores like HD but I hear it scratches the tank much easier because of the shape of the little crystals. I hear they're sharp. Not something I would want to use if I have animals that sift the sand.

Another reason I would get only oolitic is because if you mix it with something that is larger grain size the larger pieces will move up to the surface of the sand and can prevent the exchange/release of gases at the surface.

rustybucket145 · 01/15/2007, 08:58 AM

you can use the HD sand for the lower layers of the bed. And you can actually leave a thin (1/2") layer of the Crushed Coral down and add the HD sand on top of it. After you get you HD sand in put the Aragonite sand on the top. This IMO looks better than the HD sand so you will have that nice look on top for much cheaper than going aragonite for the whole thing.

rustybucket145 · 01/15/2007, 09:02 AM

Oh, you will need about 75lbs of HD sand and prob bout 50lbs of aragonite (dry is much cheaper for the same thing)

Be sure to thouroughly wash the HD sand, it will have twiggs and roots in it.

01/13/2007, 03:39 PM	#1
bighead Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 444	sand I am thinking of removing my xrushed coral and adding a DSB can I just scoop out my crushed coral and dump in sand or do I need to do a bit at a time and what kind of sand do tou sugest line sand or like HD sand this tank is cycled and established and stocked

01/13/2007, 03:54 PM	#2
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	Is this for the 75g tank? You can probably scoop out the crushed coral, although I have always taken tanks down to replace the substrate. How long has the tank been running and how deep is the crushed coral? How many inches of sand do you want to add? __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

01/14/2007, 03:00 PM	#4
bertoni RC Mod Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Mountain View, CA, USA Posts: 88,616	I'd remove the crushed coral and replace it with an inch or so of sand for looks. 3" isn't enough for a DSB, in my opinion. __________________ Jonathan Bertoni

01/14/2007, 03:03 PM	#5
SuperNerd Registered Member Join Date: May 2003 Location: SoCal/Left Side- USA Posts: 4,572	Yeah, 4 inches is I think the minimum for a DSB. __________________ I said fraggit! Current Tank Info: M-728 Combat Engineer (based on M60 hull). M-3 Lee Medium (British version with squatter).

01/14/2007, 04:15 PM	#7
SuperNerd Registered Member Join Date: May 2003 Location: SoCal/Left Side- USA Posts: 4,572	HD silica sand? The finer the sand the better for DSBs. I would just go for regular aragonite oolitic dry sand instead of the live. It will technically become "live" in less than a day if there is already established LR and mature tank water. Check out the DSB calculator here on RC for exactly how much you'll need. __________________ I said fraggit! Current Tank Info: M-728 Combat Engineer (based on M60 hull). M-3 Lee Medium (British version with squatter).

01/14/2007, 08:18 AM	#3
bighead Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 444	the tank has been set up for about 5 months but everything came out of a tank that was set up for aroun 3 years used same water substate and rock the crushed coral is about 3 inches ans I was thinking the same for the dsb 3 inches

01/14/2007, 04:10 PM	#6
bighead Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 444	well I guess I will get a 5in sandbed instead I was thinking about getting 150 lbs of hd sand an around 50 lbs of some live sand like fiji sand I guess does that sound about right

01/14/2007, 07:39 PM	#8
TriggerHappyDude Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Oklahoma City, OK Posts: 1,442	Forgive me guys, I'm new, whats DSB stand for?

01/15/2007, 01:52 AM	#9
bighead Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 444	shoul I use all aragonite oolitic or just some like 50 pounds and the rest hd sand

01/15/2007, 08:58 AM	#12
rustybucket145 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: valdosta, ga Posts: 3,707	you can use the HD sand for the lower layers of the bed. And you can actually leave a thin (1/2") layer of the Crushed Coral down and add the HD sand on top of it. After you get you HD sand in put the Aragonite sand on the top. This IMO looks better than the HD sand so you will have that nice look on top for much cheaper than going aragonite for the whole thing. __________________ 400gals of various tanks in the same system. Current Tank Info: 2 175w MH, 2 VH0 Actinics, Lots of Live Rock, tons of copepods, a Fat Mandarin Goby, Niger Trigger, Yellow Tang, Falco Hawkfish, Bi-Color Pseudo, numerous soft, SPS and LPS Corals

01/15/2007, 09:02 AM	#13
rustybucket145 Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: valdosta, ga Posts: 3,707	Oh, you will need about 75lbs of HD sand and prob bout 50lbs of aragonite (dry is much cheaper for the same thing) Be sure to thouroughly wash the HD sand, it will have twiggs and roots in it. __________________ 400gals of various tanks in the same system. Current Tank Info: 2 175w MH, 2 VH0 Actinics, Lots of Live Rock, tons of copepods, a Fat Mandarin Goby, Niger Trigger, Yellow Tang, Falco Hawkfish, Bi-Color Pseudo, numerous soft, SPS and LPS Corals