Deep Sand Bed

korbynlehr · 11/19/2006, 09:37 AM

We have a 60 gallon DAS tank with 65 pounds live rock and 110 live sand.

What can be added to the sand bed (if anything) to help it stay healthy? By this I mean are there pods or something I can buy to add that will help get deep into the bed and get it cleaner deeper?

We have some Nassarius snails but from my understanding they only go down about 1/2 inch or so. I am curious as to what can clean the really deep areas say past 1/2 to 6 inches. I don't have enough sand for a sifting star so that is out of the question.

Suggestions?

jag1979 · 11/19/2006, 09:41 AM

I didn't think you were supposed to stir up deep into the sand bed

korbynlehr · 11/19/2006, 09:44 AM

That is kind of what I mean if small near microscopic pods were able to be had and were added this would help keep the junk out of the bed especially deeper than the snails go.

jag1979 · 11/19/2006, 09:47 AM

you will have pods that will grow in your sand and live rock that will help...btw even if you had enough sand you should not have a sand sifting star in a dsb

korbynlehr · 11/19/2006, 09:49 AM

Really why is that?

gman0526 · 11/19/2006, 09:56 AM

There's quite a few critter packages out there that can be bought to "recharge" your DSB. You do not want a SSS on your sand bed since it'll deplete the microfauna that you need for it to work properly.

You should try and get in touch with a local reefer with an established DSB and ask for a cup of their sand so you can seed yours. That should be plenty.

One thing, don't add any Gobies to clean your sand bed, especially now in the beggining stages of the tank, they'll deplete the micro fauna too and will make it more difficult for the bacterial layers to be established.

msman825 · 11/19/2006, 09:58 AM

I have a DSB, for 3 years and only have around 100 hermits and around 50 snails and a goby and pistol. never any problems, but i dont feed but once a day either

korbynlehr · 11/19/2006, 10:01 AM

OUCH!
So if I have already added a gobie I should remove it?

There is a lfs that sells sand out of their tanks for this purpose should I inqure about buying a few cups from them?

Is there anything special I need to do with the sand when I get it or just add it to the tank?

msman825 · 11/19/2006, 10:09 AM

how long has this tank been cycling are up and going

korbynlehr · 11/19/2006, 10:12 AM

Our tank has been going for 6 months.

gman0526 · 11/19/2006, 10:18 AM

How did I knew that? Because you went to oyur LFS and they told you "Go ahead add a goby it'll clean that sand in no time"

I would remove the goby add a cup of sand from somebody else and leave the DSB alone for a couple of mos. until it gets repopulated. This means no wrasses, no mandarins, no hermits, nothing that will go after the microfauna. HTH

msman825 · 11/19/2006, 10:22 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by gman0526
How did I knew that? Because you went to oyur LFS and they told you "Go ahead add a goby it'll clean that sand in no time"

I would remove the goby add a cup of sand from somebody else and leave the DSB alone for a couple of mos. until it gets repopulated. This means no wrasses, no mandarins, no hermits, nothing that will go after the microfauna. HTH

I Agree 100% I let mine cycle for over a year in a rubbermaid before adding to tank. then about 6 months before adding any critters

korbynlehr · 11/19/2006, 10:23 AM

The goby has been in there for 3-4 days so it is fairly new to the tank. I will get him/her out of the tank tomorrow.
We already have snails and some blue leggers will these kill/consume what I am trying to achieve?

msman825 · 11/19/2006, 10:35 AM

I would just let ur run. it will do its thang

korbynlehr · 11/19/2006, 10:37 AM

So what you are suggesting is get rid of the goby, get a cup or so from an established sand bed and leave it alone from there?
Should we ever get a gobie to help clean the sand?

coraladdict · 11/19/2006, 10:48 AM

Get a detritivore kit from : www.inlandaquatics.com

korbynlehr · 11/19/2006, 10:54 AM

This kit says it has bristleworms in it, I thought they were bad for the rock.

coraladdict · 11/19/2006, 11:00 AM

This is the first time I here this, they are the most beneficial critters you can put in your system.

coraladdict · 11/19/2006, 11:05 AM

If you want a good sand sifting invertebrate put a Holothuria thomasi,sea cucumber.If you do make sure you acclimat it slowly, dripping is prefered with those.

korbynlehr · 11/19/2006, 11:06 AM

Are bristleworms not the worms that come out of the rock at night and eat the live rock or am I mistaking this for another?

korbynlehr · 11/19/2006, 11:18 AM

corraladdict read this:

http://netpets.com/fish/reference/reefref/bristle.html

Dazed And Confused · 11/19/2006, 11:19 AM

I got seed sand from Bills Reefs. My 6" DSB in my refugium is about 1 1/2 years old, it's full of tiny worms that extend their feeders into the water column, looks like a lot of tiny fly fishermen. A goby shouldn't hurt anything below about the depth that the Nassarius snails go, at least mine doesn't. Good seed sand seems to be the key, critters won't just start there by themselves. By the way, it's a common mis-statement that live sand will seed live rock and vice versa. Sand critters are sand critters, rock critters are rock critters, other than bacteria, there's not really much that goes back and forth between the two.
By the way, when I seeded mine, I kinda dug a trench thru the middle of it, then laid the seed sand in the trench and covered it up. It milked the tank up for awhile but it settled down fine. HTH

korbynlehr · 11/19/2006, 11:29 AM

Dazed,
There is a lfs that sells their sand from their tanks i plan on buying some from him should i add it and go from there?
Should I try getting the goby and get rid of him since my bed isn't fully established?

gman0526 · 11/19/2006, 11:34 AM

That information on bristleworms is incorrect. And yes loose the goby.

korbynlehr · 11/19/2006, 11:40 AM

gman,
You say lose the goby. And the bristleworms are bad is this what you are saying?

11/19/2006, 09:37 AM	#1
korbynlehr Premium Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Nicholasville Posts: 322	Deep Sand Bed We have a 60 gallon DAS tank with 65 pounds live rock and 110 live sand. What can be added to the sand bed (if anything) to help it stay healthy? By this I mean are there pods or something I can buy to add that will help get deep into the bed and get it cleaner deeper? We have some Nassarius snails but from my understanding they only go down about 1/2 inch or so. I am curious as to what can clean the really deep areas say past 1/2 to 6 inches. I don't have enough sand for a sifting star so that is out of the question. Suggestions?

11/19/2006, 09:41 AM	#2
jag1979 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Texas Posts: 982	I didn't think you were supposed to stir up deep into the sand bed __________________ clowns, bi-color pseudo, coral beauty, yellow tang GBTA, crocea clam xenia, various polyps/zoa's, candy cane, tree leather, frogspawn, torch, various mushrooms, green/red plate, birdsnest Current Tank Info: 180 AGA, tunze 6100, 6025 and 6060, 3 x 250 mh's, 3 x 80 t5's, ASM G4+

11/19/2006, 09:47 AM	#4
jag1979 Registered Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Texas Posts: 982	you will have pods that will grow in your sand and live rock that will help...btw even if you had enough sand you should not have a sand sifting star in a dsb __________________ clowns, bi-color pseudo, coral beauty, yellow tang GBTA, crocea clam xenia, various polyps/zoa's, candy cane, tree leather, frogspawn, torch, various mushrooms, green/red plate, birdsnest Current Tank Info: 180 AGA, tunze 6100, 6025 and 6060, 3 x 250 mh's, 3 x 80 t5's, ASM G4+

11/19/2006, 09:56 AM	#6
gman0526 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Puerto Rico Posts: 1,278	There's quite a few critter packages out there that can be bought to "recharge" your DSB. You do not want a SSS on your sand bed since it'll deplete the microfauna that you need for it to work properly. You should try and get in touch with a local reefer with an established DSB and ask for a cup of their sand so you can seed yours. That should be plenty. One thing, don't add any Gobies to clean your sand bed, especially now in the beggining stages of the tank, they'll deplete the micro fauna too and will make it more difficult for the bacterial layers to be established. __________________ "If the facts don't fit the theory, change the facts." A.E. Current Tank Info: 75 G BB tank

11/19/2006, 09:58 AM	#7
msman825 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: maine Posts: 1,301	I have a DSB, for 3 years and only have around 100 hermits and around 50 snails and a goby and pistol. never any problems, but i dont feed but once a day either __________________ MSMAN

11/19/2006, 09:44 AM	#3
korbynlehr Premium Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Nicholasville Posts: 322	That is kind of what I mean if small near microscopic pods were able to be had and were added this would help keep the junk out of the bed especially deeper than the snails go.

11/19/2006, 09:49 AM	#5
korbynlehr Premium Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Nicholasville Posts: 322	Really why is that?

11/19/2006, 10:01 AM	#8
korbynlehr Premium Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Nicholasville Posts: 322	OUCH! So if I have already added a gobie I should remove it? There is a lfs that sells sand out of their tanks for this purpose should I inqure about buying a few cups from them? Is there anything special I need to do with the sand when I get it or just add it to the tank?

11/19/2006, 10:09 AM	#9
msman825 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: maine Posts: 1,301	how long has this tank been cycling are up and going __________________ MSMAN

11/19/2006, 10:12 AM	#10
korbynlehr Premium Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Nicholasville Posts: 322	Our tank has been going for 6 months.

11/19/2006, 10:18 AM	#11
gman0526 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Puerto Rico Posts: 1,278	How did I knew that? Because you went to oyur LFS and they told you "Go ahead add a goby it'll clean that sand in no time" I would remove the goby add a cup of sand from somebody else and leave the DSB alone for a couple of mos. until it gets repopulated. This means no wrasses, no mandarins, no hermits, nothing that will go after the microfauna. HTH __________________ "If the facts don't fit the theory, change the facts." A.E. Current Tank Info: 75 G BB tank

11/19/2006, 10:23 AM	#13
korbynlehr Premium Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Nicholasville Posts: 322	The goby has been in there for 3-4 days so it is fairly new to the tank. I will get him/her out of the tank tomorrow. We already have snails and some blue leggers will these kill/consume what I am trying to achieve?

11/19/2006, 10:35 AM	#14
msman825 Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: maine Posts: 1,301	I would just let ur run. it will do its thang __________________ MSMAN

11/19/2006, 10:37 AM	#15
korbynlehr Premium Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Nicholasville Posts: 322	So what you are suggesting is get rid of the goby, get a cup or so from an established sand bed and leave it alone from there? Should we ever get a gobie to help clean the sand?

11/19/2006, 10:48 AM	#16
coraladdict Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Canada Posts: 646	Get a detritivore kit from : www.inlandaquatics.com __________________ Experience is a terrible thing to waste Current Tank Info: 120g ,mixed reef , Deltec 600 MCE , 2 VorTechs with BB,Tunze osmolator,Diy Nelson reac.Pacific Sun Hyperion 2

11/19/2006, 10:54 AM	#17
korbynlehr Premium Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Nicholasville Posts: 322	This kit says it has bristleworms in it, I thought they were bad for the rock.

11/19/2006, 11:00 AM	#18
coraladdict Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Canada Posts: 646	This is the first time I here this, they are the most beneficial critters you can put in your system. __________________ Experience is a terrible thing to waste Current Tank Info: 120g ,mixed reef , Deltec 600 MCE , 2 VorTechs with BB,Tunze osmolator,Diy Nelson reac.Pacific Sun Hyperion 2

11/19/2006, 11:05 AM	#19
coraladdict Registered Member Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Canada Posts: 646	If you want a good sand sifting invertebrate put a Holothuria thomasi,sea cucumber.If you do make sure you acclimat it slowly, dripping is prefered with those. __________________ Experience is a terrible thing to waste Current Tank Info: 120g ,mixed reef , Deltec 600 MCE , 2 VorTechs with BB,Tunze osmolator,Diy Nelson reac.Pacific Sun Hyperion 2

11/19/2006, 11:06 AM	#20
korbynlehr Premium Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Nicholasville Posts: 322	Are bristleworms not the worms that come out of the rock at night and eat the live rock or am I mistaking this for another?

11/19/2006, 11:18 AM	#21
korbynlehr Premium Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Nicholasville Posts: 322	corraladdict read this: http://netpets.com/fish/reference/reefref/bristle.html

11/19/2006, 11:19 AM	#22
Dazed And Confused Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: Lubbock, TX, USA Posts: 262	I got seed sand from Bills Reefs. My 6" DSB in my refugium is about 1 1/2 years old, it's full of tiny worms that extend their feeders into the water column, looks like a lot of tiny fly fishermen. A goby shouldn't hurt anything below about the depth that the Nassarius snails go, at least mine doesn't. Good seed sand seems to be the key, critters won't just start there by themselves. By the way, it's a common mis-statement that live sand will seed live rock and vice versa. Sand critters are sand critters, rock critters are rock critters, other than bacteria, there's not really much that goes back and forth between the two. By the way, when I seeded mine, I kinda dug a trench thru the middle of it, then laid the seed sand in the trench and covered it up. It milked the tank up for awhile but it settled down fine. HTH __________________ Life is much like a saltwater tank - diversity and variety are two of the keys to success. You grow and learn very little when the company you keep thinks and reasons the same way you do. Current Tank Info: 140 gallon reef tank, 75 gallon DSB fuge; Kole tang, pair of clowns, canary wrasse, flame hawk, red spotted sand perch, red and purple firefish, spotted mandarin, coral beauty and a yellow watchman goby

11/19/2006, 11:29 AM	#23
korbynlehr Premium Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Nicholasville Posts: 322	Dazed, There is a lfs that sells their sand from their tanks i plan on buying some from him should i add it and go from there? Should I try getting the goby and get rid of him since my bed isn't fully established?

11/19/2006, 11:34 AM	#24
gman0526 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Puerto Rico Posts: 1,278	That information on bristleworms is incorrect. And yes loose the goby. __________________ "If the facts don't fit the theory, change the facts." A.E. Current Tank Info: 75 G BB tank

11/19/2006, 11:40 AM	#25
korbynlehr Premium Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Nicholasville Posts: 322	gman, You say lose the goby. And the bristleworms are bad is this what you are saying?