Live sand with a familiar smell

Ichabod · 11/08/2012, 07:06 AM

I'm at the point of making saltwater and putting it in my 125 gallon (to be become a FOWLR).

My substrate is mostly sand from Marco rocks, I'm going for a deep sand bed.

I have some sand that has been sitting in a bucket for a few weeks, from the seller of the equipment I bought. It has been sitting in saltwater, and smelled just fine. I should say, the top layer smelled just fine. As I started adding it to my dry sand I discovered two things:

There's a live snail in there - cool

. He/she/it is the tank's first resident. (Edit - should I remove him/her/it to the relative safety of the other tank we have, or leave in the tank?)

The lower level of the sand smells like rotten eggs. I have minimized the amount of that sand in the tank, but I'm wondering if I should discard it, or chuck it in as part of the cycle process?

Another edit - do I need to concern myself with whether the sand is an even layer in the tank, or is it fine to be uneven - is that a purely cosmetic decision?

(I did use the non-stinky layer, so it's too late to remove that if it was a bad move. . .)

Thank you.

Zappo · 11/08/2012, 10:05 AM

No need to discard the stinky sand. It's just a little H2S made by bacteria deeper in the bucket where the oxygen all got used up. If it was in your tank it'd be a problem, but as long as it gets stirred and rinsed a bit in the bucket (you did say it had water in it right?) it should be fine. At least you know it's live and full of bacteria!

As for keeping the sand even in the tank, good luck with that. It's like trying to keep the sand flat and level in the desert. I try to keep mine somewhat even, but the water movement and animals are constantly moving it around. It's mostly cosmetic unless you get a sand sifting goby. They take it pretty seriously, and it'll soon be rearranged according to the whims of a fish.

Oh, and if you have a better home available for the snail, I'm sure it'd be more comfortable in a more established tank. But they do survive all the time as hitchhikers so it's not a big deal if you lost track of it.

downbeach · 11/08/2012, 10:23 AM

Personally, I wouldn't use it.

Here's some info:
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-12/rhf/index.php

Zappo · 11/08/2012, 10:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by downbeach

Personally, I wouldn't use it.

Here's some info:
http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-12/rhf/index.php

It's just a gas produced as a byproduct of bacteria doing their thing. It's not like an algae bloom that might spread to the new tank. It only formed because the layer of sand in the bucket was deep enough to form anoxic areas where a different kind of bacteria started growing. Once it gets stirred up that condition no longer exists. That would be terribly dangerous in the tank for the reasons mentioned in that article, but I don't see the harm it could do outside the tank. It's sand - if it gets dirty you can rinse it off and it's good as new again. At least we know it's full of bacteria.

Revmedia · 11/08/2012, 01:21 PM

Make sure you keep it outside in a well ventilated area. Try not to breath anymore of it, as H2S can be extremely dangerous.

See here: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=2216124

thegrun · 11/08/2012, 03:29 PM

I also would not use it. Much of what was once live in the sand is now dead and introducing it to your tank is going to shoot your nitrates levels way up and probably your phosphates as well. Many sand dwelling organisms live at specific depths and piling them all into a bucket has surely smothered the vast majority of them. Their dead and decaying carcasses are pulling even more oxygen out of the sand killing off even more of what was once live.

Tristen · 11/08/2012, 03:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zappo

As for keeping the sand even in the tank, good luck with that. It's like trying to keep the sand flat and level in the desert. I try to keep mine somewhat even, but the water movement and animals are constantly moving it around. It's mostly cosmetic unless you get a sand sifting goby. They take it pretty seriously, and it'll soon be rearranged according to the whims of a fish.

My pistol and goby take their job very seriously... They're constantly re-landscaping the bottom of my tank, and I think it's AWESOME... The more they feel at home, the better I feel about the tank.

11/08/2012, 07:06 AM	#1
Ichabod Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2012 Posts: 12	Live sand with a familiar smell I'm at the point of making saltwater and putting it in my 125 gallon (to be become a FOWLR). My substrate is mostly sand from Marco rocks, I'm going for a deep sand bed. I have some sand that has been sitting in a bucket for a few weeks, from the seller of the equipment I bought. It has been sitting in saltwater, and smelled just fine. I should say, the top layer smelled just fine. As I started adding it to my dry sand I discovered two things: There's a live snail in there - cool . He/she/it is the tank's first resident. (Edit - should I remove him/her/it to the relative safety of the other tank we have, or leave in the tank?) The lower level of the sand smells like rotten eggs. I have minimized the amount of that sand in the tank, but I'm wondering if I should discard it, or chuck it in as part of the cycle process? Another edit - do I need to concern myself with whether the sand is an even layer in the tank, or is it fine to be uneven - is that a purely cosmetic decision? (I did use the non-stinky layer, so it's too late to remove that if it was a bad move. . .) Thank you. Last edited by Ichabod; 11/08/2012 at 07:56 AM. Reason: Another question. . .

11/08/2012, 10:05 AM	#2
Zappo Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Minnetonka, MN Posts: 582	No need to discard the stinky sand. It's just a little H2S made by bacteria deeper in the bucket where the oxygen all got used up. If it was in your tank it'd be a problem, but as long as it gets stirred and rinsed a bit in the bucket (you did say it had water in it right?) it should be fine. At least you know it's live and full of bacteria! As for keeping the sand even in the tank, good luck with that. It's like trying to keep the sand flat and level in the desert. I try to keep mine somewhat even, but the water movement and animals are constantly moving it around. It's mostly cosmetic unless you get a sand sifting goby. They take it pretty seriously, and it'll soon be rearranged according to the whims of a fish. Oh, and if you have a better home available for the snail, I'm sure it'd be more comfortable in a more established tank. But they do survive all the time as hitchhikers so it's not a big deal if you lost track of it.

11/08/2012, 10:23 AM	#3
downbeach Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Smyrna, Delaware Posts: 3,767	Personally, I wouldn't use it. Here's some info: http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-12/rhf/index.php

11/08/2012, 01:21 PM	#5
Revmedia Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2012 Posts: 92	Make sure you keep it outside in a well ventilated area. Try not to breath anymore of it, as H2S can be extremely dangerous. See here: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=2216124

11/08/2012, 03:29 PM	#6
thegrun Registered Member Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Garden Grove, Ca Posts: 17,023	I also would not use it. Much of what was once live in the sand is now dead and introducing it to your tank is going to shoot your nitrates levels way up and probably your phosphates as well. Many sand dwelling organisms live at specific depths and piling them all into a bucket has surely smothered the vast majority of them. Their dead and decaying carcasses are pulling even more oxygen out of the sand killing off even more of what was once live.