View Full Version : Do you stir your sand bed?
Just wanted to know if you stir your tanks sand bed and what Nitrates you've got as a consequence?
Ta, just thinking about the link between the two at the moment....
Bump come on peeps, need more votes I want to dispell another myth here...
I said that I dont stir it but over the last few weeks I have been changing my aquascaping and this has caused lots of sandstorms! Nitrates are still less than 5ppm.
Jeff.
simon garratt
30-08-07, 11:34
Never 'stir' and Nitrates are below 0.01ppm
:)
Are we talking DSB's here or SSB's, and what type of grain structure.. these are quite important factors in determining a trend. generally with DSB's or fine sand SSB.s you should never stir, only 'slice' occasionally with a blunt knife to retain stratification but allow the breakup of any bacterial binding.
regards
Si.
Si, what's the translation for SSB?
The question's not aimed at a DSB rather the 1 or 2" in the display tank.
Does the never stir, but slice advice apply in this case?
Ta in advance, Tim.
simon garratt
30-08-07, 11:46
SSB implies a functional (biological) sand bed of less than 3" deep but generally above 1" consisting of very fine sand populated with critters.. (you wont get this with a course coral sand bed thats hooverd etc, Although its still 'biological' at a bacterial level, its not an assimilation bed in its true sence)...
The same generally applies to SSB beds as a DSB, slice, dont stir... and allow to become well populated by steering clear of preditory sand sifters. (you need to protect the lower layer from disturbance..
If we are talking a 'coral' sand bed with larger grain size, then chances are yes, you will get No3 issues regardless, becouse if the bed is constantly disturbed, you have no de-nitrification zone..but equally, you'll have a lower critter count which will cause you problems.
Waste falls into the bed which has a high 02 content throughout, so only breaks down to N03 and no further.
regards
Si.
neilharris
30-08-07, 16:09
I dont stir the sand bed in my tank, but have plenty of critters that do it all the time. I dont stir the mud bed in my fuge either, but when I do water changes, I siphon the top layer of crud off.
HTH,
Neil
occasional stir, but usually with siphon pipe... and replace coral sand afterwards. blub
I don't stir but the tomato clowns like digging hole in the sand bed
only in the main tank, and then 6months apart. Critters are doing it mostly
I often stir my sand bed, the lps sitting in the sand love it.
Kev
Its about 1-2 inches deep, mixed but fairly fine sand.
I stir my coral sand bed quite often, but now I have a problem with red slime which is only one the coral bed and no where else. I think the two are linked so I am going to slowly replace the coral bed, and then stop stiring.
charlesr1958
09-12-07, 03:30
It would depend upon the sandbed. If its a course, large grained dead "sand" bed, then you have no choice but to stir it or siphon clean it. If its a truly live fine grained sandbed, then stirring it is an extremely bad idea.
Chuck
i dont stir but a pair of sand sifters turn over the top layer
What critters do you think are the best additions for keeping the sand bed turned over?
I used to have quite a few cerith snails but they all seem to have dissapeared now and was wondering what I should replace them with.
I just fan over the top surface when doing water change to get rid of any brown stuff so the sand looks nice and white all the time,let the snails and crabs do the rest. :thumbsup:
dannyp1512
10-12-07, 09:35
i bought a pair of orange spot gobbies and they do a great job of keeping my sand bed turned over, the only prob, some times they can create a sand storm :annoyed:
Maybe just a light dusting to keep it clean... Last tank had 3 to 5" deep and zero nitrates for 3 years:thumbsup:
Never 'stir' and Nitrates are below 0.01ppm
:)
Are we talking DSB's here or SSB's, and what type of grain structure.. these are quite important factors in determining a trend. generally with DSB's or fine sand SSB.s you should never stir, only 'slice' occasionally with a blunt knife to retain stratification but allow the breakup of any bacterial binding.
regards
Si.
Hi Simon,
When slicing the DSB do you go all the way to the bottom of the bed or just the top 1 or 2 inches?
Cheers,
Campbell
Yes I stir occasionally and Nitrates are below 5ppm
i love too stirrrrr,kicks up all the c**p and keeps sand nice and clean
My clownfish do it for me. :annoyed:
I always find that if I stir my sand alot when working it causes very mild white spot outbreaks. My bed is only an inch or so deep so not much good for denitrification anyway.
I certainly wouldn't if I had a DSB, that would somewhat upset the balance of it where critters should be used.
I dont intentionally stir, but find when Im working on the tank, cleaning the glass or aquascaping it almost always gets a bit of a sand storm going. I was also having constant bother with my nano streams causing bald patches, which needed recovering until I recently directed them upwards to the surface.
generally with DSB's or fine sand SSB.s you should never stir, only 'slice' occasionally with a blunt knife to retain stratification but allow the breakup of any bacterial binding.
regards
Si.
hi si
what do u mean by this...this is the first time i have ever heard this expression?
vik
Banana_tang
29-01-08, 21:12
i tend to stir up my sand bed. my nitrate are virtually zero, however i am using a nitrate reactor to remove nitrates from my system.
BT
I stir the very top of the sandbed,and my nitrate level doesn't change.Being "live" I try not to disturb it too much.I don't use a sand syphon either,because I think it would do more harm than good.Steve.
Horizontal Dave
30-01-08, 18:59
On my first tank I stirred and vacuumed my sand bed, I always had a nitrate reading.
On my current setup, I've never stirred the SSB or DSB and after the first few months of setting it up, I've not had a nitrate reading.
I syphoned the top layer of my SSB in the main tank from around 1.5" to <0.5", went a bit mad. Since then had considerable nitrate problems. Is it possible the 2 are linked then? Could I just replace with some sand I have in the shed (aragonite, not like kid's sand) and top it back up again?
well my nitrates were around 2-5ppm but just got my brood of 6 BCs and my nitrates r just about 10ppm, but then i have lots of workers in my tunk 2 move the sand
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