adding sand

[jimbracco]

so during my last week of lots of water changes and sucking out red slime if lost some of my sand bed and i would like to build it back up.
Something tells me just adding sand on top of the old is a bad idea, so i thought i would ask
I DO NOT NEED any more nitrates, thank you very much.
so, what then, gently "move" a corner of the tank over like a bulldozer or something?

 

[xyzpdq0121]

To add to Dawgdude's post: Do not add any more then 1/4 of an inch at a time and wait atleast a week before adding another 1/4".

 

[jimbracco]

i wanted to add about 20lbs of live sand ..its a 75 gal tank. you rinse live sand? thought that would lose its good stuff...i could use more good stuff

 

[dave]

<span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size: 13px;">This just raised a question for me. How deep should the sand be in a display tank that does not have a refugium?</span></span>

 

[xyzpdq0121]

jimbracco;188865 wrote: i wanted to add about 20lbs of live sand ..its a 75 gal tank. you rinse live sand? thought that would lose its good stuff...i could use more good stuff

No you do not need to rinse live sand (bought in the bag). IMHO, you should be careful about using sand from someone's tank.

Dave;188871 wrote: <span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size: 13px;">This just raised a question for me. How deep should the sand be in a display tank that does not have a refugium?</span></span>

Now you are going to open a debate!!!! Get ready for a fight, where is Lee?!? :yes:

Naw, IMHO it should be at least 4". I think you should have a deep sand bed somewhere in your tank and if you do not have a fuge then your display is the only place!

 

[jimbracco]

oh i would never take sand from someones tank, unless it was an initial setup. on thickness, i would say it depends on square footage, how much of that is taken by liverock placement and what kind of critters utilizing the sand (ie whether you have a sand sifting star, etc)

I have some n. snails and a sand sifter star, and have had luck with a 2" bed in a 75 gal bowfront...no fuge to speak of.

 

[xyzpdq0121]

A) Remember that sand breaks down about .5" every 6 months

B) It is a good idea to plan your sand bed to be either: i) less then 1.5" or ii) over 3" but not inbetween.

 

[jaydm93teg]

with that being said i have never thought about this.....so do you normally have to add sand to a reef tank? like in the long run? 1 time a year or something?

 

[jaydm93teg]

ha ok good.....

 

[xyzpdq0121]

dawgdude;189012 wrote: You only have to add sand if you have less sand than you want Your sand doesnt go anywhere so once you have enough for your taste, you just leave it and dont disturb it......ever........for any reason......just dont do it.....k?

Sorry Charlie.. I am calling the fact police on that one... Sand degrades over time and will add some amount of Ca to your tank. I brakes down at a rate of about .5" every 6-9 months. So to answer the original question, yes at some point you will need to add sand. Again, do not add more then about 1/4" per week or two.

 

[ralph atl]

about once a year, I add a 5 pound bag of "live sand" (really a waste of money, but I don't have to rinse it). I rinse the bag and skit the top. I place the entire bag in the tank and let it pour out need the bottom of the tank. It clears up in a few hours. If course, it's only 48" Long(55).

 

[tebriel]

mysterybox;189104 wrote: but I don't have to rinse it). I rinse the bag and skit the top.

uhh lol

 

[xyzpdq0121]

Ya, see if you can dig that up. I would be interested to see the write-up. I could understand if he was talking about the ocean, that is a given, but I find it hard to believe that there is enough breakdown in a tank to amount to the loss due to the breakdown of sand and the loss of sand being displaced into filters, sumps, ect. I mean, where is the "other things" that are breaking down in the tank to create a static level in the sand bed? Rock?