opinions on sandbed transfer

[jp30338]

So its that time to upgrade once again. Have had my 90g going since Oct 2014 and setting up. 150 tall. I really want to transfer my sandbed and have done it before with my fowlr setups but this is my first reef tank.

I do have a mated pair of golden sleeper heads so they already keep the sandbed turned over constantly. Since I have them it seems like transferring the sandbed would be ok in this particular case.

Thoughts?

 

[camellia]

How often do you vacume your sand bed? Do you have any or have you ever had alage in this set up?

Personally, I would take this perfect opportunity to add new clean sand and just use a few cups of the old. However if you don't think it has any build up...

 

[nickh06]

I used old sand when upgrading the first time, I made sure to rinse it very well with fresh ro/di sw. I would not do it again but since you just started your tank less than 6 months ago, you should be fine. Make sure to clean it as best you can. I would scoop a couple cups of the dirty sand out and put to the side before you rinse it.

 

[jp30338]

Thanks.

I do not vacuum the sand as the gobies do a great job at that for me. In fact, Ive had to get them on a frozen food diet since they would starve to death trying to eat whatever is in the sand. I think I will just do a quick rinse. This is also the agra-live fiji pink sand and wasnt cheap!

 

[porpoiseaquatics]

For what it's worth.....I've transferred sand in 3 tanks and used sand from another members tank to fill in my 180 build.....I've had zero sand related issues. I think the key was to rinse it all extremely well before adding it. I didn't even bother to use RO/DI water....just put the sand in my rubbermaid container and put the water hose to it, stirring it with my hands and you'd be surprised at what will come out of it. That sand has been in my 180 for 2 years now and looks as clean now as it did the day it went in.

 

[jp30338]

<span style="color: black"><span style="font-family: Verdana">Transferred the sand into the 150g last night. It was surprisingly clean, I suspect from the gobies and only being 4 months old. I did not rinse it, just sifted it and dumped the water out.</span></span>

Everything seems good for now. :yes:

 

[jennm]

jp30338;1011021 wrote: Thanks.

I do not vacuum the sand as the gobies do a great job at that for me. In fact, Ive had to get them on a frozen food diet since they would starve to death trying to eat whatever is in the sand. I think I will just do a quick rinse. This is also the agra-live fiji pink sand and wasnt cheap!

Gobies poop. Everybody poops (there's a book about it, even!) Vacuum the sand. To not do so is an invitation to big problems down the road.

Anytime I moved a tank (and I moved a LOT of tanks over the years), we tossed the sand and started with new. If you want to transfer a few cups of old to seed the new, that's fine, but moving old sand that has been pooped in (especially if it hasn't been vacuumed) is just like moving a dirty carpet into your new house. You can clean the carpet but it's never going to be as clean as new carpet. If you're OK with moving dirt - then move the dirt.

We always used 'live' sand too - not necessarily for the 'live' component but the pre-washed, pre-moistened factor. Fill the tank place the rock, add the sand and once it comes to temperature, acclimate the fish and you're good to go. All moved. Hit it with some Seachem Prime and some Stability and call it a day.

Jenn