mr_X
Aquarium Advice Addict
how do we know that diseases effect things differently in the wild?An aquarium and the ocean are very different environments, why do diseases that exist in the ocean relatively harmless kill the inhabitants of our tanks? Because they are different environments. No one does a water change in the ocean, yet it survives as well. I think comparing a Dsb tank vs non Dsb tank is much closer than comparing Dsb tank to the ocean. I have a Dsb, and like I said before I have no detectable nitrates even with irregular water changes. Show me a tank 10, 20, 30 years old with a Dsb and I would reconsider the longevity. I have searched and searched and can't find one older than 7.5 years. That person, cmor1701d, even told me to do a remote sand bed if I wanted the tank to run a few decades.
Also, the OP was asking about a Dsb in a fowlr system, where there is really no need to have zero nitrates, so for longevity sake, that is why I lean towards no in this case. I would want the space for more fish!
"different environments" doesn't tell me anything. why are they different? besides synthetic sea water, and artificial lighting, i see them pretty much the same. what is the key component that makes the ocean bed work and closed system beds not?
fish generally swim back and forth not up and down, so losing a few inches of height isn't going to cramp them too much.