Deploying Sand

[Dopey07]

I have my 55G full with salt water and wet dry already running. I kneed to add my sand bed tonight. What do you guys think is the best method to adding my sand with water already in the tank to limit the cloudyness of the water.

I was going to lay the bags on the bottom of the tank then cut them open slowly and let the sand out like that?

Any other suggestion on how I would be able to limit the mess?

 

[Dopey07]

Help please??

 

[jcarlilesiu]

The method you talk about is probably the worst way to do it. The sand is full of tiny little particals, not to mention muck that needs to be washed out before adding it to the tank.

Typically the best way to do this is to put the sand in a bucket and run it under water stiring until the water runs clear.

The best way to avoid really cloudy water is to actually add the sand first, and then add water. Place a large plate or serving plate on the sand bed and dump your water onto that. This will prevent the sand from being stirred up from the water hitting it.

It is going to be cloudy anyway. Nature of the beast. Infact, I added 200 pounds of sand to my tank, if I remember correctly, and washed it all best that I could, and it still was cloudy for about a week.

Is there anything living in the tank? If not, its no big deal to let it be cloudy. If its a new tank, you need to properly cycle the tank before adding anything alive anyway.

 

[austinsdad]

What kinda sand? Gotta know that to help. And if dry aragonite, didja rinse it until clear as possible?

 

[melosu58]

Get a piece of PVC and just slide the sand down to wear you need it. That should minimize the sand storm that is sure to come.

 

[cabezon]

Get a piece of PVC and just slide the sand down to wear you need it. That should minimize the sand storm that is sure to come.

+1