I used Tahitian Moon Sand (TMS) in a 10 gal Red Cherry Shrimp show/breeding tank I had, and I loved it. The black is VERY black, and the little reflective white specs in it really liven it up, especially if you have some good light on the tank. I only used a sponge filter in that particular tank so I didn't have to worry about the sand getting into the filter, but I wouldn't think it would be a big deal as long as you always turn off the filter while doing any tank maintenance that might be stirring up the bottom. As for the initial cleaning of it before putting it in the tank, I didn't find it any harder or easier than any other sand-type substrate I've tried in the past.
The only real negative to TMS is that it is completely inert, which means if you are going to be making this a planted tank you are probably going to want to supplement the substrate through fertilizer root tabs, since the plants can't draw nutrients from the TMS itself and, unlike a gravel substrate where eventually mulm gathers and helps to naturally fertilize, you won't see any appreciate mulm accumulating anywhere except on the surface of the sand which isn't going to really help nutrients get to the plant roots.
Another small issue is keeping the sand from going anaerobic. Having some MTS (Malaysian Trumpet Snails) is your best bet, they are very effective at this, won't eat healthy plants, and won't reproduce out of control unless you are overfeeding the tank. If you don't want to go the snail route, then make sure your substrate isn't too deep, and periodically use a stick of some sort to stir up the sand.
Overall, I love TMS and find it really visually stunning. If you decide you want a planted tank and would prefer a substrate that has nutrients built in to it, you could also consider Seachem's Fluorite Black Sand, which is the sand-sized version of their regular Flourite Black (gravel) substrate. I don't think the FBS has the same sort of little reflective white specs that the TMS has, but I've seen pictures of it and it seems to be just as black as the TMS, and is really packed with nutrients for growing plants so you eliminate the need to use root tabs.
