How much live sand?

[Natterjak]

We have crushed coral in our tank, and have decided that we prefer the look of sand better. If we go with live sand, how deep do we need it to be?

Our Home Depot doesn't carry Southdown sand. I found some live sand at a local pet store (can't remember the brand - Nature's Ocean or something like that), that cost $30 for 20 pounds, and supposedly has detrivors and bacteria in it already. Would this stuff work? And if I add it, is it going to start my cycle over again, or is it safe to just add it?

And is it better to add it all at once, or can we add it in slowly over time?

 

[SquishyFish]

If your adding live sand (from a bag like you mentioned) it should be fine going straight into the tank. Add it all at once...you should not see any cycle at all. I would suggest getting a scoop or two of reef rubble from their curing tank to put in w/ the sand. The reason is because their curing tank will have all kinds of in fauna (bugs, worms and such) in their tank that will be good for your system. Your DSB will function best w/ these guy as part of it, otherwise it can become stagnant and stop working. Your LR should have some of this infauna in it already, but it wont have the worms that your DSB will need. They should be able to give you a scoop for free. Just drain off most of the water and then acclimate it like you would an invert.

HTH
Squishy

 

[Natterjak]

This is the live sand that I was looking at: http://www.naturesocean.com/bioactive.htm

 

[cmor1701d]

If you're switching to sand just for the look, then go as deep or as shallow as you like. A 2"-3" covering will give some nitrification benefit. The bagged stuff you buy at the LFS might have some bacteria in it, but you don't need it. It's not worth the money charged. Find caribbean play sand in the garden section of your HD or get silica playsand (the stuff meant for kids sandbox).

Do you have any live rock? Are you planning on adding any? LR will seed the playsand. Detrivore kits are available from several online places or if you can get 'borrow' a cup of sand from one or more established aquariums you'll have plenty.

What's in the tank now?
What are you using for filtration?
How big is the tank.

There's a and depth calculator on this site that will give yo an estimate of how many pounds of sand you need to reach a given depth.

HTH,

Seymour

 

[Natterjak]

It's a 70 gallon tank, and right now we have 50 pounds of live rock in it and are planning on getting 20 more pounds later. For filtration we're using a wet/dry filter. For fish all we have so far is a pair of percula clowns.

I did find someone who's selling used live sand from their set up. Is that okay to use? Would there be any concerns with that? And if I needed to add more sand later, would it be okay to mix different types?

 

[SquishyFish]

Cmor...You forgot to mention that if he does not cure the sand first prior to putting it in the tank the silt will cover all the LR. Its a B!tch to get off the rock too. Dont rinse the sand before using it. It will wash away a lot of the beneficial silt that helps make the DSB more effective. The whole point of putting the DSB into the tank is for filtration...why would you not put cured sand in the tank from the start?



Rock and sand from other tanks will seed it, but its not going to be an over night thing. More like 2-3 weeks.

 

[Natterjak]

Can you mix different types of sand? Like Caribbean Sea sand and argonite sand?

 

[SquishyFish]

The three things that matter w/ sand are what they are composed of, the texture, and the size. So as long as they are the same size (approx) you shouldnt have any problems.

Squishy

 

[cmor1701d]

Squishy,
I didn't forget about the silting, hence my questions about the current state of the tank. The original post did not mention any LR or tank inhabitants. When I changed out my cc for a dsb I had just had the tank setup and had no livestock. I did have 50 pounds of base and some LR.

...why would you not put cured sand in the tank from the start?

Cost? Southdown is $5 - $6 for a 50 pound bag. That stuff the lfs sells is aprox $30 for a 20 pound bag. When adding 300 pounds to a tank it can get expenisve.

Getting the silt off the LR is just a matter of using a plastic turkey baster or a ph to blow it off.

Natterjack, Caribbean Sea sand is most likely aragonite. If you meant CaribSea then it almost certainly is (unless it's the jet black).