a few questions

[ebster]

Hi I have had my tank up for a year or so and want to step up abit. Its a 29 gallon tank same as I bought it and have a few things in the tank 2 Yellow-Damsils, a Starfish, one Coral Branded Shrimp and, three peices of live rock. I want to put protian skimmer in the tank, and I have for a ground cover a small rock cover and was wondering if i could clean it and just put a lair of sand over it instead of replacing all of the rock. And some more rocks and be done. Also is there a way to help keep the algea from the tank and the salt line from the side of the tank.

(Sorry if there are any misspelled words)

[dskidmore]

Sand Layer: What benifits are you looking for out of the sand? If it's just for appearance, then a thin layer over the gravel is ok, but you won't get the benifits of live sand if the gravel keeps detrivores from crawling around in there.

Algae: Nutrient control is usually the best way to keep algae in check. Could you post your water parameters? Feeding schedule?

Salt Line: Not too much to be done about salt creep. Every time there's a little splash and saltwater gets above the water line, there's a good chance of the water evaporating and leaving salt behind. Wenever you do a water change, wipe all the equiptment down with an aquarium sponge to keep the buildup from getting extreme. A sump setup can keep the water level contant and help a little with salt lines, but you're still going to have some due to water currents and all the random things that cause splashes.