Algae on Sand

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mar_att1

Aquarium Advice Apprentice
Joined
Aug 20, 2006
Messages
34
I'm a bit worried that sand substrate would eventually become covered in algae after some time due to lack of oxygen in it.

i know i should move it a bit in order to pass water through it sometimes but i am concerned about the parts which i wont be able to reach, like under the rocks...

how do you guys manage to keep ur sand clean, if u have sand as a substrate in your tank?
 
MTS, especiallly if you have a planted tank.

The sand and other area's of the sand that are covered won't have enough light for the algae to grow. You could probably get away with just doing a good gravel vacing if you didn't want to add any MTS into your tank.
 
Is this green algae or brown algae. If brown it is not algae and will grow without light. It naturally occurs in new tanks and feeds off the silicates that the glass and sand contain. I highly recommend MTS, they are very interesting creatures and do a great job of keeping your substrate aerated. Check the barter/trade forum if you cannot find them locally.
 
Also try and build your sand up higher in the back with a slope towards the front. This will help debris fall towards one place and will help with cleaning.

Although you may think it is harder to keep clean, I have had the opposite experience. It is very easy to gravel vac and not as much will get trapped under it as with gravel.

The MTS snails are great. I have tons of them but usually only see a few out at night. They are not a bad looking freshwater snail and if you start with 20 or so, you will have plenty to aerate the entire SB in no time. I also recommend stirring the sand with something every now and then until you can get some MTS to prevent dead spots.
 
I also recommend Malaysian Trumpet Snails, aka MTS, to keep your substrate cleaned up. Other options are to dig the siphon deeply into the substrate to stir things up. I had a 5 gallon planted hex tank set up for several years with a sand substrate and that is what I did.
 
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