Sand, Silt and Sediment Settling Soon?  2/1/07
Hi,
<Hello Billy!>
I have recently added live sand to a new reef setup.  
<Very good.>
There was nothing in the reef but water, now I can't see anything.    
The tank has a pinkish grey cloudiness to it.  Will this go away on its own or should I do something.  
<Is the sand currently being blown around in your tank or has the sand settled?  As long as it's not a sandstorm, then it will settle.  Than being said it does take quite some time, possibly weeks, for the sediment to settle when new sand is added to a setup, especially if the sand wasn't rinsed.  Are you using any mechanical filtration?  This could help.  You could also add a bag of carbon in/near your filter/pump.  This will improve the water clarity.>
Thanks so much, Billy s.
<Welcome!  -Mich>

Live sand vs. crushed coral   12/11/06
Dear sirs
<and madams?  Mich here.>
I have a 55 gallon saltwater aquarium.
<OK.>
I currently have crushed coral bottom. I want to switch to live sand can I cover the coral with sand or should I remove the coral and add the sand?
<You can do either.  What are you trying to achieve?  Are you trying to make a deep sand bed for nitrate reduction or is your goal an appropriate home for specific live stock or something else?  How long has your system been running?  How much crushed coral is on the bottom currently?  Theoretically either option is possible, there are pluses and minuses to either approach.  What is currently living in your tank?  Hard to give a clear answer without more info.  Be aware the sand may make your water very cloudy unless it is rinse well before adding it to your tank.  Hope this is helpful. -Mich>    

Restarting Tank...LR/LS Question - 06/09/05
Hello WebSiteMedia Guru’s,
<<Good evening>>
Not wanting to sound too cliché, I very much love your site and all the great information you have for all of us! Thank you already for what you have taught me while reading through your site.
<<And thank you...happy to serve.>>
I am ‘Beginner-again’, having had marine fishes a decade ago and recently restarted a fish only tank in Nov ’04, and converted it to a combo in March ’05. My biggest problem, currently, is an amazing growth of Diatoms in an otherwise seemingly healthy tank ( based on the growth of fishes and inverts ). If I don’t scrape the glass in 4 days, I can’t look through it. Phos = 0, Nitrate = 0, Silica = 0. pH 8.3, SG 1.0024
<<Hmm...likely a result of your "conversion."  Will probably pass with time/good husbandry.>>
Being from the old school, I started the set-up with a W/D filter ( 10 gal ). I now understand that is not desirable.
<<Fine for the FO setup...no, not so desirable for the reef.>>
Being ignorant, I also started the tank with my old substrate (15 year old Dolomite!, yup, I can hear you now ).
<<tee hee!>>
Sooo, if I searched your site well enough, I now understand the following:
1) I need to change the Dolomite.
<<I would.>>
2) I need to add more Live rock.
<<More of a subjective issue in my opinion.  I prefer to leave lots of space for corals to grow, fish to swim...>>
3) I need to get rid of my W/D media ( bioballs ) and convert to sump only.
<<Another good move, yes.>>
Here is my current set up:
Tank: 75gal
Lighting: Compacts 2-55 watt 10,000 2-55 watt
actinic-3
Filter: Remora Pro w/ Mag drive, 10gal Wet/ Dry Sump
Water circulation: One 200gph powered, internal
<<EEK!  You need to increase your water circulation by 10-fold my friend!>>
Substrate: Dolomite
<<Again...tee hee!>>
Live Rock:  44lbs Premium Fiji
Fish:
1 - Foxface
1 - Molly Miller Blenny
2 - Redeye Cardinals
Inverts:
1 - Fighting Conch
5 - Blue legged hermits
2 - Scarlet Hermit crabs
4 - Astraea Conehead nails
2 - Banded Trochus Snails
2 - Cluster Dusters - Feed Zooplex
1 - 6" Hairy Mushroom Polyp ( splitting very well ) -
Feed Zooplex
1 - 5"  Candy Cane Coral ( Fiji ) ( splitting well ) -
Feed Zooplex
2 - Turbo snails ( haven't seen them in a while )
Plants:
Shaving Brush (not doing well, being eaten)
<<Your Foxface said to say "thank you!">>
My questions:
Should I change the Dolomite to live sand or other (what do you suggest? & how many pounds) at the same time of adding more live Rock (I am scared!)
<<No need to be frightened <G>.  Replace the dolomite with sugar-fine aragonite (no need for live...will become "live") to a MINIMUM DEPTH of 4" (6" is better), and if you really think you need it, add more FULLY CURED live rock after the sand.>>
I should remove the bioballs slowly AFTER more rock and substrate change, yes?
<<Of small concern I think given the size of your wet/dry, but it won't hurt either to wait a couple weeks after the addition of sand and rock to pull the bio-balls.>>
If my tank will have app. 90 pounds of live rock, what is the sense of having a refugium?
<<Huh?  Thought you said you read our FAQs <G>?  Start reading here and at the related links in blue, then come back and tell me "why indeed?": http://www.wetwebmedia.com/refugium.htm>>
Any other suggestions?
Keep reading/learning/researching.  And increase the flow in that tank!>>
Thank you very much, in advance, for any specific help you can offer! Rainer
<<Very welcome, Eric R.>>
P.S.: My apology if this is a copy of a post which reaches you - I have problems w/ my DIAL UP provider and am using another e-mail account)
<<No worries mate.>>

Setting Up Live Sand
How do I put my live sand in my new tank? The water is already in and circulating in tank and sump. I am concerned that it will get suspended in water and get in sump and skimmer and filters.
<<Not to worry, turn off circulation, release sand at bottom. Turn it on and let er' rip! Only very fine particulates will be suspended and be skimmed/filtered out or settle. If settling in sump bothers you (most are designed to trap particulates) then vacuum that out. Remove any vegetative matter etc. from screens, filters, powerheads. Be happy! Craig>> 

Bio-Sand Man! - 2/24/03
Hey!<How goes it?>
I would like to add the bio-activated sand to my 47g tank. How would I go about adding it to my tank?<Well that depends on how much you want to add and what type of substrate you have now.  If you have sand now, all you have to do is add a small cup of live sand.  If you have crushed coral you need to remove it first.> Tank is stocked and I have no sump or sessile
invertebrates.<I need some more info before I can give you a better answer.  Please get back w/ me on the type of substrate you have and what you are planning on doing.  Phil>

How much live sand? - 2/19/03
Hello again, <Hello, Paul here>I am planning on starting up a new tank (saltwater).<Cool. Be sure to read as much as you can. Think about what it is you want to keep and devise a plan. A good plan goes a long way to success>  I was wondering how much Live Sand I would need for a 50 gal rectangular tank (36x15x20). <Well, there is a formula in there somewhere, but there is really no way of telling without a little more info. In any event I would buy enough to do a 4" live sand bed. See, the size and general geological makeup of your sand needs to be added into the formula. The best way to do this is to have an idea of what type of sand you plan to use and know how many pounds per cubic inch. I may be wrong here but I believe it is:
(l)engthx(w)idthx(4")intended depth of sand bed pounds per cubic inch of sand your placing. Not really easy to determine, eh? The rule I use has served me well. I look at what a bag of sand will roughly fill an area of my tank. So if 2 30lb bags of sand will kinda fill half my tank to roughly 4' then I will need 4 bags to gain approximately 4' of sand for my entire tank. I always buy an extra or two in case I under estimated, and I always return any unopened bag(s).>  I'm aware that a 1-3" bed is ideal but have no experience with Live Sand up until now.<I think the theory is now  1" or less for no anaerobic effect or 4-4 1/2" for anaerobic effect. Check here as I am sure Anthony Calfo has made mention of this many times here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/dsbfaqs.htm>   Any insight would be great! <I think your on the right track here. Information is half the battle. Read some, plan out your tank, know what animals will populate your tank, read about them, buy, and build. A couple days of research will really help your tank succeed. Thanks for the question. To all the math majors out there, if I am wrong about the formula please indulge us with your genius. Paul - out>
thanks again Kevin Conner  

How much live sand for 50gal - 2/20/03
Thanx for the input I was out at one of my local shop's yesterday and the owner recommended 50lbs. of sand to get about a 3" bed (in my "proposed" 50 gal. tank) <I would go more for 4" if you can.>  He also recommended I get (1) 25lbs. bag of a fine grain sand (1) 25lbs. bag of a medium grain sand to mix up the granularity a bit.<I would also do all sugar fine if possible. Check out Anthony's replies here:  http://www.wetwebmedia.com/dsbfaqs.htm and follow the other links around the top of the page as well.> Once again thanks for your input and take care. <Thank you for the follow up, Kev.>
Kevin Conner <Regards, Paul>

HELLO CRAIG, Live Sand
Your advice sounds reasonable, but don't you think that if I remove all gravel, I would also remove all beneficial bacteria and fauna growing in there?
<That's what you are replacing with "live" sand. In my mind you are removing the trapped wastes and replacing it with another bio-media that has better capacity as a DSB without coarse consistency to trap larger waste particles.>
I posed the same problem to another crew member. Jason C
>said he thought I could mix in live sand on top of the gravel, at least 4"-6".
Who is correct, I kind of think that you are, all that gunk would be trapped under the sand.
<I'm sure Jason has a good viable reasoning as well! I would think (like J I'm sure) that if you kept the crushed coral you would vacuum the heck out of it before mixing with sand. With enough sand and a good cleaning, Jason's idea is certainly viable as well. six of one, half a dozen of the other, as long as you clean it really well.>
I am going to buy some live sand today, which brand and how many inches do you recommend? Should I add some CYCLE to speed
up seeding. I want to get as much fauna in the sand and as soon as possible. Please advise, Thanks, Andre
<Alright Andre, you will want to do this slowly by adding over time, or all at once remove everything, put inhabitants in another tank/Rubbermaid container, etc. add sand, replace rock, filter/let settle and replace inhabitants, perhaps the next day. With good live sand and your rock, filter etc. you should be alright as far as water quality. What sand you use depends on finances and the overall bio-capacity of your rock, filters, etc. If possible, I would prefer live sand from your LFS or on-line supplier from fishless systems to avoid parasites like ick. You can also mix live sand with dry aragonite sand to seed the "dead" dry sand. There are various suppliers of live sand to seed your tank with a good variety of flora and fauna, try IndoPacific Sea Farms. I have used bagged "live" sand, but it really isn't the same as sand from an established system.  Go as deep as you can afford, you will be surprised to see it dissolve over time and DSB's process nitrates!  Best of luck!  Craig>

Adding live sand, or live rock to established system
Hello, You have always helped me with questions in the past. My questions are ---
I have an established reef tank and I was contemplating removing the crushed coral substrate and replacing with live sand.
<Based on recent experience, remove all the water (using a high flow pump and plastic containers) and livestock, remove the old substrate, replace with sand and refill the tank. Return the livestock. If you don't have the tools to do this, I would wait until you do. Remember, 4" minimum and better 6" for the bed>
Would this cause an ammonia spike or other problems to the fish and corals?
<Should be OK. Make sure you have plenty of aged seawater on hand as you will likely need to do some water changes>
And, I need to add more live rock, would adding too much at one time cause problems?
<I would get a plastic tub, heater, power filter, a power head, and a cheap light and cure the rock for several weeks before introducing it into the main tank.>
Also, I want to remove the bio-balls from the wet/dry and replace with live rock, would this be fine?
<A good move in my opinion. Remove the bioballs a little at a time over a couple weeks. One more thing: you want to wait several weeks between making each of these changes. If you try to do all these things in a short period of time, you'll will have trouble.>
Thank you for your help, Tim
<My pleasure, Don>

Re: Live rock and sand for a new tank
Hey again Don,
It is so true when they say too much information is not good either.  I am so confused!!!!!
<My constant state of being it seems at times>
I just read the main (1st) article that Mr. Fenner has posted on substrates and in their he DOES NOT recommend going with live sand.  Is this the case?  It seems like it is the rage right now and everyone is doing it.  For my 55 gal am I just better of buying 10-20 lbs to use as seed sand and then compensate the rest of the bed with store bought bag sealed sand, and then mix the two together before adding to the system?  Can you suggest a sand I should use?  I see the best size granule recommended is greater than 1.5mm and as close to round as possible?
Thanks again...as always...I am so sorry to bother you guys!!  Its just that I truly want this to work this time and get it right.  Too many mistakes and lack of successes over the years.  I refuse to give up!!
<Understood. I apologize for the delay, but I wanted to get Bob's take on the article as the author. This information was written sometime ago when it was popular to go to the beach and just get some sand which is not a good idea for the reasons stated in the article. Better to use a commercial sugar fine or oolithic sand (< 1mm) and lay that down as a bed. Then some live sand sprinkled over the top. Or, you can just let your live rock 'seed' the dead sand. This will take a little longer, but much cheaper. So I would stick to the original 30# or so of sealed, store bought, 'dead' sand, and seed with just a handful or two of live sand from a store or friend and you will have good life in no time. Or, skip the live sand all together and just allow time for the live rock to seed the sand with is certainly going to happen. Hope this helps, Don>
Louis Rizzo

Live Sand Bed 7/4/03
Hello at WetWeb,
<Cheers>
Just reading the live sand bed section in Anthony and Bob's new book, and I have a couple questions.  Let me preface them by saying I recently had to remove the aragonite bed from my 180-gallon reef due to what I believe was phosphate precipitation.
<Yes... does occur... but usually is not a problem unless the bed is stirred or agitated. Else it is neutrally bound>
The bed was like concrete and I was having algae problems, so I opted to remove it.  
<Hmmm... that actually sounds like a water chemistry problem. Adding calcium/Kalk too quick or too much and/or spiking the pH is what causes that. Subsequently, the compromised sand bed can feed nuisance algae or at least not deter it. Point being... the problem was not your sand bed... but the advice you got on how to maintain it>
Removal of the substrate and large water changes seem to have greatly assisted in alleviating the nuisance algae.  I suspect the problem arose from playing the see saw game with alkalinity/calcium, etc., and using additives to try to balance it and instead made it worse.  
<Exactly, my friend>
Out with the old.  I now want to add a new live sand bed and am considering using the Carib Sea Seaflor Special Grade Reef Sand for starters, which is what I had in the original bed that I removed after it became so compact.  There is no specific grain size indicated on the bag of the Carib Sea, so I can't give you that specific information.  If you are familiar with this particular grade, would you opine as to how deep a bed you recommend, and how much live sand and sand stirrers you would add to it to seed the bed?  
<No worries... simply seek sugar-fine grains at a depth of 3" minimum... 4-6" better still.>
I'd like to add a few Holothuria cukes, etc., once its established to keep things clean, and perhaps some critters from IndoPacific SeaFarms to improve the life and stirring of the bed.  This system is old and the buffering capabilities, etc., have greatly reduced, and I would like very much to get it in balance again with a good sand bed.  
<No troubles at all... can be had>
I must admit I'm a bit paranoid after all the work I went through to remove the substrate and alleviate the algae problem.  
<Understood... but easily prevented. Do focus on excellent water flow (10-20X tank volume) and due diligence with dosing supplements (starting with 2-part mixes in a balanced tank, mixing said liquids vigorously before every use (else see-saw occurs), etc)>
Sorry for blathering.  Your suggestions would be greatly appreciated.  BTW, I never give up.  Just want to do it right this time. Many thanks, Peggy
<Excellent to hear! Best regards, Anthony>

Adding Live Sand
Hey Crew. Hope you can offer some good advice. I would like to add 2 or 3 more inches of sand to the 2 or 3 I have now. I'm in no hurry so a little at a time is no prob. I was going to try and find Southdown but so far no luck in my area (Texas). I thought I could move sand from a corner , spread it around and replace with new sand. I didn't know if this would cause to much cloudiness or would I be better off to tear down the whole tank and add it all at once. These indecision's keep me from doing anything. The sand I have now is proper type and size. Any thoughts are appreciated.  Thanks , Mark
<I would drain the tank with a high volume pump removing the livestock along the way. Add the sand and pump the water back into the tank and add the livestock. Good luck, Don>

Adding live sand, follow up
Dear Mr. Blundell, << No Mr. just "hey you" or "Blundell" >>  I have really made a mess of things! (It never occurred to me that you would answer personally!!!) << Isn't that why we are here?  I hope we help, we try. >> While I was expecting to read your answer regarding “adding live sand to an existing set-up” in the daily Q and A, and “thinking” I had no time to wait, I started removing the crushed coral.  I left two to three inches, added a couple of inches of SeaChem “Pearl Beach” Aragonite and added the 250lbs. of live sand. (The tank is 72” L.x18” D. and the bed is now 5” deep.) << That isn't bad.  It really can't be too deep. >> I also added what must be approximately 50lbs. of “base rock”.
YUCK!!!  Well, the tank is cycling. (Duh!)  Amm. is 0.4, nitrites 0.4, nitrates less than 10 and I was “thinking” again.  Would it hurt or help to do a water change and add my original live rocks which are being held in a Rubbermaid tub with heat and circulation. << I think a water change can't hurt.  I'm not sure it is going to do any good here, but it can't hurt.  I would add your other live rock, as live rock is always good.  Mainly you need time and patience, just wait it out. >>  I believe that one should not do water changes during cycling unless approaching  1.0 but I don’t know if this holds true since there is still a lot of the original bacteria in the tank and filters. << I have no idea where that 1.0 number came from.  I would say water changes are good even in stable tanks that read 0. >> This time a will wait for your reply. << Okay, but my reply may be full of bad information, so you shouldn't just do what I say. >>
Thank you so much for your time and effort (and patience).  P.S., the original live rock has lots of life on it including worms, baby brittle stars and bi-valves.  I don’t want to kill anymore of the little guys. << Understood, but those things can also help "cycle" the new rock and get things going again. >>
Diane
<<  Blundell  >>

Adding live sand 8/31/04
Dear Crew, I have spent hours reading your fabulous site and I have seen several questions similar to mine however I have also seen several different answers.  I have 250 lbs. of live sand coming from Tampa Bay Saltwater that I was going to add to my 125 gal. tank that already has four to five inches of crushed coral of different grades, with the smaller size settled to the bottom.  These smaller grains are small enough to start clogging the UG. filter plates (which I am removing as I do my water changes).  What I have planned is to remove fish to various other tanks, then remove live rock (approximately 60+ lbs.) to a large Rubbermaid tub.  Remove the top one inch, possibly two inches, of the larger grade of crushed coral and add the live sand on top.  Is this feasible? <Disturbing all of this "muck" can be disastrous if not handled properly.  Your plan is a reasonable one, but I would consider leaving the UGF plates in place and simply pulling the airlift tubes.  If there is a lot of life in your CC, I would add the new sand on top a little at a time (this will require you to store the sand properly for at least a few days).  By adding 1/4" or so per day, you give the life in your current sand time to come to the surface and not get buried alive.  Even if there isn't much life, there is little harm to leaving the larger CC.>
If I remove all CC then I will not have nearly enough depth and I have already broke the bank with this T.B.S. order. (Also have 100 lbs. of live rock coming)  Plus I was thinking the differences in size would help future burrow builders.  With this order comes a variety of hermits, snails, cucumbers and starfish; and others I know I’m forgetting.
The inhabitants now are:
1 3" Coral Beauty
1 2" Six-line Wrasse
2 2.5" Firefish
2 4" Scissortail Darts
1 Flame Hawk (going back to store)
1 4" Tasseled Filefish (not including fins or tassels)
<Adding all of this sand and rock will initiate a new "cycle" in your tank.  You can avoid this by cycling it all in a separate vessel before adding it to your existing tank.  I would highly recommend this.  You could also add it directly to your display and move your current animals, but this seems like the greater hassle.>
I was wondering just how big a threat my Filefish will be at this time and if I must leave him out, what size tank could he be content in?<It will probably be fine in as small as a 20g tank for the short period of time you would have to remove him for.>
Also, with the addition of so much more live rock and everything rearranged could I add my feisty Cherub Pygmy Angel in with the Coral Beauty? <They would probably be fine in such a large tank.>
Please, one more question, but first a brief description of changes.  Three weeks ago I removed the first of three filter plates during a water change and had also switched salt mix from Coralife to Instant Ocean and now my pH has gone from a pretty constant 8.1 to 8.6!!!  Is it the different mix? My well water tests at 8.0. <A good possibility.>
A month ago we added different lights: 3 175 watt Metal Halides with a 72" 2x96 watt Power Compact blue actinic bulbs and now have blooms of hair and turf/mat algae.  Could this affect the pH? <The photosynthesis from the algae could be driving CO2 down and pH up. You can verify this by checking the pH in the morning and in the evening.  If evening pH is much higher than morning, then photosynthesis is the culprit.  If there is little change, it is most likely the salt mix.  If you find large swings, you need to improve gas exchange in the tank (greater water movement, larger skimmer, etc.)>
Please help and thank you so much for your time and dedication.  Diane. <Glad to!>
P.S.  Could pH. rise with evaporation and the corresponding rise in salinity?  We are having a hard time getting the top-off right with the hotter lights and the open top now.  Again, thank you.  <This is not likely to be a significant factor, although if you removed glass cover in this process, you may have increased the gas exchange, leading to the higher pH.  Best Regards.  Adam>