125g 2 in 1 Seagrass Reef

[vlangel]

I am also wanting to add more dirt to my fuge, ThePurple so I have been pondering this as well.

Two thoughts I have had are to gently syphon off the top half inch to an inch of sand, lay the dirt down and then replace the removed sand along with perhaps more new sand mixed in.

The other thought I had was I have a large syringe plunger and I wondered if I fill it with dirt mixed with tank water, then pushed the syringe into the substrate several inches and discharged the dirt/water mixture if that would work. If it worked it would be a very slow process but if it was done a little every few days over months it seems like the quantity of dirt would build up.

 

[ThePurple12]

Good thinking, I’ll test out the syringe method. Actually I’ll use a turkey baster, we have a large one in the kitchen.

 

[vlangel]

Good thinking, I'll test out the syringe method. Actually I'll use a turkey baster, we have a large one in the kitchen.

I thought about a turkey baster but wondered if it would have enough suctiin to suck up the dirt? Also maybe you would want to purchase a turkey baster just for that application, using the common kitchen baster might not be too popular with the rest of the family, ha ha!

 

[ThePurple12]

I should be able to just pour the dirt in. I'll make sure to give it a good wash

 

[ThePurple12]

That would be an idea, but that's a lot of pots! I don't have any mesh bags either, but that would also a good idea.

That gives me another idea- fill one of those black plant trays with dirt, add a layer of sand, bury it in the sand bed, and plant plants...again. I'll have to see if I have any trays. Thanks Michael.

It was late and I wasn't thinking straight. If I used a tray, I wouldn't be able to get it back out...

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Let's consider your objectives.

You want to some how get dirt into your sand bed for the grasses, without draining the tank, right? You also don't want it to negatively affect your corals, etc.

How can you do that?

Injecting mud below the surface with a baster or very large syringe sounds challenging but possible. Bagging individual plants and dirt in some sort of mesh bags sounds tedious, plus where to get said bags. Dollar store? Seedling pots biodegrade, but how would it affect the tank?

It seems like you need a simpler solution. You don't need a ton of dirt. You just need some dirt in there to make the sand more hospitable to the grass. How about removing most of the sand where you plan to plant, and split into two piles. Mix some dirt into the first pile and add it to the tank. Follow that quickly with the second, 'clean' sand to cover it up. Maybe follow that up with heavy mechanical filtration, plus charcoal to clear up the water. Would that work?

 

[ThePurple12]

The sand+dirt mix sounds like a really good strategy, I think I just might use it. Thanks!

Now I'm considering whether or not I should actually use dirt from the yard/the woods or mud from Floridapets. I've had dirt in my sand bed all along, but the seagrass really took off when I added nice, delicious mud from Florida. After all, that is what seagrass naturally grow in. Plus I would get the added certainty that nothing will leach from it. Of course the downside is you have to pay for it, but I would be willing.

BTW- pics coming!

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Happy to help!

I've used Florida Pets' mud in v1. However I would hesitate to use it in a tank with corals. That strong smell is sulfur. I'd do some research first. Why do you think your home dirt would be contaminated? You could also buy a bag of garden soil locally.

I don't think seagrass grows in mud. It's ideal conditions are soft, muddy sand. Marsh grass grows in mud. Anyway, more thoughts.

Yay pics!

 

[ThePurple12]

Hmm, sulfur...I messaged someone who's had experience with Floridapets mud in a reef tank. Waiting for the reply. Potting soil is a good alternative. I'll see if I have any laying around.

I did see lots of shoal grass in the mud beds (I guess that's what they're called?) in Florida. It also grew in sand of course.

I don't know for sure whether or not my dirt has bad stuff in it. The reason I mentioned it is because I have a freshwater planted tank with dirt from the woods as part of the substrate, with a layer of gravel on top. Twice I added several cherry shrimp, and twice they failed to reproduce and died over a few months' time. Once when the substrate was disturbed and soil was released, the cherry shrimp all were dead/dying the next morning. Everything else in the tank was fine. This makes me suspect that the dirt had toxic "stuff" in it. Again, I can't confirm this.

Pics coming in hot!

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Well there you go. You've seen for yourself that seagrass grows in mud. I can see how you might have concerns with your yard dirt, given that experience in your fresh water tank. If you go with potting soil, avoid perlite, the styrofoam balls float. I guess you could put it in water and skim off the floaters.

 

[ThePurple12]

OK, here are the pictures!

Happy Magnifica anemone with clowns, who laid eggs yesterday.
<meta charset="utf-8"><b style="font-weight:normal;" id="docs-internal-guid-5904fcd2-7fff-0f75-f406-ed73ff74085b"><img width="720px;" height="540px;" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/0mKn9oN0LoYvup3y7FpUyNfyEMnjlUPHoc7Gu49bwuVdTdQbY6BoxFmCqn-U4Zaw7Mbz7Aj7wTWg7R-j0S7wvvRBFhbEDgwep0T1SHIQ-EVcpQzbmpHTuS_G-UqoRMaTqEm1JXgN85g" /></b>

Grass bed shot, with recovering Stylo at the top. The grasses' leaves aren't dying for the most part, but I'm not seeing any growth.
<meta charset="utf-8"><b style="font-weight:normal;" id="docs-internal-guid-1691b3b5-7fff-3693-3a06-6d8b874d7b64"><img width="720px;" height="540px;" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/llPiqfVTpa2hMCFhPcbreaF1gwSG6WwrbT-VvKDCWaFtBnojeCH9jYJhVzK4p0CB1kgmz7GY-2wRi3TL37vm8YIO3TsODfkdOAUUddcJh0vK1rU7Q5qokNaQCmk9-5yXJO2fT6OgWtE" /></b>


This acro is finally turning green again!
<meta charset="utf-8"><b style="font-weight:normal;" id="docs-internal-guid-4ec61140-7fff-ae32-f79e-ba884cbf0786"><img width="720px;" height="540px;" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/wJ6InJ8EI_y8VgVq8zSPGaZdKY-yxXpchJGwlfdXaLy8RdVMOXi-mF4K-WYALOlC8UWxUIwmp-N-8fnACoZ-lUPUHbsKQ1gj80F3TjcB-JjyFxdHJG-qMSukVGjGdH-l7494294xrB8" /></b>


New Red Planet Acropora, hopefully it'll actually turn red.
<meta charset="utf-8"><b style="font-weight:normal;" id="docs-internal-guid-32a80d91-7fff-de6c-7a7b-1adc8b0217dd"><img width="720px;" height="540px;" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/ZEnVvdrkzZXKPqO0mjd1lggUItnzStH58lXogTOodsQKMmNcmYSke12ZGgmsQYqfY07Tf_dvWpE2oO0dwozWPmfwGUw1e5siR-2Ya5ZI2lgl0AFxtwXvg_cPHxgZ8-BiFSbBkcKSVdU" /></b>

New Green Slimer. Again, I hope to see it hold true to its name!
<meta charset="utf-8"><b style="font-weight:normal;" id="docs-internal-guid-7170a046-7fff-bc2f-12d7-91e7dc91a374"><img width="720px;" height="540px;" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/b18_IRvT5wWdOD2zgMDDvwLfNgpspYuUG_HWQONarCIet1rdpruFJm-AhGxeVTU-9kBQiZR237I2NblhZssELWyMqWQp4QFxZxLiw4WpHsBynBfmWjTQiRwj4h2EbmGVBGzbeE30SII" /></b>

And a fresh FTS.
<meta charset="utf-8"><b style="font-weight:normal;" id="docs-internal-guid-f76dbe21-7fff-9c7f-ff21-e62be4f897c6"><img width="960px;" height="270px;" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/KyynQXlkdanI9xTiTsfqYHVC4ZZyzvXTlMI6DhIZSCa9c4HUY6JlkMbGUfS8asTHYMi_LFYjlq910r_amEbzp-ariBusC9sGu0D7tP060UiA7zTZ7DV8oo51RViX90VmFu-oSI_CpcQ" /></b>

 

[ThePurple12]

The hair algae is still there, but isn't spreading. It's completely gone from the overflow box, thanks to the Turbo snail. I have at least 3 species of "hair algae", including Bryopsis, plus random Chaeto strands floating around.

I didn't get pictures of the new conchs because they've buried themselves in the sand up to a single eye! Funny how they do that. They're all the same size, about 1.5". They're also the same species. Once one of them comes back to the surface I'll take a picture and try to identify them.

Just for fun, Nitrate is 10 and phosphate is .2. Apparently the new fish have brought the phosphate up. I'm not too worried about it, but if it goes much higher I'll start running the ATS again. The macroalgae in the tank aren't doing well because they keep getting smothered by hair algae! Well, everything except the C. Prolifera. That's doing well.

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Great pics! Glad to see your anemone and acro are bouncing back. Those new sticks are gonna look great in your tank! FTS is awesome. Good luck on whatever you decide on the sand bed.

 

[vlangel]

Very good pics! It gives me a real feel for what your tank looks like. Your seagrass looks great as do a lot of your coral!

 

[ThePurple12]

Great pics! Glad to see your anemone and acro are bouncing back. Those new sticks are gonna look great in your tank! FTS is awesome. Good luck on whatever you decide on the sand bed.

Thanks, at this point I think I'll go with potting soil, but I'm terrible bad at making up my mind.

 

[ThePurple12]

Very good pics! It gives me a real feel for what your tank looks like. Your seagrass looks great as do a lot of your coral!

Thank you! I'm happy with it, the corals haven't been this happy in a while.

 

[vlangel]

That is always a great feeling when the coral and animals in our tank begin to really look happy!

 

[ThePurple12]

No bagged dirt, so I’ll grab some next time I’m at the store.

 

[ThePurple12]

Dirt acquired.

The brand is Miracle-Gro Performance Organics, and the ingredients check out. The problem is the stuff FLOATS, so I have it soaking in a bucket until it all sinks.

 

[Michael Hoaster]

Soaking is good for other reasons too. When soil is submerged, it kicks off all kinds of chemical reactions. So there's no rush.