bare-bottom, or live sand????
- Thread starter StephenD
- Start date
panic
Premium Member
I have both.
I love my BB. I know when it's dirty because I can see it sitting on the bottom of the tank. My levels are perfect as long as I am perfect at maintaining it. Weekly maintenance is REQUIRED as a minimum (water change, siphoning, checking reactors, etc) My corals and fish are happy and I have a lot of both. I never have algae in it. The water is crystal clear.
I love my DSB. I can have more soft corals and sand dwelling creatures that can't live in the bb. Sand is pretty if it is taken care of and replinished to stay alive with new fauna. Oh, the biggie, if I don't have time to change the water for a month, it will remain stable. Nuff said.
I love my BB. I know when it's dirty because I can see it sitting on the bottom of the tank. My levels are perfect as long as I am perfect at maintaining it. Weekly maintenance is REQUIRED as a minimum (water change, siphoning, checking reactors, etc) My corals and fish are happy and I have a lot of both. I never have algae in it. The water is crystal clear.
I love my DSB. I can have more soft corals and sand dwelling creatures that can't live in the bb. Sand is pretty if it is taken care of and replinished to stay alive with new fauna. Oh, the biggie, if I don't have time to change the water for a month, it will remain stable. Nuff said.
javajaws
Premium Member
They both obviously work. As a current practitioner of the BB approach, I will add that you do have to worry about running a BB tank "too clean". Don't be afraid to add lots of fish and feed plenty just because you have heard SPS like "clean" water. They like clean water alright, but they don't like living in a quarantine zone either.
And on the whole DSB's do/don't release phosphates thing....the scientific literature clearly points to the fact that they do. However, there are so many variables at play here that no one can honestly say that any given DSB will/won't release phosphates in the normal life of a reef tank. It may take one person's DSB a couple years to start releasing phosphates while another person's DSB may not seem to ever release them. Again...too many variables at work here to say when any given DSB will fail.
About that DSB that has lasted 10+ years or so...I wonder if they drip kalk or not? I've often wondered if dripping kalk may inadvertantly shorten the life of a DSB because of precipitated calcium phosphate. Just conjecture on my part, but if I had a DSB I'd probably opt for a CA reactor instead...
And on the whole DSB's do/don't release phosphates thing....the scientific literature clearly points to the fact that they do. However, there are so many variables at play here that no one can honestly say that any given DSB will/won't release phosphates in the normal life of a reef tank. It may take one person's DSB a couple years to start releasing phosphates while another person's DSB may not seem to ever release them. Again...too many variables at work here to say when any given DSB will fail.
About that DSB that has lasted 10+ years or so...I wonder if they drip kalk or not? I've often wondered if dripping kalk may inadvertantly shorten the life of a DSB because of precipitated calcium phosphate. Just conjecture on my part, but if I had a DSB I'd probably opt for a CA reactor instead...
Which is why alot of people have opted for a remote DSB.
My sandbed is in the sump. In two seperate compartments. In three years ill shopvac one of those compartments out, then the following year, the other.
This way I get the benifit of the DSB without the problem of having to tear down the system when it fowls. And it will fowl.
It seems that DSB's work better for bigger tanks. What I mean is they last longer.
At least it seems that way
I know it wasn't asked, but have you thought about a rubble bottom?
Has Anyone Tried a "Rubble Bottom?"
Has Anyone Tried a "Rubble Bottom?"
Chihuahua6
Premium Member
StephenD has left the building
CanadianReef
New member
I have a DSB that began life as 80% CC and 20% sugarsized LS from a store. The bed is now more like 60% 40% because CC gets broke down by the reactions happening in the anaerobic zones of DSB. However the top of the sand is covered in CC because the small stuff sinks. This means I can never have sand sifting fish and I never have sandstorms. A mixture is the way to go. I agree a DSB can go bad but if you add more from stores, other tanks, or the ocean every now and then you will keep a good variety of critters. BB tank you have much less filtering capacity so you must constantly perform water changes, check for detritus piles, and the fish load must be lower. In the end go your own way but with your eyes open, both methods take work.
Trigeek
Member
It's a matter of preferance. I can see why BB would be "cleaner" from the sense that you can see and manually remove all of the detritus and have more flow to keep stuff suspended and , subsequently, skimmed. Some of the BB sps tanks look incredible.
Personally, I prefer a DSB. The life in an established DSB is very interesting to me and I love the idea of the substrate contributing to the closed ecosystem.
One approach isn't better overall, but may be better for the individual hobbyist.
Cheers to all for keeping this post relatyively flame free!
Personally, I prefer a DSB. The life in an established DSB is very interesting to me and I love the idea of the substrate contributing to the closed ecosystem.
One approach isn't better overall, but may be better for the individual hobbyist.
Cheers to all for keeping this post relatyively flame free!
reefworldaq
New member
Hai everyone, i'm a local reef store and have alot of customer that i'm maintain. from what i'm experiment. every concept between DSB, SSB, BB tank have different maintenance, tool, supplement and other stuff. so everyone have to understand about the problem every concept. all the concept can be success, as long as you know how to manage that tank.
susanrosenfeld
New member
Rowa phos
Rowa phos
Use Rowaphos on your tank and set up the sand bed...you have to replace it only once every three months, which makes up for the fact that it's expensive. It'll work, and then you can have an aesthetically pleasing tank, as well!
Rowa phos
Use Rowaphos on your tank and set up the sand bed...you have to replace it only once every three months, which makes up for the fact that it's expensive. It'll work, and then you can have an aesthetically pleasing tank, as well!
coraladdict
New member
I personaly like DSB it has more of a natural look and offers more biodiversity...
Though I can't say they are flawless with all of the post about them leach p04 ,I would follow Iwans methology and DSB husbandry:http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=700454&perpage=25&pagenumber=1
He takes out the top1/2" twice a year and adds fresh clean sand.Ialways thought Ron said not to disturb the SB.
Anyway he does however use Prodibio and Zeo and has one of the nicest tank I've ever seen.
Though I can't say they are flawless with all of the post about them leach p04 ,I would follow Iwans methology and DSB husbandry:http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=700454&perpage=25&pagenumber=1
He takes out the top1/2" twice a year and adds fresh clean sand.Ialways thought Ron said not to disturb the SB.
Anyway he does however use Prodibio and Zeo and has one of the nicest tank I've ever seen.
Cody Ray
New member
If it makes any difference phosphate binds with calcium (sand) so eventually all of the sand (and liverock for that matter) will have phosphates attached to it. This is why high levels of phosphate inhibit stony coral growth, the coral is unable to lay down more calcium due to a layer of phosphate. I dip in pH can cause this sand to dissolve which will release phosphate back into the water. In some cases the sand flat out can no longer bind phosphate and it begins to build up in the system.
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