Bare Bottom pros or cons?

[barclayrl]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11229391#post11229391 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by King-Kong
I'm not sure what that means...

Someone made a claim of fact that skimmers *only* remove organic matter after it has decomposed, and they are incapable of pulling out anything larger. I stated an observable fact otherwise. It's not speculation.. cause I didnt put that shrimp molt in my skimmer's cup.

I agree with KONG, my H&S has no strainer, I pull out pods, and I actually pulled out half of my dead cleaner shrip (His head and upper body), it is direclty fed by my overflow and my overflow has over 1/8 inch slots in it so whatever makes is through them is fair game to the skimmer. I also pull out uneaten flakes all the time as well, way before they breakdown into the water..

 

[dkh0331]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11235678#post11235678 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Flatlander
In your opinion. :lol:

X2

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.




My bottom is bare and I am topless.

 

[hagakure]

Well, not butt ugly. I exagerated a little. You BBers don't seem to have a problem with KK doing it.

Seriously. Lots of BB tanks look nice, but you take any BB tank from a TOTM down to a newbie's like me, add sand to it, and it's brighter, more natural, and more attractive. No other way to put it.

If the 7 year itch is on the side of BB, then kudos to those that aren't followers.

 

[Thales]

I run a Faux Sand Bed - all the aesthetics of a SB with all the benefits of BB.
I also have about 4-5 cups of sand in the tank. It shifts around from time to time, stopping coralline from covering the entire bottom, and giving a home for burrowing snails and worms while reflecting light up.

I am not convinced about the more natural look of DSB's. I think its more that people are used to seeing tanks with a sand bottom - which is fine, but I don't think it really look more natural. Almost all of the reefs I have seen don't have sand anywhere near the corals, which grow up and away from the sandy bottom. Here is a pic from PNG, no sand in sight :

 

[mitchellmoto]

Please
If you notice everyone else is trying to get their points across but are being respectful.

Then you come in with your completely unwelcome comment.
Your comment doesn't help the thread at all and is completely useless. No one cares that you think a barebottom tank is butt Ugly.

You don't realy post much to support the site which in turns helps the hobby. And if I had to guess all 15 of your post are more than likely no better.

Why is it someone always has to be ignorant and say things to purposefully rock to boat.

Also another thing I notice is when this topic comes up, this site or others, the sand tank folks are so agressive.
Most BB folks never say thing like DSB never work and sand is satan. They just state that this is what works for them

 

[mikeatjac]

hagakure
You have not said anything that is useful. If you can not say something constructive then ..............

 

[hagakure]

I purposely tried to hit a nerve, just to see your reactions. It's interesting for you to suggest that my opinion or comment holds little bearing because of my low post count. Or is it because I favor SBs.

We're still on equal planes. I haven't posted any more supporting facts that favor SBs than any BBers here, so what's the big deal. From all the searches I've done on the subject, two things are clear. One, most find BB ugly. Two, it's more of a bandwagon concept, as opposed to any real benefit other than being able to tremendously increase flow.

Is it necessary? Of course not.

 

[tecoral]

Re: Bare Bottom pros or cons?

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11222901#post11222901 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by scunfcu
I will be settting up 75 gallon sps tank, plan on using two Koralia 3s. Been reading about bare bottom tanks. Any opinions and feedback?

Back to your original question, Ive been BB for about a year now with a 10''RDSB in a sump section, used to have a strictly shallow SB (2'').

Ive noticed a couple things with the switch Im happier with. One is that I seem to need a smaller cleanup crew and can accomplish it almost exclusivly with snails although I do have a dozen hermits just for anything that dies I might not notice. In the past making sure I had enough critters to keep a sandbed healthy required yearly or sooner restocking of crittlers. I have found that alot of flow can keep the tank much cleaner and the couple small areas that build detritus can easily be sucked out during waterchanges and there is virtually no place except directly under the rocks that can build, even then a powerhead sweep blows it out for the skimmer. Yes my skimmer (a simple G-2) will suck in anything that gets too close to the intake, Collonista snails and pods seem to regularly make it to the cup.
I have starboard and it does get covered with coralline easily but sometimes also comes up in plates, the look doesnt bother me much although I do like the look of sand. The beautiful thing about BB is that if you really dont like it you can add sand after, easier than taking it out.
Im starting to move into SPS a little and the only thing I can tell for sure is that buffering is a bit more difficult with PH hovering around 8-8.1 which is still fine in my book. The RDSB Im very happy with and originally went with Calfo's unlit high flow teachings but for PH stability decided to reverse light it and run it as a fuge. It still works great and Im especially happy I can take it offline without disturbing the display. I do however run a filter sock on the input to keep the larger stuff from the overflow from making it to the RDSB.
Anyway, good luck with your choice. Im a firm believer there is no right or wrong and a blend of the 2 styles has worked great for me.

 

[JC VT]

I purposely tried to hit a nerve, just to see your reactions.

Cool guy :lol:

From all the searches I've done on the subject, two things are clear. One, most find BB ugly. Two, it's more of a bandwagon concept, as opposed to any real benefit other than being able to tremendously increase flow.

Most people find BB beautiful.

Considering that flow is so important to reef tanks, that seems like quite an advantage.

 

[uhuru]

edit: I think BB tanks are beautiful

 

[Thales]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11236846#post11236846 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by hagakure

From all the searches I've done on the subject, two things are clear. One, most find BB ugly. Two, it's more of a bandwagon concept, as opposed to any real benefit other than being able to tremendously increase flow.

Some find BB ugly, some find DSB ugly. It is generalizations like 'most' that tend to help drag these discussions down.

There are more benefits to BB other than to increase flow, and the benefits of that increased flow are more than just making sps happier. I am not sure if you are really interested in discussion, your being interested in trying to hit a nerve and all, so I won't bother with more detail right now.

 

[lecher]

I don't see why everyone gets their feathers so ruffled just b/c he said he thought bb was ugly. Its his opinion. It has been proven that you can have a very successful tank with either method. It's a matter of personal preference. If your happy with it, so what anybody else thinks.

 

[ronald7410]

AND THE DEBATE BEGINS!

 

[hagakure]

I didn't intend to ruffle feathers in the beginning, but listening to BBers exude authoritatively about how the method fixed all their woes, then with tongue in cheek, say that sand beds also work, too, gets tiring.

Again, this isn't really for me. I simply do not succumb to trends. If many of you feel a need to have 100X turnover rate in an SPS tank, so be it. Is it necessary, of course not.

That's a very interesting take, Thales, regarding sand not being near reefs. I suppose if I took a picture of the first few feet of every reef patch during my dives, I wouldn't see sand, either. However, this is really just selective reasoning.

I do suppose that a natural looking tank is a moot point, here. So many tanks are **** blue that they look more like black light displays than a reef flat. I don't know whether I should pass the bong or put on a sequined dress.

 

[Thales]

Damn. I did the thing I said brought down the conversation. I generalized.

I should have said many or most. There are some that grow on the fringe, and there are some that grow outright on sand. However, most of them are up and away from the sand, and the ones that aren't look like your pictures: beat up and abraded.

 

[dhnguyen]

Most SPS corals in nature are also brown too

 

[Big E]

Yea, thats good for about a month until the coriline algae takes over.

Pin cushion urchins will keep the bottom clean of coralline. Tuxedos are the most popular, but there's numerous choices & they are very colorful & interesting. Two will keep coralline at bay in a 180g tank.

Drawbacks of the urchins.........make sure all your corals are fastened well or they'll be snagged on the urchins back or knocked over.

As far a reflection, I get more from my BB bottom than I ever did from a sandbed & mine is a light tan color. It's actually the protective paper that is on acrylic tanks when you buy them. I never took the bottom sheet off. It looks white to the eye & is very bright. I get color & growth from the reflection on the underside of colonies facing the tank floor.

 

[kirstenk]

One thing I noticed while reading this thread that I feel needs mentioning. A BB tank is just that, BB. There is no remote DSB in a BB System. If there is, then you are not running a BB tank, you are running a BB display.

 

[glassbox-design]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11236142#post11236142 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Thales


I am not convinced about the more natural look of DSB's. I think its more that people are used to seeing tanks with a sand bottom - which is fine, but I don't think it really look more natural. Almost all of the reefs I have seen don't have sand anywhere near the corals, which grow up and away from the sandy bottom. Here is a pic from PNG, no sand in sight :

we couldnt agree more. it depends on the type of reef you want to keep. by keeping the bottom glass perfectly clean it gives the illusion that the rocks are growing out of the glass. a live photograph simmilar to the one thales posted.