Bare bottoms!!!

[Dre59]

This is my 1st time doing BB and not sure if I'm digging the concept.. Yes, way easy to keep clean and food/detritus have no chance of hiding under rocks.. But the look is killing my eyes :uhoh3:

I know the sand acts as a bio filter but if you have enough live rock and proper mechanical filtration( skimmer and filter socks) will this be enough?

How many have changed back to sand?

Also been fighting NO3 to go 0 but remain under 5ppm (tested with Salifert). Been doing weekly water changes and not sure what to do :sad2:

 

[tatuaje08]

Me.

 

[brian cummings]

my seahorse tank originally had about 3 inches of sand in it, was set up for about 18 months, decided to bare bottom it, and didn't do it all at once, removed sand over a period of like two or three weeks, and I still wound up getting a sort of "mini cycle" that took several months to die down. even though now that it's all stable, I am considering going back to sand, albeit very shallow...

 

[dotcommer]

My 90 Gallon is a bare bottom and it is very easy to suck out all the detritus. It started out as just a temporary tank while I was doing my 300 Gallon build, but now has turned into a lot more. I have a lot of live rock, and the bare bottom isn't really scene.

 

[justnmatt79]

Most tanks have such shallow sand beds, and when cleaned they stir it so much that most of the biological filtration properties are kind of voided out. Sand is definitely a "pros and cons" thing.

Imo, I couldn't do a barebottom tank for the reason you stated: looks. I do understand it would be easy to keep detritus cleaned out, but I still would rather vacuum sand. To me, my tank is set up to look good (at least as good as I can get it to look!) and I think barebottom would detract from that.

But, what I like and what others like are always different, and what works for me may not work for everyone else, so it is up to the individual to decide what works for them. That's how this hobby rolls.

 

[zrogst]

Like Justnmatt79 said, unless you have a DSB a 'normal' sandbed is just for aesthetics and is a requirement for a few fish/invert species that use it.

Personally, I really like the look of BB tanks, especially with minimal scapes. Another option is starboard, like the below tank:

 

[tcamos]

The starboard eventually gets covered with algae, coralline, and sometimes sponges to the point where I think it ends up looking bad.

I keep a 2" sand bed that ends up being deeper in some places when the pistol shrimp gets done with it.

Like mentioned above the aesthetics of BB are not for me. It does make detritus easy to remove but it also means that in between removals you see the detritus. Also, I've never had problems with sand.

I see both sides in terms of maintenance so when people go BB I just say that's for them but I don't like it.

 

[Frick]

I am running my third Bare Bottom reef, a 75 gallon. There is another 75 below for a sump. Half of that tank has been divided into a deep sand bed with a 1" plenum. I had is filled with live rock but took it out because it was just too dirty to deal with in that system. I'll probably turn that sump area into a refugium for now.

As for the rock work in a display I try too keep it minimum so it is easier to vacuum up the debris. I don't mind the look but I don't like it when there are piles of detritus on the bottom either. Which motivates me to do water changes.

So i guess to each their own.

 

[dotcommer]

I love the look of beautiful white sand and have plans for it on my 300 Gallon Build. Still trying to decide on how small of a grain I am going with.

 

[zrogst]

so hard keeping beautiful white sand white lol. I'd go with as big of a grain as you feel you can afford, will give you more wiggle room with flow and be easier to vacuum if you're into that. Or you could get oolite and a conch, whatever. lol.

 

[Dre59]

Im still going to give a try until I go crazy.... But I think next will be black sand as I seen a tank this way, which the corals POP more

 

[Frick]

Nothing beats the unicorn puke tho. LOL

 

[zibba]

I love the look of beautiful white sand and have plans for it on my 300 Gallon Build. Still trying to decide on how small of a grain I am going with.

so hard keeping beautiful white sand white lol. I'd go with as big of a grain as you feel you can afford, will give you more wiggle room with flow and be easier to vacuum if you're into that. Or you could get oolite and a conch, whatever. lol.

I agree. Take a look at Tropic Eden ReefFlakes -- I think it's in the 2mm size. I used Caribsea special grade, which is pretty decent and a lot of people use it, but I was still getting a large bare area at the front of my tank. I just added Caribsea crushed coral (after rinsing it 100x) to that area and it looks significantly better. I had hemmed-and-hawed over whether to leave that area BB and just let the coraline encrust (which it did) or to allow a monti or some other coral to encrust over it. I thought sand looked the most natural so went that route. I wouldn't use crushed coral for a whole tank, especially if you keep fish that live or play in the sand.

 

[Frick]

I think the choice of a BB will ultimately rely on to what degree you would like the aquarium to be a "display tank". Here are a few shot of mine. but the tank has a home made stand and canopy and frags all over the bottom. Plus being in my laundry room does really shout Tank of the Month. LOL

The Coralline is getting everywhere, so it's neat looking until it blocks your view.

 

[Doogy]

Like everyone is saying, it's what you want aesthetically. I personally love the look of a deep sand bed and think it is very important to have one. I went with caribseas Bahama Oolite for its small grain size. But if you're trying to decide between BB and SB, I would def say DSB. it's all opinion and what you want. Do your research on DSBs

 

[tatuaje08]

I'm kinda odd because I like very minimal sand. Maybe 1/2" or less.

 

[Dre59]

Like everyone is saying, it's what you want aesthetically. I personally love the look of a deep sand bed and think it is very important to have one. I went with caribseas Bahama Oolite for its small grain size. But if you're trying to decide between BB and SB, I would def say DSB. it's all opinion and what you want. Do your research on DSBs

Already done a plenum DSB and dont want to try that again as sand is not cheap... Time well tell if I get use to BB.. But the SB next time will be around 2" at most

 

[Dre59]

I agree. Take a look at Tropic Eden ReefFlakes -- I think it's in the 2mm size. I used Caribsea special grade, which is pretty decent and a lot of people use it, but I was still getting a large bare area at the front of my tank. I just added Caribsea crushed coral (after rinsing it 100x) to that area and it looks significantly better. I had hemmed-and-hawed over whether to leave that area BB and just let the coraline encrust (which it did) or to allow a monti or some other coral to encrust over it. I thought sand looked the most natural so went that route. I wouldn't use crushed coral for a whole tank, especially if you keep fish that live or play in the sand.

I agree that Tropic Eden ReefFlakes is the best sand to get. Used on a 45gal tall and couldn't be happier

 

[vincent92]

I love bbs. Especially when the bottoms encrusts with coraline algae ! It brings a huge amount of color to the aquarium!

 

[vincent92]

Just avoid letting it grow on the glass.. maybe some srcappings. Seeing it when it completely covers the bottom just blows me away. Nothing more beautiful than. Different bright colors of coraline all over! Just try to avoid green glass algae from growing by not over feeding, plenty of water changes, and not an excrusiating amount of light !