Best way to clean my sand?

fishaman

New member
My sand is covered in a brownish colored film that is driving me crazy. I just ordered a cleanup crew consisting of Turbo Snails (mexican and astrae), Cerith Snails, Nassarius Snail, Emerald Crabs and Blueleg Hermits. I was also told that brittle star fish work well. Will this do the trick?

I was also going to stir the water and do a 25% water change. Any other ideas?
 
How old is the tank?....it sounds like diatom algae, which is common during the cycle process and should clear up once the cycle is complete.

Do you have flow in the tank?
 
The tank has been running empty for 6 months. I just added 2 damsels (for testing purposes) last month.

Yes. I have 4 power heads, so plenty of water movement. I wonder if it's b/c I'm using tap water and not RO/DI?
 
Yeah, the tap water is most likely playing a big part in it. I would seriously consider investing in one, it really does make a huge difference. It's money well spent and is a must if you ever want to keep corals.
 
No problem, glad I was able to help!

This hobby is a money pit in the beginning, but if you buy everything you need when first starting out, you'll save lots of money in the future and realize it was well worth it.
 
I started a 10 gal. with tap water and got the same results. Sand started turning brown. Three weeks later I did my first water change with RO water and the sand has been white since April 2008. RO only worked for me, but I have no corals.
 
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