Deep sand bed sifter?

[pmaloy]

Right now I have my tank, but nothing in it yet - I'm planning on what to put in it. I'd like to have a deep sand bed for the nitrite->nitrate converting bacteria, but at the same time I don't want to nuke my tank if I disturb the sand too much. That got me to thinking, what if I got an animal that moves the sand around (like a sand sifting starfish, or sea cucumber)? I'm nervous about the sea cucumber because when it dies it'll nuke the tank. I'm nervous about the starfish because I don't want it to eat all the copepods in the sand because I'd like to get a mandarin down the line. So, any ideas of something that will move the deep sand bed around, but only eats dead things? Alternatively, are my understandings of the starfish and sea cucumber off?

Also, it's a 225 gallon tank.

 

[ReefKeep66]

I'm thinking about getting a diamond goby for my 75g 2"+ sand bed.

 

[fermentedhiker]

Stay away from the sand sifting starfish as it'll decimate the microfauna in the sand bed. The cuke(like a tiger tail) would be good, but if you want to avoid them a few Fighting Conch's might work for you.

 

[toothybugs]

I'm planning a bucketful of Nassarius when I set up my 220.

 

[downbeach]

I would activate it with this, and in a couple month's add this. I would also add a couple conch's, along with some nassarius and cerith snails for the sand bed. I would avoid any type of "sand sifting" animals that feed on the microfauna in the sand bed, i.e. starfish, gobies, etc.

 

[tzylak]

Pmaloy, you don't need DSB for the ammonia-to-nitrite-to-intrate conversion. -That's done by bacteria in live rock and some live sand.
DSB's intent is to convert nitrate to inert gases that evaporate out of the water. For that, you need to create an oxygen-free zone in the deep sections of the DSB and ensure that no critter disturbs (lets oxygen in) that zone.
Do yourself a favor and consider reading up on DSB (many articles and papers) to know your destination. -I am still trying to separate myths from facts. . . Good luck.

 

[pmaloy]

You're right tzylak, about the nitrate->gas conversion. I mis-spoke in my original post. I have read quite a bit about it, but as I'm sure you've found too, there's a ton of conflicting info out there!

 

[cloak]

You might want to mix up the grain sizes when your adding your DSB. As time goes by the heavier stuff will rise to the top while the finer stuff will sink, (or vice versa) thus keeping your sand bed in constant motion. The micro fauna within the sand bed will just perpetuate this motion, which is a good thing IME. Here's a diagram just as an example. GL.