Deep Sand Bed

[Brian77]

I'm starting up a new 30 gallon high tank and I decided to go with a deep sand bed (about 4") but I'm starting to have doubts whether this is a good idea in a seahorse tank.

I currently have a 20 gallon xh and Nitrates have been my biggest problem. I decided to go with the dsb to help fight the Nitrates, but I will also be using some Macro in the tank. I thought it would be the perfect solution for a seahorse tank, yet after researching, I haven't found any seahorse keepers using a DSB. Why is that?

-Brian

 

[namxas]

most keepers want to give the SH the maximum vertical room and a 4" DSB takes up a good amount of that. i know a few peeps who run remote DSB's on SH setups, but nobody who runs them in their DT.

to be honest, i'm not a fan of DSB's for any of my setups, but i can't say enuff good things about live macro, esp. in a SH DT.

 

[ChadTheSpike]

I read your post this morning and have been thinking on and off about it all day...
In the end I agree with namxas about vertical distance and appearence, SHs make use of all the vertical space you give them and not everyone likes the look of 6" of sand in a DT.
But in addition, I would add that DSBs take a certain amount of work to maintain in terms of what you should or can keep in them and making sure that necessary species are thriving. Essentially a DSB is a micro habitat within our closed system that requires much of the same attention other aspects of the system take. I personally prefer to have that in a remote area of my system so I dont have to worry about it in the DT.

 

[Brian77]

I understand that seahorses prefer vertical space, but from what I'm seeing the difference between a ssb and a dsb is about 2". To me giving up 2" would be worth not having to struggle with Nitrates as I have been. Are there other reasons people aren't using them?

On my 20 gallon tank I had used a crushed coral bed at the suggestion of my lfs, and I have regretted it ever since. Now I'm worried I'm going to be in the same situation with my new tank... :sad2:

So if I decide to go with a ssb instead, what depth, 1", 2".

 

[Jaguar]

I've always run DSB's in my seahorses DT. It depends on the tank you have. I have always had 25"+ vertical tanks. I am currently housing Erectus with 20" of vertical swim space and 5 1/2" DSB. I love jawfish, and seagrass, and both require DSB's. I still do weekly WC of 25% though. It is always benefitical to keep your nitrates down. If you decide against it, the macroalgae is definitely the proper route to go.

 

[Brian77]

Well I'm still trying to decide what to do...

Currently I do not have a protein skimmer and some of the posts I've been reading regarding dsb's are stating that a protein skimmer is required. I don't really understand why, but maybe somebody here knows?

 

[Octoshark]

There are pros and cons to both sides. You need the anaerobic environment of a deep sand bed, but then again if your sand bed is too deep then it can house a bunch of waste within it and if that is released it can cause a problem. Macro is great for nitrate control, but research macro before choosing a species as there are some you may want to avoid. There are countless horror stories about caulerpa becoming invasive.

Also, about sand beds, the particle size also plays a role in how deep your sand should be. If you have very small particles of sand then you will want to lean on the shallower side, but if you have larger particles then you may want to lean on the deeper side.