Deep Sand Bed

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beef1582

New member
I'm setting up my 75 gal w/ sump refugium and I plan to build a reef. I've read some things about deep sand beds and am curious if that's a good route to go. I've heard it's great for filtration, but I know it will limit the types of fish I can buy if I want to keep the beneficial micro and macro life in the sand doing what it should be. For instance, I've read that I can't have Gobies if I want to keep the deep sand bed in top shape because they sift the sand for food.

I have a 3.5" sand bed in my refugium, but am really trying to decide if I want one in the tank too. Looking for pros and cons.

thanks!
 
Even shallow sand beds can consume nitrates. Unless you have an army of sand disturbing animals, you will still have undistirbed areas for dentrification in the display tank. Go with a deep sand if the idea interests you.
 
This is "hot' topic. There are great tanks with DSB and without it. So having DSB as part of your tank filtration is not a must thing to have. So I would based my decision on what type of animals you are going to keep. Some need sand to borrow into or sift through it. Also for some people aesthetically DSB isn't looking good and takes too much space. You mentioned you have sand in your sump - it's a good solution called RDSB. You can keep it in your sump and have thin layer of sand in your display to make it look good.
GL!
 
Personal experience, I've encountered, and heard of more troubles from people with deep sand bed than those with shallow or no sand.
 
I researched this for sometime when setting up my tank and found so many pros and cons of both that I did what danil said to do, base your decision on the type of animals you plan to keep. Me I knew I wanted a jaw-fish so a deep sand bed was a requirement, but in the end I went and mixed it up, i made random areas deep, random shallow ranging from .5"-6". Once i set up the tank the power heads kinda just move the sand to its liking. Its kind of nice since the changing flow makes the the sand shift throughout the day ect. Overall I'm happy with it and inhabitants seem to be happy over the past 8 months.
 
I have tried deep sand beds with a "plenum". Basically an under-gravel filter platform with screen over it at the bottom of the sand bed. This keeps critters from disturbing the space below the filter where anaerobic bacteria live. It seemed to work.
 
Personally, I like a remote DSB set up in a bucket. The idea came from Anthony Calfo and is basically a 5g bucket with an inlet and outlet, high flow across the sand to keep detritus from settling, and just bacteria and sand. By being in a bucket it doesn't get disturbed and is kept in the dark to prevent algae growth. Being in a bucket also means you can remove it from the system if it starts causing more problems than it solves. The main point of it is to reduce nitrates and it did that in my system from 40ppm that water changes couldn't touch to 0 ppm in about 3 months .

Just another idea to consider.
 
I'm nonbinding any information on how much live rock you need in a system with a DSB. I know the rock is a very vital part of filtration, but does anyone know how much there should be?
 
I think "more is better" as it is the amount of surface area and deep pores where anaerobic bacteria live that makes it function as a filter. Ultimately you have to base it on aesthetics as a tank full of rock is not that fun to look at.
 
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