Is it worth the work

[JJHHHJTH]

Hello, I am new to the Reef tank hobby and I think I have already my a big mistake. I have a 46 gallon tank and I used crushed coral as my base instead of sand. I have 50 pounds of Fiji live rock and have been cycling the tank for three weeks. Should I take all the rock out and replace the base with sand ?????
Thanks in advance.

 

[rustybucket145]

sorry to say, but yes, you should remove most of the Crushed coral and top it off with sand. You can leave a shallow layer of the CC in the tank and just mix it up with the sand.

Crushed coral is high maintenance and over time will cause your nitrates to absolutely skyrocket. So either you deal with the problem now, before it really is a problem or you deal with a BIG problem later down the road.

 

[ralphie16]

crushed coral can lead to problems as I have read many people claim, afterwards they remove it and put in sand. it has worked for others though. depends on what you want to accomplish.

for the most part though, it traps debris and i recommend you switch it out with sand or go barebottom (your choice, pros and cons to each)

 

[JJHHHJTH]

Thank you. I will begin the process tonight.

 

[rustybucket145]

Before you start you really should read up a little on the Deep Sand Bed vs. the Shallow Sand Bed. I personally prefer Deep 4"+/- b/c of it's nitrate processing ability and b/c it pretty much takes care of itself. Self Cleaning so you will NEVER have to siphon your sand.

 

[JJHHHJTH]

OK, I will read up on it, Thanks

 

[six.line]

By the way...

[welcome]