Reducing Sand bed?

[0zone]

I have a 5" sand bed in my 55 gallon tank. I feel it is too much sand and would like to reduce it to 2". I am afraid that if I just scoop it out it will make my water cloudy and affect the well being of my fish and inverts.

What is the best method to reduce the size of my sand bed?

 

[drummereef]

Why do you feel it's too much sand? It's a perfect depth for a DSB. You will likely lose most of it's ability to break down nitrates efficiently if you take some out.

 

[taillonjohn]

drummereef, I've seen several posts from you... you really love your sand bed, more power to you. I've been doing a lot of reading in the advanced forumn lately, where there are currently many debates of DSB vs. BB. the theory seems to make sense, and I've been thinking of trying BB. Do you have any comments on that? Have you ever tried it? whats the reason you love your DSB so? not pushing you, just want to understand both sides as much as possible. tks.

 

[0zone]

I just think aesthetically a 5" bed is not appealing. Here is a picture of my tank.

I will scoop the sand out a little at a time over several weeks, until I get the level I desire. This should reduce the stress on my live stock.

 

[slapshot16]

FYI: You can use a hose to syphon the sand out. I removed my CC from my 55 this way. No storms. Do as part of a water change.

 

[Konadog]

Just as slapshot16 said, remove some of it each time you do a water change. Taking a layer at a time will allow your tank to adjust slowly as you remove the sand. You shouldn't have any problems removing that way.