Regretting buying oolite fine sand ....help

[Zoa_Reef]

So after jumping back in the hobby I put 2 bags of oolite sand in my 45g Cobalt aio. Tank has been up and running about about a month ago. Whenever I do a water change, move rocks etc my tank turns into a white fog for about 2 days. I have 2 filters socks, running seagel and purigen. I will fire up the Skimmer in a week or two. Will this sand get any better? What's been your experience with it?

 

[smatter]

So the cloudiness only happens when you move rocks around or disturb the sand bed in some way, not from the flow in your tank? Usually oolite settles down once biofilms develop and the bed becomes enlivened. Oolite is best left undisturbed.

 

[billdogg]

So the cloudiness only happens when you move rocks around or disturb the sand bed in some way, not from the flow in your tank? Usually oolite settles down once biofilms develop and the bed becomes enlivened. Oolite is best left undisturbed.

^^^This^^^

I'm also going to guess that it wasn't rinsed well enough. If you have access to a diatom filter or even a canister stuffed with pillow stuffing you can clear up the tank in short order.

Get a CUC to take care of the sand for you and stop moving the rocks!

 

[jd371]

Mine does the same when I stir up the sand but the cloudiness goes away in a few hours. I rarely stir it up though because the two Conch snails and Rainford goby keep it clean.

75g with Oolite

 

[travis32]

My OOlite does the same. Some of it stays suspended in the water column. My Dragon wrasse likes to dig holes in the sound. He creates giant clouds of sand into the water column. This will make the water hazy for a few days. I need a roller mat to see about clarifying the water, but the fish does it almost daily so, I might just be transporting the sand into my roller mat... Expensive way to remove sand! I'm hoping it settles down at some point... The wrasse, or the sand moving into the water column.

The stinker puts his tail in the sand and wiggles as fast as he can, then turns around to see if he found any buried treasures, then digs some more. Emits puffs of sand particles into the water column. The next day I'll find a pile of shells that he found around the tank all piled up in one spot.... His little treasure pile. I need to get some large chunks of shrimp and bury it in the sand for him to find. LOL. (Probably not best for the tank's health.... )

 

[Zoa_Reef]

No I didn't rinse the sand at all. Looking back now I guess I should have. Thnks

 

[Zoa_Reef]

My OOlite does the same. Some of it stays suspended in the water column. My Dragon wrasse likes to dig holes in the sound. He creates giant clouds of sand into the water column. This will make the water hazy for a few days. I need a roller mat to see about clarifying the water, but the fish does it almost daily so, I might just be transporting the sand into my roller mat... Expensive way to remove sand! I'm hoping it settles down at some point... The wrasse, or the sand moving into the water column.

The stinker puts his tail in the sand and wiggles as fast as he can, then turns around to see if he found any buried treasures, then digs some more. Emits puffs of sand particles into the water column. The next day I'll find a pile of shells that he found around the tank all piled up in one spot.... His little treasure pile. I need to get some large chunks of shrimp and bury it in the sand for him to find. LOL. (Probably not best for the tank's health.... )

I definitely won't buy that wrasse. Lol. Good luck

 

[travis32]

Not a recommended fish, he's supposed to get to 10-12 inches. If he's that big, he could possibly move some small to medium sized support rocks... Worse than an engineer goby.

 

[jd371]

My OOlite does the same. Some of it stays suspended in the water column. My Dragon wrasse likes to dig holes in the sound. He creates giant clouds of sand into the water column. This will make the water hazy for a few days. I need a roller mat to see about clarifying the water, but the fish does it almost daily so, I might just be transporting the sand into my roller mat... Expensive way to remove sand! I'm hoping it settles down at some point... The wrasse, or the sand moving into the water column.

The stinker puts his tail in the sand and wiggles as fast as he can, then turns around to see if he found any buried treasures, then digs some more. Emits puffs of sand particles into the water column. The next day I'll find a pile of shells that he found around the tank all piled up in one spot.... His little treasure pile. I need to get some large chunks of shrimp and bury it in the sand for him to find. LOL. (Probably not best for the tank's health.... )

I don't have that problem with my Melanurus, just a poof a sand when he buries into it for the night and when he comes out in the morning. Depending on where he sleeps I might have to blow some sand off any coral that's nearby.

 

[ca1ore]

Mostly the problem is because you did not rinse it!! It is truly amazing how much crud comes out of new dry sand. Even if you had, the really fine stuff ends up everywhere. Next time, use the refloor special grade. It's fine enough for sand active animals but not so fine that it makes a mess. Still needs to be rinsed though.

 

[ThRoewer]

Mostly the problem is because you did not rinse it!! It is truly amazing how much crud comes out of new dry sand. Even if you had, the really fine stuff ends up everywhere. Next time, use the refloor special grade. It's fine enough for sand active animals but not so fine that it makes a mess. Still needs to be rinsed though.

I wonder how polluted with garbage the oceans and beaches must be these days...
I washed a bag of course coral gravel and was surprised how much garbage came out of it, especially plastic shreds. And one piece of the "gravel" seemed to be a ceramic fragment, like it was once a piece of a sink or a toilet bowl. One side had still the glaze completely intact...