onecrzyboi4u
New member
i have gravel in my saltwater tank.. it's hard to keep clean.. i'm wonderin if i could siwitch to sand.. if i do this would i have to start over..
substrate
- Thread starter onecrzyboi4u
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Randall_James
Premium Member
Removing established substrate always poses some risk. I would siphon it out in stages during your regular water changes.
This is no promise that aragonite will stay any cleaner but at least you get rid of the nitrate issues of gravel.
After you get the last of the gravel out you can add your new substrate in phases as well. No matter how you do this it is a pain but sinking the substrate in plastic bags and then opening them after they are on the floor of the tank is the tidiest way I know of.
This is no promise that aragonite will stay any cleaner but at least you get rid of the nitrate issues of gravel.
After you get the last of the gravel out you can add your new substrate in phases as well. No matter how you do this it is a pain but sinking the substrate in plastic bags and then opening them after they are on the floor of the tank is the tidiest way I know of.
onecrzyboi4u
New member
hmm.. is there anyway of keep gravel clean? if anyone has the gravel kind how do you guys keep it clean..?
reefnetworth
Premium Member
i used a plastic container. put the sand in, sink slow. the gravel must go, you have a much better bacteria field with sand. has your tank been up since Aug. 04? this is a need to know, very important .
onecrzyboi4u
New member
my tank has been up for a year and 3 months.. i was thinking about puttin my live rock and two corals in a container .. while i put the sand in the tank.. then after it did it's thing put everything back in.. just i know puttin sand in will cause a sand storm..
reefnetworth
Premium Member
i suggest agag-alive sand. preferably Fiji pink because of color and availabilty. about $20.00 for 20 lbs. if you get LS you may have a small cycle. kinda like when you first set-up but nowhere near as bad. ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, can rise if your water is not established. leave any silt looking stuff in the bottom, millions of bacteria live there. they will help tramendously in reducing new cycle if any.
reefnetworth
Premium Member
turn off powerheads and any water movement will reduce s-storm. leave off till all settles. this may take a couple of hours or 1 day. put rock in afterwards to avoid algae from forming on rocks from the silt.
onecrzyboi4u
New member
ok.. so i can break my tank down and put back ina day.. like nothing happend..
reefnetworth
Premium Member
test water first. how may fish do you have? you could be raising ammonia levels if any is lying in bottom.
Last edited:
onecrzyboi4u
New member
6
reefnetworth
Premium Member
how big is your tank??? if its 55 or up you should be able to minimize dangers.
Randall_James
Premium Member
To answer your question:
Yes you can keep the gravel clean. There are a number of gravel vacs on the market that can either be hooked up to something like a Magnum350 or other canister filter, or you vacuum the gravel at water changes.
The other issue I have seen in marine tanks is coloration of the gravel after time (mainly dark gravel) will pickup calcium and turn light or even encrust with coraline.
I think you are on the right track if you are going to keep the coarse gravel however and keep it clean (nitrates issues)
If you do replace the media, make sure you go with a premium grade (I like CaribSea Reef Grade in the 20lb bags). The cheaper grades have ALOT of debris and powder in them and it makes a total mess of the tank when added. I see this cheaper stuff in 30lb bags normally. The CaribSea "LiveSand" is a great product for grain size and being clean. I do not know how "Live" it really is but the material itself is premium quality. Add a few pounds of good live sand primer (BillsReef, Garf.Org or PremiumAquatics are decent online sources) and you are off an running.
HTH
Randy
Yes you can keep the gravel clean. There are a number of gravel vacs on the market that can either be hooked up to something like a Magnum350 or other canister filter, or you vacuum the gravel at water changes.
The other issue I have seen in marine tanks is coloration of the gravel after time (mainly dark gravel) will pickup calcium and turn light or even encrust with coraline.
I think you are on the right track if you are going to keep the coarse gravel however and keep it clean (nitrates issues)
If you do replace the media, make sure you go with a premium grade (I like CaribSea Reef Grade in the 20lb bags). The cheaper grades have ALOT of debris and powder in them and it makes a total mess of the tank when added. I see this cheaper stuff in 30lb bags normally. The CaribSea "LiveSand" is a great product for grain size and being clean. I do not know how "Live" it really is but the material itself is premium quality. Add a few pounds of good live sand primer (BillsReef, Garf.Org or PremiumAquatics are decent online sources) and you are off an running.
HTH
Randy
