Temperature distribution in DSB

[pszemol]

Hi All,
I am not able to find anything about it in the archive... maybe it will be something new here...

How does the temperature affect critters in our DSB ?

I am starting new tank with DSB, I put about 4" of dry southdown sand, cover it with water and left for a couple of days with heater and powerhead to start the cycling process... When I detected high ammonia/nitrites content in the water I assumed the sand is dirty and to let the bacteria action to a deeper layers I decided to mix the sand a little bit...

When I used my bare hand to mix the sand I noticed very sharp temperature difference between top and deeper layers of sand.

And now I wonder - what is the sand temperature in the ocean ?
How is the temperature change with the depth of the sand layers ?
Would it be beneficial for our DSB critters if we use heater cables known for years in freshwater planted tanks ?

 

[capncapo]

From what I understand, the sandbed critters live in the top 1/2" or so of the bed which should be relatively close to your tank temperature.

I've never read anything in any publication or in any forum about the use of a heat cable in a DSB and can only guess that one is not needed.

 

[pszemol]

I have seen worms in the sand near the glass in about 2" and more below the surface. The worms just travel in channels deep in the sand layers. So the other critters are below 1/2" for sure. I have previous DSB experience in an experimental 10 gallon tank with 4" of sand. Now I want to do DSB in the display tank and wanted to give this idea a try... I am not sure if anybody tried this before me - you have confirmed you did not find anything written about usage of heater cables in DSB... I did not either.

I wish I could ask Dr. Shimek about this idea... I noticed, sadly, he does not participate in this forum anymore... Anybody knows where do I find him now? Has he moved to a different reef forum or stopped participate completely ?

 

[romunov]

Most animals live in the top inch or so. Some will, of course, wander deeper, especially the larger animals. Some urchins can be found 50cm deep! Some worms can go even deeper.

I suspect there's quite some of temperature gradient. But, if the animals are active and are doing their thing (pumping water), the effect of gradient should be minimal in their top 2-3cm.


Ron has moved here.
His new website is www.ronshimek.com

 

[pszemol]

thanks.