An observation about sand and fine sand

[hfp75]

Originally Posted by lastlight

no such luck with leopards or melanurus tho. i tried making it work and couldn't bear to watch for more than a day.

My leopard and melanurus are doing fine the melanurus is definitely in charge.... The first day was brutal.... The poor leopard was definitely the looser of a few strikes..... The leopard will stay out of the way of the melanurus now... My tank is a 90g with a lot of rock...

[lastlight]

Originally Posted by hfp75

My leopard and melanurus are doing fine the melanurus is definitely in charge.... The first day was brutal.... The poor leopard was definitely the looser of a few strikes..... The leopard will stay out of the way of the melanurus now... My tank is a 90g with a lot of rock...

I'm referring to the fact that these fish became incredibly stressed trying to bury themselves under sand that wasn't there. Besides the fact that I much prefer the look of sand, I needed it for my fish.

[Myka]

Originally Posted by lastlight

no such luck with leopards or melanurus tho. i tried making it work and couldn't bear to watch for more than a day.

I had a Grey Head Wrasse (very similar to Melanurus) in my 90 with bare bottom. He slept at the base of the rocks too - he was in there for 2 years or so. I don't know what's so hard to watch?

[lastlight]

Originally Posted by Myka

I had a Grey Head Wrasse (very similar to Melanurus) in my 90 with bare bottom. He slept at the base of the rocks too - he was in there for 2 years or so. I don't know what's so hard to watch?

On two separate occasions I tried to go bb. Both my leopard wrasses and melanarus were damaging themselves trying to bury themselves in nothing. They're meant to sleep in the sand but I did try going without it. I didnt like watching them so stressed.

[sumpfinfishe]

I also wanted to mention Albert that I know there are benefits to going/starting BB, and there are many beautiful BB tanks in this hobby, so it simply boils down to personal preference. I do believe however that most algae problems can be avoided, whether it be closer monitoring, consistent water changes, getting overwhelmed with fancy chemicals or relying on too many technical products to list a few.
Taking two steps backward to figure out why something is wrong is better than taking one step forward in the wrong direction.

[Reef Pilot]

Sorry if it has been said already, but easiest way to keep your sand clean is with an orange spot sleeper goby. They are tireless workers, (and interesting to watch, too) and their constant sand sifting ensures that any detritus is taken away by the water column and out through your overflows.

I lost mine a few months ago (they will find the smallest hole in your tank top) and tried going without for now (I wanted to try some bottom LPS corals). So I got a tiger tail cuc instead. However, he spends most of his time in the rocks and has failed to keep the algae from starting up on my sand. I am planning to get another goby, as I have had about enough of this algae.

[Aquattro]

If you have an algae problem, and if it won't go away, and you may have had high PO4 levels and you have sand, it's then plausible that said sand is binding the suspected PO4 within it's porous structure AND therefore, removing and/or replacing said sand "could" alleviate or eliminate the original problem of algae in a tank.
That about it, Albert?

Gobies won't clean it, sifters won't sift it, chemicals may leach it back out, but a quick way to fix is to remove. As an option. If you wanted to fix it quickly. It may or may not appeal to your aesthetic sensibilities, but can and often does fix a particular problem.

Mental note, install breathalyser on Submit button

[Samw]

Originally Posted by Aquattro

If you have an algae problem, and if it won't go away, and you may have had high PO4 levels and you have sand, it's then plausible that said sand is binding the suspected PO4 within it's porous structure AND therefore, removing and/or replacing said sand "could" alleviate or eliminate the original problem of algae in a tank.
That about it, Albert?

Gobies won't clean it, sifters won't sift it, chemicals may leach it back out, but a quick way to fix is to remove. As an option. If you wanted to fix it quickly. It may or may not appeal to your aesthetic sensibilities, but can and often does fix a particular problem.

Mental note, install breathalyser on Submit button

Yup, sometimes replacing the sand can be quicker than spending endless time trying to figure out what the problem is and still not find it when the simplest cause is right there in the sand. If it works great, if not, move on. No need to start an argument whether or not the sand is causing the problem in someone else's tank.

Obviously, replacing the sand wouldn't be the first option until everything else has been looked at.

[Reef Pilot]

Well, for me it is pretty simple:
Goby = no algae on sand
No Goby = algae on sand

And my P04 is consistently zero or near zero (Hanna checker). But yes, am sure sand traps P04. That's what the Goby is for. He stirs it up and it is taken away by the water column. Like I said, that is the easiest solution (instead of changing or frequently vacuuming your sand).

[Aquattro]

I like sand...