Recommend: Sand Sifter/Stirrer

[walloutlet]

That's an excellent suggestion. I really haven't thought about it that way either. I wasn't planning on keeping a deep sand bed but the more the time goes by the more I am seeing the added benefit of it. I have a pretty good fuge, sustains lots of life there but that doesn't help too much for feeding a Goby when he has cleaned the sand bed out of everything.

I will add this to my list of things to try...

Originally Posted by naesco

Have you considered adding an inch or two sand to what you already have? That way in a month or two you could add 3 or 4 nassarius snails. The sand bed will become a breeding ground for all kinds of critters the larvae and eggs of which feed your inverts, coral and small fish. You can turbo charge your pod population in your refugium by adding live phytoplankton. Later on you can add a small goby.
The one inch sand bed you have is cosmetic and wont sustain an active population of sand critters IMO.

[ponokareefer]

I'd avoid sandsifting starfish altogether. As others have posted, they eat all the life in the sand bed. Nassarius snails do a decent job. If you really want to see a sand bed get turned over, get a convict blenny. I have 4 in my 125 gallon with a deep sand bed, and they turn the sand over a lot. Take a look at some pictures of the adults. Other than their head, they are very eel like, but without the issues of eating small items, and being escape artists.