poolshark181
Reefing newb
I read somewhere about having a substrate consist of 50/50 cc ls. right now, i have ~15 pounds of cc in my 28g tank. how and can i add live sand to my setup? i want to keep more inverts, and most of them need ls.
Crushed Coral / Live sand
- Thread starter poolshark181
- Start date
Alexander
Reef enthusiast
There are 20 pound bags of live sand you can get at most LFS. They have water in them so they stay live. If you want to go a diferent way, most LFS will sell you sand out of thier tanks if you need a few cups to get your sand more of a kick start. Either way should do some good for you.
poolshark181
Reefing newb
so....just add the sand right in?
Alexander
Reef enthusiast
has your tank even cycled yet? Live sand is not like the crushed coral you bought in that it doesnt need to be rinsed the same way you are supposed to rinse non live sand. Here is an idea
- fill plastic bags with the sand
- hold the top of the bags closed
- lower the bags into the aquarium and bring them close to the bottom
- tip the bag sideways
- gently, very gently, let the sand flow out
- as you continue to do so and move from one area to the the other, you will soon have live sand everywhere
- you can now even it out, again gently, so the thickness is about even everywhere
- the reason for the gently is to make as little sand dust as possible so you do not cloud up your tank
poolshark181
Reefing newb
so on top of the cc? will it just trickle down or will it stay atop? my tank is fully cycled now. just waiting on my gf to go fish shopping. how much sand do you recommend to cover ~15 lbs of cc?
HAWKS12thMAN
NWKRC THUG!
Wait, wait, wait,,,, Pool you don't need to add any more live sand.Your live rock will make your sand into live sand. The only reason you add live sand is to kick start a BRAND NEW tank. If you want a deeper sand bed just add more sand. Rinse it really well, Even when you think you have rinsed it enough, rinse it again for 5 min.
Alexander
Reef enthusiast
right, I'm still not fully understanding if your tanks cycled or not. you said your tank was clouded but also said you were waiting on your gf to go get fish with you. if you want live sand for it I have even seen crushed coral that is live. you can find it on the internet if you can't in town.
Bifferwine
I am a girl
Ummmm I think people are misunderstanding. He currently has crushed coral, but wants sand instead. If you just add sand to the top, it will just make its way to the bottom of the tank, leaving two layers. It doesn't look good, ask Yote. If you don't have any fish in the tank yet, then it will be relatively easy (relatively...ahem...) to remove as much crushed coral as you can, and just replace it with sand. Your tank will be cloudy for a while afterwards, but this is your best bet, and this is something you won't be able to do once you stock your tank with animals.
yote
In Memoriam
Adding LS over top of CC is a real bad idea.Been there done that.
Your best bet is to just bite the bullet and take the rock out and put it a cooler with some water and a power head.Then use a net or something and scoop the CC out.Once you got it out,then follow Redlines directions for adding the LS.
Your best bet is to just bite the bullet and take the rock out and put it a cooler with some water and a power head.Then use a net or something and scoop the CC out.Once you got it out,then follow Redlines directions for adding the LS.
poolshark181
Reefing newb
ok, i bit the bullet and replaced my cc with caribsea arag alive reef sand. this should be ok for my inverts and gobies right?
Alexander
Reef enthusiast
the arag sand is what i have in my tanks. its great for my nassarius snails. my goby does not sift it though. its still not fine enough for him. you would need a really big goby i think. I really like the sand though. its a great size. not really big and yet its not super easy to kick up like really really fine sand
HAWKS12thMAN
NWKRC THUG!
That should workout just fine and dandy. How hard was it to change out? How did you go about doing it?
poolshark181
Reefing newb
it was fairly easy, i removed about 5g of water first, put all my rocks in it, then filled the rest of the tank up to cover it.
then i scooped out the cc with a container and dumped it in a plastic bag.
i then started placing rocks in, but was completely blind because the water was extremely cloudy from the cc movement.
i placed most my rocks in, then cut a hole in the bag, placed the bag in the water near the bottom, and pretty much layered the bottom.
i then smoothed it out as best i could without seeing it, and then placed ther est of the rocks in, and put in 5g of newly mixed water, and topped off with the water i removed initially.
then i scooped out the cc with a container and dumped it in a plastic bag.
i then started placing rocks in, but was completely blind because the water was extremely cloudy from the cc movement.
i placed most my rocks in, then cut a hole in the bag, placed the bag in the water near the bottom, and pretty much layered the bottom.
i then smoothed it out as best i could without seeing it, and then placed ther est of the rocks in, and put in 5g of newly mixed water, and topped off with the water i removed initially.
Alexander
Reef enthusiast
sounds like a hoot! wish I could do a task like that..... wait no I don't :D
Bifferwine
I am a girl
Good job Pool, I think you'll be glad you did this in the long run.
yote
In Memoriam
You'll like the sand a whole lot better Pool.
DavidA717
Soon to be Reef Expert
yeah i love the sand, and im sure you will too
fishbait
I found Nemo
yeah, you'll like that sand. i have the same brand in my tank. as far as the gobies sifting it. mine diamond watchman doesn't have any problems.
RigoSharon
LIVING REEFS INTERN
WELL DONE...is it aragonite sand what you have??
fishbait
I found Nemo
yes, mine is aragonite
