Hey guys I have been thinking about putting in a sand substrate in my 12 gallon tank, except I'm not sure how to go about cleaning it. Anyone have any advice? Thanks!
cleaning sand substrate
- Thread starter PSUsam11
- Start date
You take a gravel vac (NOT the mechanical ones!!!) and swish it around over the sand. The junk rests on top so you just have to stir things up a bit for all of it to get sucked up. 
Bottom-dwelling loaches, darters, catfish, etc.. Best things for cleaning sand is a fish that'll kick it all into the filter for you. :rofl:
Otherwise the swish method works. Doesn't even need to be a gravel vac. An type of hose that you'd use to drain water from the tank will do.
If you have powerheads in the tank you can also direct them towards the area you want cleaned while you siphon. It does take some practice to avoid causing a sand-storm though.
Of course it'll all depend on the setup. I gravitate towards bottom-dwelling fish/inverts, so personally I've never actually had to clean my sand. The sponges that the water filters through on the other hand will turn water into coffee when they are cleaned.
Otherwise the swish method works. Doesn't even need to be a gravel vac. An type of hose that you'd use to drain water from the tank will do.
If you have powerheads in the tank you can also direct them towards the area you want cleaned while you siphon. It does take some practice to avoid causing a sand-storm though.
Of course it'll all depend on the setup. I gravitate towards bottom-dwelling fish/inverts, so personally I've never actually had to clean my sand. The sponges that the water filters through on the other hand will turn water into coffee when they are cleaned.
The most important thing, ime, is to get the right kind of sand. I've tried several different types, and now go with nothing but silica pool filter sand. It's very clean, with very little dust/grit, and requires little or no rinsing.
But more importantly it's much denser, and doesn't generally get siphoned out with vacuuming. You can vac right down to the sand base, and while some sand will get taken up into the vac tube by only an inch ot two, it will then tumble right back down into the tank.
Save yourself a lot of frustration - get real PFS, sold at a pool supply store. (Don't buy 'play sand' at any big box store !)
And it's easy to keep fresh and clean - just stir it up well with each w/c & vac and then, every 4-6 months (as it will eventually dirty up), siphon out about 10-15% of the top layer of sand using 1/2" plastic tubing, and replace what you've drawn out, with new sand. Keeps it looking like new. Try it - you'll see.
But more importantly it's much denser, and doesn't generally get siphoned out with vacuuming. You can vac right down to the sand base, and while some sand will get taken up into the vac tube by only an inch ot two, it will then tumble right back down into the tank.
Save yourself a lot of frustration - get real PFS, sold at a pool supply store. (Don't buy 'play sand' at any big box store !)
And it's easy to keep fresh and clean - just stir it up well with each w/c & vac and then, every 4-6 months (as it will eventually dirty up), siphon out about 10-15% of the top layer of sand using 1/2" plastic tubing, and replace what you've drawn out, with new sand. Keeps it looking like new. Try it - you'll see.
I don't know why, but I don't really get debris buildup in my tank w/ sand substrate. So generally, I just do water changes and that's it. I leave the sand stirring to the MTS and assassin snails.
I use Estes Ultra marine sand which is a bit more coarse that regular play sand. I just hover the gravel vac an inch or so above the substrate and the dirt/food/mulm just gets sucked up.
