Crushed coral is a problem waiting to happen

[Jay.B.]

having read this, I am willing to try "new" things

I move house this Friday, so this would be a very good time time to make the switch from crushed coral over to sand.
I have always had nitrates of around 20, I would like them to be lower, and with the addition of a nice large piece of algae in the tank, they did drop a little. I have also tried the vitamin C method of reducing nitrates but again, like with the algae, this is more of a fix instead of a permanent solution.

does it have to be aragonite sand? would silica sand be equally as good?

 

[kleinlax]

i just set up a new 55 gal. a little over a month ago. i was told C.C. was a good substrate... Should i just go ahead and replace it? if so with what???

 

[CritterManiac]

Sup guys, i have a 75 gallon tank with 3 inch of CC but i also have a sand bed filter with power head on either end. i think that solves the problem, well it works for me. lolz.

 

[Istanbul_Kop]

Hey guys,

Currently looking at ways to increase the PH in my Malawi tank. Good job I saw this thread.

Anyway...what do you think about 'Coral Sand'? Advertised as having a grain size of 1-2mm?

 

[cam191919]

would cc be bad for a brackish tank as well?

 

[Charlesr1958]

having read this, I am willing to try "new" things

I move house this Friday, so this would be a very good time time to make the switch from crushed coral over to sand.
I have always had nitrates of around 20, I would like them to be lower, and with the addition of a nice large piece of algae in the tank, they did drop a little. I have also tried the vitamin C method of reducing nitrates but again, like with the algae, this is more of a fix instead of a permanent solution.

does it have to be aragonite sand? would silica sand be equally as good?

You might also want to consider putting algae, that is going to be around regardless, to work for your system with an algae turf scrubber. As for the sandbed, I would go with as fine a calcium carbonate sand as possible, but only because silica sands tend to be too sharp and abrassive to the sand infauna, reducing the sandbeds diversity. The following links will hopefully give you more insight into the workings of a sandbed and the important roles of algae.

A Philippine Fringing Reef & The Reef Aquarium - Part one - The Turf Algae

Part Three - The Macroalgae

By the way, large grained habitats (crushed coral) do provide important habitat and are best used or set up to have a fine grained sandbed underneath them along with keeping such areas restricted so as not to make up the entire sandbed areas or depths. For diversity of life sake, one must have diversity of habitat, which includes the sandbeds, be it "mud", "silt", "sand" or "gravel" and even "rubble".

Chuck

 

[rich747]

hey im a newbie,i have sand on the bottom and cc on top but my nitrate levels are good .its been 3 month and nitrates are goood , please help Thanks Rich

 

[thetermite]

Im using crushed coral sand...and judging from what people here are saying, i think it would be a good idea to consider changing my substrate (provided i can find a better alternative locally). my nitrates are around 20mg/L.

i thought about the process of changing the substrate while i was in the can! (things i think about as i take a leak! lol)

1: get buckets that will fit all my live rock and CUC
2: a large clear container that would contain my water and 2 perculas
3: switch off powerheads, skimmer, filter etc.
4: siphon 2/3 of the water (keeping the live rock and fish in the same water, but separate)
5: remove 1/2 of CC and replace with alternative
6: after 2 - 4 days, replace the other half and wait another 2-4 days
7: place rock back along with CUC
8: wait for 1 or 2 days to allow settling and check water
9: put fish back

does that sound ok, or abit over the top. rearranging my Live Rock is gonna be a pain the rear! i think my best bet is to remove it, do the change and put it back.

OR...just let it be and do my best to keep it clean!

comments pls.

 

[Reefscape]

I would suggest, if your not having major issues, dont upset the system. It does not sound like this is a reef, so, 20 on nitrates is nothing to worry about...

 

[thetermite]

Its not a reef yet. its a new setup (4 -5 months). But i am planning to get a few corals and maybe 1 or 2 anemones.

I just got off the phone with a store about 1.5 hours away, i asked him to deliver 2 sea cucumbers and whatever he feels would help stirring and cleaning up the substrate. delivery on friday or saturday. (note about that LFS: provided the parameters are good...he guarantees his fish for one month! if it dies within 1 month, he'll replace it for free! how weird is that!)

ps. here are some pics of my tank. http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=188963