Deep Sand Beds

Hi Everyone,

I have been reading about deep sand beds and i have built a refugium that is capable of storing one!

But this seems a topic that both is encouraged and discouraged - when is the general consensus on this?

 

IMHO, if you're gonna run a DSB, run it in a separate bucket (remote DSB) that can be removed from the system when it crashes (usually takes a couple of years), then you can replace or thoroughly clean the sand and restart it without too much upset to your system.

 

+1, I would never run one in a display. Personally the 4-6" of sand on the bottom just doesn't look good and is dangerous if you can't get the right creatures to keep it healthy.

With the refugium, just make sure you can take it offline when it becomes necessary.. but really I don't feel the benefits outweigh the potential challenges they can present.

 

+1 to both.

Furthermore, a ball of chaeto would remove nitrates much more efficiently without the potential pitfalls of the dsb.

 

Which is perfect being I am adding chaeto to the refugium.

 

I'm feeling generous +1's for everyone in the thread. IMO the remote DSB would be killer to have just being that it's a basic fail safe if needs be.

 

what type of critters are you talking about. I have around 4" of aroganite mixed with crushed coral, all sorts of critters, not sure if theyre the right ones though!

 

With a remote deep sand bed - being that it is apart of the system regardless is the concept - easier to clean?

 

I do not want to talk on someones behalf but the concept defends on the lack of oxygen. You want the sand "cleaned" but you do not want the sand aggitated enough to bring oxygen to the bacteria colony.

 

Ron Shimek

"The infauna are "the clean-up crew" and the "reef-janitorial" staff, and the array found in a successful tank may be DIVERSE! More than 200 different species commonly are found living in a mature sand bed. These include many types of flatworms, round worms, dozens of species of bristle worms, small snails, brittle stars, small sea cucumbers, protozoans, and many types of small crustaceans. The total populations may be immense. I have done sampling to measure the abundances found in the 45 gallon tank I mentioned earlier, and the number of animals larger than half a mm, or about one fiftieth of inch, in that tank ranges from 90,000 to 150,000 depending on what part of their population cycle the various species are in."

resource: http://www.ronshimek.com/deep_sand_beds.html

Coral magazine had a good article a while back about DSB maintenance as well. The real key is getting the populations started and then protecting it. No sand sifters, no stirring, no hermits, nothing predatory, and make sure it can get the infauna to start with.