Who is running Deep Sand Beds these days

[scavdog]

He guys. I have not posted anything useful for the better-part of a decade. So as I plan my new build-out, I was curious as to who still is a "believer" in DSB.

Back in the day, I was running 4"+ in the display tank and 5"+ in my remote refugium / lagoon with excellent results. My plan is to run 3" in my display and have a sizable remote fuge / lagoon.


About 7-8 yrs in I was cursed with Acro eating flat worms and was eventually forced to break down the whole system. No stink, no smell of death. Lots of life and lot decent success. The pics below are probably 15 yrs old.

I would love to hear your thoughts.

- Joe

 

[CoralJunkie]

I'm running a 3 to 4 inch sand bed currently in my 32 biocube. It's sand from a previous tank that had been setup for about a year or so.

 

[BiGGiePauls33]

@scavdog I think the majority these days are little to no sand, as there was always talk about tank crashes due to built up organics in dsb's. I run about 2 inches in my biocube, but will be running barebottom on my rimless build. Detritus build up in a barebottom allows easier siphoning.

 

[scavdog]

Hence the idea of a lagoon/fuge. People were switching to starboard as I was slowing down with the hobby. I cannot say I am sold that it does not offer benefit - based on my experience. Most people that had claimed crashes due to sand, probably didn't do it right. There also a lot to be said for bio-load.

Been reading this thread a bit. The debate still seems to rage on to some degree.

QUESTION OF THE DAY - Do you know what a DSB is and should you or does it even matter?

The big difference between promoting denitrification or the assimilation of nitrogen ( vodka, nopox, algae scrubber), in a closed system using a skimmer, is the fact the nutrient balance ( N:p ratio) can be restored by denitrification, not by assimilation. A SB of +- 2 cm may have about the...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[serwobow]

I have had 3-4" of sand in my main tank for 10 years. The sand is full of gunk, but the tank is doing better than ever. The anti-sand movement is similar to the low-nutrient movement. In time people will realize it was way over-hyped.

 

[Edin508]

2 bags of live sand in my Biocube. Some critters need the sand to live in, no sand no critters.

 

[scavdog]

Where are people sourcing their sand these days?

 

[Chris A.]

Caribbean sand or tropic eden

 

[scavdog]

added a poll

 

[Cheddah93]

I was always for the sand bed but on my nano sps build I went bare bottom and it’s kinda cool to see the buildup you normally wouldn’t see when having a sand bed.

Only reason I went barebottum is to try and help with the stability and being able to run high flow, currently have one mp10 and possible looking to add a second once it grows in a little. Still getting used to look of it too as I’ve always hated the look but as it fills in with corals it isn’t so bad.

 

[clover128]

Im planning a new build - very large tank - and am planning a 4-5” dsb. Personally I do mot like the look of bare bottom tanks.

 

[ReeferSutherland]

I keep 200lbs of sand in my sump that the overflow sends water through. I think sand has a lot of surface area for the nitrogen cycle

 

[s_kelley]

SCAVO!!!!!!
I cant vote my tank exploded, I got frustrated and got rid of everything, but awesome to see you posting!

 

[this is me]

I never had it in my display after my first attempt at deep sandbed(6").
First, it takes up real estate in height. Most standard tank has a height of 20-24". Take 6" away and all of a sudden, your tank becomes a shallow tank.
Secondly, it's maintenance. Some will battle with cyano for months(or years).
Third, it's a PITA to set up your flow without getting sand on your corals you place on the sand because you've taken away 6" of tank height
Lastly, the sand gets dirty and create a 6" of nasty looking glass pane that you can't clean because you'll create a sandstorm. This reason alone is enough for me to not have DSB in the display tank.

Benefit? I don't know. Never ran it that long because of the above reasons. I've tried multiple time and wasted money on creating an 8" sandbed in the refugium only to take it out after a year. I either needed the space or it became a maintenance nightmare.
I keep the display sandbed to a maximum of 2" for aesthetic reason(to me the sand makes it look natural). With modern skimmers, strong fuge lamps, and plenty of liverocks, 6"+ sandbed in the display doesn't make sense.

 

[scavdog]

SCAVO!!!!!!
I cant vote my tank exploded, I got frustrated and got rid of everything, but awesome to see you posting!

Thanks man! Feeling welcome

Tank exploded eh!? That's insane!

 

[508jfisher]

I run a 4 inch deep sand bed in my 55 I try to mimic the oceans as best as I can

 

[afboundguy]

I run 3"-4" of sand but currently it's that deep everywhere except the front right of my display as my MP10 just doesn't like me putting sand there and I don't want to move the MP10 because it's in the best spot for flow in the whole tank...

 

[FishieBusiness]

I had a 4" sand bed in my previous tank. However like @this is me stated you end up with 3" of nasty looking glass pane that you can't clean because you'll create a sandstorm. My tank at the time had a 1" black frame covering the bottom of the tank.

 

[508jfisher]

I had a 4" sand bed in my previous tank. However like @this is me stated you end up with 3" of nasty looking glass pane that you can't clean because you'll create a sandstorm. My tank at the time had a 1" black frame covering the bottom of the tank.

That is all the waist being broken down instead of not having place to brake down imo I be run both a bare not and sand without sand much more issue arose for me in my situation not saying u can't run bare u most certainly can but I wasn't nearly successful with it gives the worms and copeipodes a place to hide