[MtnDewMan]

Here are some pictures I took today. They are probably the last pictures of this tank in it's current state. I have been having too many issues with the algae and coral deaths that it is time to rethink the tank. I did some tests in the sand bed and found that it is definately not doing all it needs to do, I found lots of phosphate in the bed just under the surface. The bed just isn't binding everything it needs to in my opinion. So in a couple of weeks, I will be pulling everything out into tubs and removing the sand bed. There has been so much change in my tank this whole year that it will actually be a good change. The transfer should be a day or two job. We are thinking about drilling a hole near the bottom of the tank to get some water flow at the bottom of the tank from the pumps. The overall tank will have the same amount of flow.

That is the plan as of today, who knows, it could change and I could get cold feet, but I am sure there will be changes as it is a sure sign things are a bit off when my healthiest corals are showing signs of distress. Wish me luck.

[organicreefer]

i knew it-remember awhile back i told you to syphon that nutrient sink out of youre tank...i just knew it-i had similar problems ,though not as severe as youre own ,with my dsb after 4+ years-i syphoned mine and the tank is looking good again.

i recognized youre problesm right away...good luck with the overhaul

[Ninong]

Well that's discouraging!

I believe you just set that sand bed up brand new when you switched from the 29-gal to the 75-gal tank about a year and a half ago, right?

[organicreefer]

that would be surprising if it lasted just a year and a half...the dsb in my refugium only lasted about that long but i attribute that to the low flow ..keep the flow as strong as possible with a dsb -thats very important-also the amount of seeding you do will make a difference too..you should be able to make it last for at least a few years or so..the first two being the best and they seem to wokr wonders during that time-then it levels off and then slowly goes downhill..jme

i wouldnt feed the sandbed directly either or use any type of micronized foods at all(phyto/ zoo plankton etc)-there is plenty of particulate matter in youre tank to keep filter feeders happy-and plenty of examples of beautiful tanks that dont use these foods too-jmo

[MtnDewMan]

The sand bed is about 2 years old. A number of things made it a non effective bed, like killing off the bed months ago unknowingly, high tank temperatures that were not discovered for a while and poor water top off water quality.

Yes, Organic, you called it ... sounds like you are happy about that. At any rate, I am moving on and making the changes needed to hopefully get the tank back on track.

[organicreefer]

mtndewman-not happy that youre having problems by any means -happy that i called it-i guess in a way i am..should i be upset that i called it??

i would agree that if you killed the life in youre bed you probably accelerated the buildup of nutrients ,but it was inevitable regardless..no matter how much life is in youre bed -you cant turn something into nothing-there is always an end product that cant be broken down -it will build up and eventually cause problems just like you experienced -which are classic symptoms imo.

you and i arent the only ones that have experienced these problems with dsb's-dr ron had the same problems himself-except he tried to call it "heavy metal buildup" -remember, he had TWO tanks that failed/crashed.its pretty clear that even though he says the rocks and sand need to be replaced every four years thats not the case-evidenced by the countless european tanks that are much older than that that dont have dsb's ....obviously dsb's ARE nutrient sinks-they last longer for some than others but imo over the next couple of years they will die out in popularity as more and more people have these experiences-maybe theyll evolve to something we use in a remote sump with the expectation of them going bad within a few years -and changing them out regularly.

im done with dsb's altogether myself-since i removed mine things have improved and i still have 0 nitrates-so what would be the point of having one??food production??the food produced by a dsb is HIGHLY overated imo..and you can always feed youre tank if you feel it needs more input.

dsbs were all hype-just like soo many other things on the boards...live and learn.

[MtnDewMan]

I know where you are coming from Organic, I think I was in denial for a while because of the amount of work involved. But am heading in the right track I think for how to get my tank up and running healthy again. I agree, there is an end result of waste in a closed system and guess where it lands? Sand Bed .... if you can keep it suspended, and down into the sump, a good healthy skimmer can take it out.

[organicreefer]

yeah really -not only the effort involved -but the money too..between expensive aragonite sand ,live sand and activator /recharge kits from various online vendors -i dumped litterally hundreds,probably 6-700 to be exact ,into my dsbs over the years...only to end up giving away(with proper warnings i might add) and throwing them out

despite alot of visible life in them -i still ended up having problems with mine..it just makes soo much more sense to syphon and let the skimmer pull it out-rather than try to create some intricate food web -which is all but impossible in a closed system...even in nature a good deal (the majority actually)of the detritus gets buried in the deep sea sediment and taken out of the nutrient cycle through stratification-NOT PROCESSED-..in a closed system -its all about export ..its just common sense..

youre tank just needs a good cleaning and itll come back-im confident if anyone can do it you can..you still have some sweet peices in there too(ive always loved youre purple stag).youre tank will be back to its old glory in no time im sure.

[jsaltzgi]

Sorry to hear that, man! Could you try siphoning a little sand out each day? I guess you just want it to be a once and done thing... I completely understand.

James

[kevinpo]

Hi Chuck,
Sorry to hear about your stressful times with your tank. I'm sure you will get it back to the pristine condition it was.

Darren (DJ88 on RC) is coming down next Monday to help me frag and mount 150 or so corals. If you come by after you rework your tank I will donate a few to you
Too bad you're not closer I would come and help. I just moved a 75 gal reef 3 weeks ago. I did not lose any corals or fish. It looks great now. I removed about half of the original rock and IMO it looks much better. You might consider removing some of yours now that you have a chance and know how fast those corals can grow.

Best regards,
Kevin

[MtnDewMan]

Thanks Kevin ... I think it will be a good experience to shake up the look of the tank ... And I will definately keep your offer in the front of my mind when things settle out ... Wish you were here to help out too !!!

[Elmo18]

Hi Chuck, i'm sorry for all the things you're going through with your tank at the moment. I am very leary about my deep sand bed also in my 75 gallon, and from now on will closely monitor everything. Mine has been up for about 1.5 years now.

I will start a new tank, a smaller one and run this one without any substrate and see how that goes.

Again, i'm in Washington State (Edmonds to be exact), just let me know if you want to come by and grab some monti frags when you're ready.

- Elmo

[MtnDewMan]

Thanks ... I am sure it will be an ordeal, but hopefully will work out well in the long run.