moving my tank, switching to DSB

[bongobrian]

Hey guys- I need help (I know that goes without saying.)

Ok here's the deal... I'm moving to a new place in less than a month and of course I'm bringing my tank with me. I am going to switch to a deep fine sand bed at this time. I already have a ton of live rock and corals in my tank and those will also be moved. I know that introducing sand to the tank can cause it to be really cloudy for days. This shouldn't really bother the corals or fish too much (correct me if I'm wrong) but I'm worried about the tank having all this uncured sand in the tank. Or is that even a factor? I know that it is not good to add uncured LR to a tank and can really upset the tank. Is it the same deal with sand?

I'm thinking about setting up an "intermediate" tank. I could use another tank or a rubbermaid container to put all of my LR, corals, fish, crushed coral, and even the water from my current tank. I would also put my lights and skimmer on this tank. After that is set up, I would set up my actual tank and start adding sand and then water. After the sand clears and after any cycling is complete, I would start adding all of my livestock and rock back into the tank.

What do you guys think? any suggestions?

If there is anyone in my area who could hook me up with some live sand from their tanks, I would really appreciate it! Gracias.

[mrok12]

Brian,
Did you want some southdown? I will go ahead and get 4 bags for you. That is 200 pounds. Let me know when and if you want it. I can always use extra for me if you dont. See ya

MROK12(MIKE)

[bongobrian]

Mike- YEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSS PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEASE!!!



Man thanks a lot! I really appreciate it. Here are my phone numbers so we can talk business:

day: 734-222-2008
night: 517-223-4886

[eses]

I think you are going to have a minor cycle to start, so I would have change water at the ready. Since your going to be taking the tank totally down and setting it back up, you don't have to have it be cloudy. If you add the sand dry to the empty tank first, and put something like a dish-plate or bowl on the sand bed, or a large rock, and pour your water slowly onto this you can fill the tank without disturbing the sandbed and making it massivly cloudy. You will get some clouding as you move rocks around, but not nearly as much as you would get if you added the sand to the water.

I would wait a day or two for everything to settle before moving stuff in. Unless your going to use old water. I would still then wait 24 hours for any clouding to settle.

If you buy playsand, it should technically be rinsed, sterilzed before packing, and inert. So you should not have any die off, you will basically just have a huge inert sandbed for a few months until it starts populating.

With just water and sand you should not see a cycle, once you add your LR and corals however I think you will. It should be reasonably minor. If you can setup holding tanks for your corals that are adaquate, I would move all of your LR to the new tank, see if it cycles, and ride the cycle out if it does. Once the cycle is done, move your corals over slowly. If you get minor die off in your LR it isn't a big deal.

You've got your work cut out for you.

[bongobrian]

Thanks eses- are you saying that if I buy southdown sand from mrok that it will need to be rinsed?

[Reefland]

Don't rinse the sand! The partical mix, all the way down to the silt is what you want.

I think you'll experience a bit of a cycle simply due to the replacement of your substrate; how significant, who knows. With this in mind, you may consider finding a temporary home for your corals and besides, it's always better to be safe than sorry.

Some people take the time to sift through their current substrate prior to disposal, picking out bristle worms and other sand bed critters. You'll need to get something moving around throughout the sand to kick start it's development.

Good luck,
Scott Z.

[eses]

Like already said, deffinatly do not rinse the sand. It is more trouble than it is worth for one, and you want the "mud" as well not just the larger grains.

[Starmstr]

I just reciently moved my tank and changed out the rubble stubstrate for a SD DSB. Clouding wasn't the biggest issue the cycle is. I've never had Hair algae in the 3 years my system has been up now it seems as if I have a plague. I used a filter sock on the overflow tube to the sump and the clouding cleared in one day.