How to go bare bottom with a 6 months tank?

tomek77pl

tomek77pl

Member
Hi guys,

Im starting to get some algae issues and I have been trying to o big water changes like 50 percent but the alage keeps coming back, got a phosphate reactor and I didnt see any changes so I think the best bet is to go bare bottom. Can I just suck all the sand out in one day? or will this be to big of a change for the system? or should I do it a certain amount every week until all the sand is gone? need some advice before I do it so I dont kill my fish/corals.
 
Wouldn't you want to find the root the the issue? Overfeeding? Old bulbs? overstocked? RODI Unit? Not enough CUC? Not enough circulation? Just don't want you to rip out all the sand (probably/possibilty) causing a spike and more damage, just to be in the same boat afew weeks down the road.
 
I am also doing this - barebottom and I am also removing the rock and putting the fish in a 5 Gal while Ido a Water change and run the water through a filter sock pretty heavily. I am putting new rock back in afterwards. I already have the acryillic im going to use for the bottom of the tank./
 
He should certainly try to figure out the root of the problem, but I can almost guarentee that sand is holding rotten food, detritus and other nasties. That's just what sand does regardless of the CUC in it.
 
It would be best to remove the sand a lil at a time when you do your water changes. Removing all of it at the same time, you would be removing too much beneficial bacteria too fast, which could disrupt your system.
 
Smitty said:
It would be best to remove the sand a lil at a time when you do your water changes. Removing all of it at the same time, you would be removing too much beneficial bacteria too fast, which could disrupt your system.
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+1

Any shocks of ANY kind are devastating to corals. Even switching salts can cause MAJOR issues. You want to make it a slow and gradual process, and be VERY careful about not letting stirred sand disperse bad stuff into the water column. I'd do a 10 gallon water change every time you remove some sand.
 
I have a 20 high with a 2 long sump, I just got new bulbs, put in an mp10 because I though I had flow issues, I have 1 turbo,4 margaritas and 6 hermits and 2 hermits,and sanils in sump. I blast the rocks with a turkey blaster and try to get everything out as much as I can I feed once a day with pellets and I dont think thats alot. I have 3 fish, two shrimps and a sea star so my bio load isnt heavy. I run a phosphate reactor,and I also have a chempure elite baggie and a carbon baggie i the sump. I want to take care of this problem before it gets out of hand and causes me to take tank down.
 
If your rocks are on the sand be careful. Youll make them move and possibly fall removing sand. Get a nice big skimmer. If u dont have sand the skimmer does most of the filtering. U also need good flow at the bottom to keep detritus suspended for corals to eat and skimmer to remove
 
tomek77pl said:
I have a 20 high with a 2 long sump, I just got new bulbs, put in an mp10 because I though I had flow issues, I have 1 turbo,4 margaritas and 6 hermits and 2 hermits,and sanils in sump. I blast the rocks with a turkey blaster and try to get everything out as much as I can I feed once a day with pellets and I dont think thats alot. I have 3 fish, two shrimps and a sea star so my bio load isnt heavy. I run a phosphate reactor,and I also have a chempure elite baggie and a carbon baggie i the sump. I want to take care of this problem before it gets out of hand and causes me to take tank down.
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Merely as a point of reference, below is the info for a 20H CUC from reefcleaners.org:
24 Dwarf Ceriths - small cleaners that get to the nooks and crannies. Feed on diatoms, cyano, algal detritus, and film algae. Nocturnal cleaners that leave the sandbed at night to search for food.

5 Nassarius - scavengers that will eat leftover food and some fish waste. They will stir sand, but can also be kept in bare bottom tanks.

9 Florida Ceriths - small cleaners that get to the nooks and crannies. Feed on fine hair algae, diatoms, cyano, algal detritus, and film algae. Nocturnal cleaners that leave the sandbed at night to search for food.

5 Large & 4 Small to Medium Nerites - We are currently offering the longer lived and quite hardy Antillean Nerite. (Nerita fulgurans). It grows to a nice size,and consumes a good deal of diatoms, cyano, algal detritus, and film algae. It will also consume some fine hair algae. A nocturnal herbivore that will feed more often at night, they tend to need some time to adjust to the limitations of the aquarium during their first week.

With just 5 snails, even on small bio-load they probably can't keep up, let alone eat all the algae. You typically want a diverse CUC because they all play slightly different roles. Also, don't margarita snails typically do better cooler water temperatures?
 
I have swc-60 or something like that skimmer that I got from ebay for around 70 bucks. How often do you guys clean your filter socks? is y CUC to small?
 
DB9181 said:
Merely as a point of reference, below is the info for a 20H CUC from reefcleaners.org:
24 Dwarf Ceriths - small cleaners that get to the nooks and crannies. Feed on diatoms, cyano, algal detritus, and film algae. Nocturnal cleaners that leave the sandbed at night to search for food.

5 Nassarius - scavengers that will eat leftover food and some fish waste. They will stir sand, but can also be kept in bare bottom tanks.

9 Florida Ceriths - small cleaners that get to the nooks and crannies. Feed on fine hair algae, diatoms, cyano, algal detritus, and film algae. Nocturnal cleaners that leave the sandbed at night to search for food.

5 Large & 4 Small to Medium Nerites - We are currently offering the longer lived and quite hardy Antillean Nerite. (Nerita fulgurans). It grows to a nice size,and consumes a good deal of diatoms, cyano, algal detritus, and film algae. It will also consume some fine hair algae. A nocturnal herbivore that will feed more often at night, they tend to need some time to adjust to the limitations of the aquarium during their first week.

With just 5 snails, even on small bio-load they probably can't keep up, let alone eat all the algae. You typically want a diverse CUC because they all play slightly different roles. Also, don't margarita snails typically do better cooler water temperatures?
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Thats alot of snails lol. When I first started my tank I looked online and did research and me thinking about my small tank I didnt need much. I never heard that about margarita snails so idk but I think I will be making a CUC purchase this weekend.
 
Again some of those species are TINY, but still useful to get in the nooks and crannies. LiveAquaria.com states:
"For best care, they should be kept at cooler water temperatures with other peaceful tankmates. However, most Margarita Snails can adjust to an aquarium with a water temperature as high as 78 degrees Fahrenheit."

I've heard "1 snail per gallon of water" etc, again it all depends on your tank, bioload, etc. But yes, IMO 5 snails in a 20H is not nearly enough and adding would not hurt.
 
i would do a 10g WC after stiring up the sand. I tried a BB tank and its ugly and you never get all the detritus out.
 
actinics on from 12-8pm 10k &6k on from 1-5. I love tanks with sand but If I cant control the alage I might have to go BB :). I will try to purchase a better CUC and then do a 50 percent water change with cleaning the sand/rocks.
 
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