Live Sand Question

[jgraeff]

i have been reading and i cant find my answer anywhere, i need to redo my sump/refuge therefore i will have to put the live sand in a bucket until the silicone sets for about 48 hours, i was wondering if i should submerge it in water and it will be ok for that long of a period? im thinking it should be but just want to make sure.

Also i have some olive snails from some LR i got, i was wondering if they will deplete the sandbed?

 

[Katchupoy]

keep all submerged with the same water as much as possible. maintain the same temp and keep it aerated. you will be fine.

 

[jgraeff]

hmm, a powerhead will have to do with an air line, i dont have an aeration pump. Thanks.

 

[Katchupoy]

well the aeration is for the flow... slow flow that is and some surface to water contact.... small pump will definitely work, point it up... so not to disturb too much sand.

 

[returnofsid]

Disturbing sand with a powerhead isn't going to be the issue, since you'll be totally disturbing the sand bed to get it out of the sump/refugium. How deep is this sand bed? How long has it been established.

Disturbing a sand bed can stir up and release all kinds of "nasties" The longer the sand bed has been established and the deeper the sand bed, the more cause for concern. You might be better off starting a new sand bed, with dry sand, seeded with a small amount of your existing sand, taken from the very top layer of your current sand bed.

 

[jgraeff]

it is about 4 months old, just the DBS in the refuge and it looks pretty clean. Thats y i wanted to keep that sand and use that in the display tank for my new tank, unless you think i should still go with all new sand...

 

[returnofsid]

If it's only 4 months old, I think you should be just fine!! Hasn't really aged long enough to accumulate a lot of "yuckies!"

 

[jgraeff]

Ok good news, also about how many lbs of sand will I need for less than an inch in the display I think I have 30lbs n the fuge

 

[nwinverts]

Difficult to tell. We don't know the dimensions of your tank.

Here's a link to a calculator.
http://www.garf.org/calculators/SandBedCalculator.asp

 

[jgraeff]

48x18x20 75g regular.

 

[jgraeff]

it recommends 35lbs for a 1 inch sand bed and i need less than 1 inch so im thinking im just going to cover the bottom just enough so you cant see the glass and leave it at that and use the rest for the dsb in the fuge.