Using air to automatically turn/clean sand bed

[Spinner]

Hello, As i often do when working on my system i have a thought and.....well that begins a new journey. This one has me using air to turn and clean my sand bed with a controlled pump. Using the legs that hold up my foam wall i will run (5) air line's down foam wall supports with exiting out one leg per panel. Then i will attach (5) 24" bendable air curtains snaking under egg crate covering legs. I will place fiberglass screen over egg crate so sand can not get to that area which is 12" x 96" long then cover with 3"+ reef flakes while balance of sand bed is 5" to 6" deep. One a day while i do RD the pump will come on for 1 minute and we will see what happens? Welcome any thoughts pro or con.... Thanks,

 

[mojoreef]

I am having a hard time visualizing it. Is it kind of like a under gravel filter??

Mike

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[Spinner]

I will be pushing air bubbles up thru sand bed virse pulling water down thru sand bed. The screen should allow even distrbution while keeping bubbles micro sized. I am thinking

 

[TJL]

Air like water will follow the path of least resistance, concentrating in the shallowest or coarsest substrate areas. Look up doing a 'Reverse undergravel filter' a very effective biological filter that many large aquariums still use. I will/am considering doing so again when I build a Monster System someday. In the past was my most stable systems even on Predatory Tanks. Cheers, Todd

 

[Spinner]

I hear what your saying and agree thats why a timed blast from snaked air curtains would be used to turn and suspend matter up into water column.

 

[mojoreef]

To be honest my friend it sounds a little scary. The concept would work mechanically but man with a sand bed that deep your almost guaranteed to have a sulphuric and a methane zone populated with their associated bacteria a shot of air would release the nutrients you are looking to deal with, but at the same time your going to be blowing up the nasties at the same time.

I think to be safe I would only go shallow with is concept (if I understand it properly). But even with shallow your going to have a period of time after air injection that your not going to get denitrification. The presence of air will dectate to the facuative bacteria to covert to nitrate but they won't denitrify until the oxygen is virtually gone.


Mojo

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[BigAl07]

I think Mojo hit on the exact same concerns I was thinking of. Adding add to the sandbed like that will completely wipe out (Even if only for a few days) your anaerobic zones of your sand bed. Potentially keeping the tank in perpetual "cycle state".

 

[NanaReefer]

I think Mojo hit on the exact same concerns I was thinking of. Adding add to the sandbed like that will completely wipe out (Even if only for a few days) your anaerobic zones of your sand bed. Potentially keeping the tank in perpetual "cycle state".

Same thought pattern going on here

 

[Spinner]

Thank you for the input and i agree....here is my thinking 1/2 of my sand bed the part on the egg crate that would get air is only a couple inches of sand. This is also the part where most rock scape will be leaving the other 1/2 of sand bed which is 4" to 5" deep untouched by air. Again these are questions/thoughts if you started a tank new doing this from day one would you have to worrie about sulfur build up being released? What is the difference in doing this as with having MPs blow around sand exposing tank bottom and shifting sand layers?

Thanks,

 

[kpiotrowski]

also as the air is flows upward it will actually draw water under the air wands, right?. could end up attracting detrius is my thought.

 

[mojoreef]

Spin I think that even if you did this from day one you would eventually get the ugly zones, but hard to tell. Here is something to think about. So in your sandbed you have the normal bacterial processes going on, in the top inch or most oxygenated your going to get your nitirifcation, then below that the denitrification. But one of the big things that actually makes that whole world work is that fact that the biofilm they makes acts as a hi-way to pass the unwanted down to those that want it. Its this at hands length that is so very important and I worry with such a separation or disturbance you might screw that up.

So my advice would be the same as I tell all those that choose the DSB system. Dont rely on it to much and help it as best as you can by stirring out as much detritus as you can on the top one inch. This will allow the top layer to stay aerobic and reduce the bioload on a system that is not the most efficient??

Mojo

 

[Spinner]

OK good points and understood just thinking of ways to keep detritus suspended in water for filter feeder filtration part of my system.

 

[Krish]

OK good points and understood just thinking of ways to keep detritus suspended in water for filter feeder filtration part of my system.

Bare bottom with really good flow.


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[Spinner]

Thank You

Bare bottom with really good flow.

Good point and could be the best way? I just like some sand:doh: will need to do some thinking Had a bare bottom once but didn't keep it that way long.

Thanks Krish