sand or no sand?

[DAN-O]

setting up a new tank soon and not sure if i should put a sand bed in or leave the bottom bare. i currently have a 180g and 40g with sand beds.
would love to hear which one you prefer and why. for bare tank bottoms
what do you put under the live rock?

 

[Deanos]

I recommend sand for the fauna and for aesthetic purposes.

 

[Lenny718]

I also recommend sand, It looks more realistic.

 

[bad coffee]

the ocean isn't bare bottom, and neither is my tank. . .

 

[grundig5]

BB can work really well, but you have to really like the look of it or be willing to wait quite awhile for corals to overgrow the bottom (see ShaunW's tank). I was BB for a little while and went back to sand. The tank looks a lot brighter with the light reflecting off of white sand instead of black plastic starboard.

 

[masterswimmer]

the ocean isn't bare bottom, and neither is my tank. . .

Ditto, well said.

swimmer

 

[grknyer]

SAND! This shouldn't be a question.Like others have said "the ocean isn't barebottom".
To each is own but aren't we all here trying to replicate an environment for our fishes and corals similar to what they were accustomed to in the ocean? Over the years I have bought and traded frags from a lot of fellow reefers and the most beautiful tanks that left a lasting impression in my mind had a sandbed.
I'm sorry but Barebottom just looks weird.Imagine what the fish would say if they could talk!!!

 

[DAN-O]

i guess i'll probably go with sand bed. i did see a few tanks without sand beds and they all claim it was cleaner by not having detritus settle in sand bed.

 

[grknyer]

i guess i'll probably go with sand bed. i did see a few tanks without sand beds and they all claim it was cleaner by not having detritus settle in sand bed.

That's what cleanup crews are for furthermore making the tank look "natural".

 

[NYreefNoob]

done both and went back to sand, it also limits som etype of fish that you can have having a bb tank

 

[spacenyc]

sand or no sand

i am new to salt and reefs but i set up two tanks at the same time to see the difference. similiar fish and corals in both a sanded and a bb. after 4 months no question the sand is much better. looks better, water is more stable, dont see leftovers floating around. but a question how many inchers on the bottom. have heard differing opionion on deep vs shallow. i am currently using 3 inches of sand

 

[Thales]

the ocean isn't bare bottom, and neither is my tank. . .

Oy! Do you have an abyssal plain plumbed into your system?

Use sand if you like the look, or if you have animals that need it. Otherwise, 90% of the corals we keep don't occur anywhere near sand. Most corals grow up and away from sand because it smothers and is abrasive, and the water motion on most reefs makes sure sand settles somewhere else.

Bare bottom may be a good way to think of wild reefs. One of the points of bb is that the detritus stays in suspension until it gets skimmed out, which is pretty much what happens on the reefs - although there it doesn't get skimmed out, just exported away from the reef.

 

[DAN-O]

thales argument is the same one i got from all the reefers out there with bb tanks.

 

[KathyC]

All good points, but you're the one who has to live with it! btw..starboard comes in both black & white.
My tanks have sand

 

[tuberider]

Rich (Thales) has the best of both worlds, check out his article in Reef Hobbyist Magazine on faux sandbeds, cool stuff!

 

[Alex]

if you go diving/snorkeling some of the most beautiful corals I have seen can be found off rocky cliffs,no where near sand like thales just explained. however to tell you the truth I have a 120RR bb with white starboard at the bottom and a 10 gal with sand, and I like them both as both have different looks. look around and judge for yourself.
by the way I'm putting together a 30 gal cube that will have sand because I would like to get some jawfish.

 

[KathyC]

Link to Rich's article...anyone have a cleaner copy..this file is big..

http://www.reefhobbyistmagazine.com/downloads/pdf/version2.pdf

 

[Mamaroneck]

A lot of valid posts !
I would argue for sand but only 3 inches of it...good for the look, but stays clean and increase available space...

 

[PalmTree]

I love my sand too! I have about 2 to 4 inches on the bottom. It is higher towards the rear of my tank as opposed to the front.

 

[RyanG]

if you decide to go the sand route do either less than 2inches or six inches and deeper. Anything in the middle will lead to added nitrates. Less than two wont contribute in the nitrate process six or more will lead to denitrification the 2-5 range will change organics to nitrates but will not have the depth to raise the ph at lowest levels of DSB(deep sand bed) that will allow denitrification to happen. My two cents.