Cleaning Crushed Coral??

texasgiraffe

texasgiraffe

Member
I need to do a water change- BUT...I have crushed coral- things from my LR and beginning to call down and make the CC look nasty, should I vaccum the CC when I do a water change OR is there things in the CC that and beneficial to the tank??
also...any opinions on using distilled water for the tank?? Would I still need add amonia remover??
Thanks again guys & gals!!:p
 
twoods71

twoods71

Active Member
Yes, I would vaccum the CC during water changes. It will do more good then harm.
Distilled water should not contain ammonia unless it has been contaminated some how.
 
nosmada

nosmada

Member
the only problem i see in vaccuming the CC is you eventually pick up many of the benificial pods which are living there. i used CC ontop of DSB for a couple years and never had a problem with keeping it clean on its own with the assistance of some hermits and snales. i went over a year without even doing a single water change. ive kept track of my params and never had a problem there. i just kept topping it off and adding c-balance. i always hate to disagree with a shark ( so dont get mad:) ) but i think if you have a good clean up crue there should be no need to vaccume it, which will depleat your pod population each time.
hth,
chris
 
twoods71

twoods71

Active Member
Nosmada,
I cant believe you have the nerve to disagree with me!!!!! LOL just kidding. I dont get upset when people disagree with me. We all have different experiences and are entitled to share them with others freely.
We are good examples of that. I have used CC in the past and felt the need to vaccum. You used CC and found no need to vaccum. Thats 2 different ways to maintain a system and it sounds like we were both successful.
When I get upset is when people think there way is the only way and try to cram there so called expertise down others throats (which you did not).
texasgiraffe,
Distilled water should not contain chlorine or ammonia or anything else toxic to your fish. So yes you can just mix salt and add it to your tank.
I have used the gallon jugs of distilled water in the past and never had a problem.
 
texasgiraffe

texasgiraffe

Member
Well maybe I will get a good clean up crew- reccomendations???
30gal with 32lb of LR- It is a pretty new set up- all I have now is two clowns. Help?
 
nosmada

nosmada

Member
twoods71, i definately have to agree with you that theres not one correct way in any of this. i think i should have maybe mentioned that :D. i think my way is better though :p (j/k)
texasgiraffe, as far as getting a good clean up crew, check the packages they have for sale here:
20-55 Gallons
20 Scarlet Reef Hermits
20 Blueleg Hermits
20 Turbo Snails
1 Porcelain Crab
2 Brittle Stars
1 Coral Banded Shrimp
3 Emerald Crabs
$89.99 w/ free shipping
i think that would be nice for you. you could also build your own if you didnt want the CBS or maybe something else.
hth,
chris
 
mpgt

mpgt

Member
If you have CC only for a substrate, you should vaccum it. If it was on top of a sand bed, that would be a different story. CC only will collect too much organic matter without an under gravel filter.
 
jakob4001

jakob4001

Member
I would use RO water instead of distilled; it's NOT THE SAME; some sources of distilled water may use heavy metals in their piping that may transfer those minerals in amounts that may be toxic to some tank inhabitants...
 
cells

cells

Member
Nosmada,
Won't the package you recommanded be too much for a 30 gallon tank?
40 hermits, 20 turbos, wouldn't the nitrate level jumps up high with that kind of setup? :confused:
 
jlem

jlem

Active Member
I like to vaccum my 1-2 inch bed of c/c in my forty to break up any stagnent spots and to get up any gunk before it decays and poluttes the water. Does your tank have much algae. If you tank is barren of algae then a clean up crew may waste away pretty quickly and cause water problems. Maybe start with just a few snails and crabs and see how they fair. I use the Glacier water machines and really like the water quality. The Machine says it is RO/DI/ozone/Mechanical/ and Charcoal filtered and is only 25 cents a gallon. Scott mentioned a dsd. I am not a big fan of a DSB because they are not always needed depending on the bioload and maintnance and take up alot of space. There are systems that greatly benefit from a DSB but I think that a vacummed C/C bed doesn't hurt anything and if it looks good then keep it and vaccum it.
 
texasgiraffe

texasgiraffe

Member
I do have plenty of algae- just recently though- since I added the two tank perc's. Does the addition of fish fuel algae?? Mine seems to have- I am thinking there is some sort of connection with fish waste and algae? OR I could just be crazy! Ha! I need a clean up crew but I don't know what to buy?? There is so many things out there, diff snails and crabs and shrimp?? FOR SURE I need something to clean my LR and clean the glass- any personal reccomendations??? Thanks!!!!
 
jim672

jim672

Member
texasgiraffe,
I read somewhere that in an aquarium: light + food = algea.
In your case, adding the two fish to your tank has, probably temporarily, upset the biological balance in your tank. If you measured your water parameters you'd probably see an increase in ammonia, nitrites and/or nitrates, either from fish waste (as you observed) or from food that the fish didn't eat and that has decayed. That's the "food". I'm sure you have the "light" as well. Anyway, your tank should be back in balance soon.....as your lr and other filtration build enough bacteria to handle this increased bioload.
But you probably won't ever be able to totally eliminate algea.....I know I've tried!! Soo.....hermit crabs will clean lr and cc, and snails will clean lr, cc, and glass. Get some of both. Lots of kinds of snails are effective algea eaters: turbo, cerith, nerite, bumblebee.......get a mix if you can. The packages from Saltwaterfish.com are very good!!
Jim
 
jim672

jim672

Member
Not so odd. The ammonia spike I suggested was probably small and short......you have alot of lr for the size of your tank which provides alot of biofiltration. You could be back in balance again....but the "mini-cycle" provided opportunity and "food" for algea growth that may not have been there prior to adding the fish.
Jim
 
texasgiraffe

texasgiraffe

Member
Hmmm....food for thought- I am just glad to have my Clowns alive!! I know they are only fish- but they have personality too!!! It is amazing how we form an attachemt to something that swims in a tank- HA!! Welcome to Salt water fish!!!:D
 
texasgiraffe

texasgiraffe

Member
Well....here is an update for other people wondering what to do also: I vaccumed the CC and it looks much better- I bought 3 snails and they are already VERY busy! Really what I vacced off was trash that had fallen off the LR- :)
 
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