DSB question

[chevydragtruck]

I put in a DSB a few months ago.........and the other day I was cleaning the glass and I stirred up the top layer a little on the edge and now it's like a small drop off.......shoul I be cleaning the top of the DSB? or should it be all packed together with some algae grwing in it?

 

[a&m aggie 04']

i let my cleanup crew clean the sand bed. I try not to disturb it, but sometimes you cant avoid it.
Mark

 

[tangman99]

You do not manually clean a sandbed. You need critters to do that for you. I have 2 fighting conchs that do a great job and several other things that help.

 

[beth]

A DSB is more than sand. For it to work effectively, you need sandbed critters to keep the sand moving. Fighting conch, sandbed snails, bristleworms, etc., will do the trick.
No cleaning the bed by you.

 

[dacia]

That is the big reason why I (and many others) have abandoned the crushed coral. No need to clean the sand, but CC must be vaccumed to keep it clean.
After switching to a DSB, it can be very tempting to try to clean the sand since it is a learned behavior...especially if you started with FW fish and have become accustomed to vaccuming their gravel!

 

[nm reef]

I haven't cleaned or disturbed my DSB in over 2 years. There are countless little creatures that keep it stirred and clean. Thats one of the many positives about maintained a DSB....if its properly established its virtually maintenance free.
There is speculation that long term DSB's may not survive...but mine has done well and I'm confident it'll continue to provide benefits for my lil reef.