How do you keep your sand white

[scottgotts]

Originally Posted by mudplayerx
My vote goes to detrivore (sand-sifting) sea cucumber for the win. Nothing beats these guys in keeping the sand white.
where did you find yours mudplayerx???

 

[alimon]

I have a large (2.5 in) pink hermit which feed on the sand debris all day around, she is amazing for that. Also the sea cucumber does a good job but the stiring ratio is slower that the pink hermit.

 

[jmick]

I think the real key is to not let waste settle on the bottom of the tank and to make sure that there are no dead zones (areas where there is little or no water movement). I built a spray bar a few months ago and it works really well, my sand looks great because most of the detritus is suspended in the water column and is taken out by my skimmer. This does keep a lot of the detritus from settling to the bottom of my tank.

 

[bgriff]

I am under the impression that one of the problems with cucumbers is if they die, they become very toxic and can take the tank out with them if not taken out quickly. Since they are sometimes in the sand, they could easily be missed. Or was this just for a particular kind of cucumber?

 

[alimon]

It looks very good and crawling around all day, I will keep that in mind.
Here are my best sand cleaners.
Just look how cute my hermit is, she has a fan worm "flower".

 

[reefnut]

Queen and/or fighting conch will do the job... Nassarius Snails are also very good and they will not kill the sand bed by feeding on all the good critters in the sand as many sand sifters do.
Good circulation is also a big factor.