MattyJatz's 37G Eclipse SW Diary

mattyjatz

mattyjatz

Member
So my sand is starting to fill up with brown algae...I hope it doesn't get out of hand. What's the best fix? My hermits don't hangout much on the sand, they are mainly on the rocks...
 
spanko

spanko

Active Member
Purchase,
5 Nassarius snails
15 Cerith snails
1 Florida fighting conch.
If your sand bed is getting brown diatoms you do not have
Enough flow over it
Enough sand shifting creatures
AndOr
You are feeding too much
you have too large a bioload
you are not exporting nutrient fast enough.
 
mattyjatz

mattyjatz

Member
Originally Posted by spanko
http:///forum/post/3090042
Purchase,
5 Nassarius snails
15 Cerith snails
1 Florida fighting conch.
If your sand bed is getting brown diatoms you do not have
Enough flow over it
Enough sand shifting creatures
AndOr
You are feeding too much
you have too large a bioload
you are not exporting nutrient fast enough.
Right now I have 8 Turbo Snails, and three Nassarius snails. After doing a little bit of research online this morning, it sounds like Diatoms are normal for a brand new SW tank, roughly 4-16 weeks into the process. Is this true?
 
spanko

spanko

Active Member
Turbos will do nothing for your sandbed.
Yes diatoms are a normal occurance, however long term you do want to ensure good flow and shifting or stirring by critters of your sandbed.
JMO
 
mattyjatz

mattyjatz

Member
Originally Posted by spanko
http:///forum/post/3090058
Turbos will do nothing for your sandbed.
Yes diatoms are a normal occurance, however long term you do want to ensure good flow and shifting or stirring by critters of your sandbed.
JMO
Opinion appreciated! I can probably use more Nassarius snails and/or Cerith, however, the Nassarius snails dont seem to move much!
 
spanko

spanko

Active Member
Actually they are moving, you just can't see it. They are under the sandbed surface cruising around looking for food. Ceriths do the same when they are buried. It is this moving around and "shifting - stirring" the sand that helps to keep detritus from accumulating.
By the way Nassarius are meaty type detritus eaters and the Cerith are herbivorous.
Oh yeah and the Florida Fighting Conch is a diatom eating machine on the surface of the sandbed.
 
nissan577

nissan577

Active Member
Originally Posted by spanko
http:///forum/post/3090065
Actually they are moving, you just can't see it. They are under the sandbed surface cruising around looking for food. Ceriths do the same when they are buried. It is this moving around and "shifting - stirring" the sand that helps to keep detritus from accumulating.
By the way Nassarius are meaty type detritus eaters and the Cerith are herbivorous.
Oh yeah and the Florida Fighting Conch is a diatom eating machine on the surface of the sandbed.
i have to agree. the Florida Fighting Conch is a diatom machine.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top