Let the gobie do what it does best.
Sift.
Here's the scoop. your sand is made up of many sizes... the big stuff you can see, the small stuff you can feel, and the smaller "dust" stuff. The dust is made up of your sand as it breaks down, fish/coral waste, calcium, salt, minerals, and everything else that can turn into dust.
Most tanks do not have enough of a filtration system/water turn over/ storm surges/ etc. to keep this stuff on the move so that it is "disposed" of.
Enter a sifter gobie.
He is going to turn over every square inch of your sand bed... and doing so he is throwing sand/dust into the water column like a 5 year-old in a sand box. He is going to make one heck-of-a mess untill every bit of "dust" is processed/filtered out or digested.
Solution:
1: Run a charcoal filter (I use chemi-pure) for a month... this will help absorb small particles that he throws into the water column.
2: Let the gobie feed... he is removing days/months/years of detritus build up.
3: Use a turkey baster and GENTLY dust your hard corals (cup coral, brain, blue ridge, etc)... be VERY VERY gently with soft corals.
4: More water flow...
If you choose not to have a gobie:
1: create a storm in your tank 4-6 times a year. Use a power head and stirr up your sand bed... 1 section at a time. (run a filter in your system to remove the detritus).
2: Add other sifters. Nassarius Snails, starfish, cucumbers, crabs, clams, etc... and LOTS of them.
3: LOTS and LOTS of water movement... the sand in the ocean doesn't just sit there... neither should yours.
4: Realize this doesn't work that well, buy a gobie, and live with the dust for the 1st month or so...knowing the longr it takes to clear... the dirtier your tank was.
I lost my gobie 2 months ago after 4 years... my sand looked horrible in 6 weeks... I just bought a mated pair and they are keeping my 200 spotless... after 3 days of fog.
They are doing a great service for you... keep them happy and let the dust fly!
Good luck.
