Rinse SD or not

[bstoner]

I am getting ready to put SD in my tank and I am wondering if i should rinse the sand or not. I have heard many different opinions on this subject and just want to know what everyone here thinks.
Thanks

 

[dburr]

No, do not rinse it. It will take a few days to clear, but it's worth it.

 

[wrassecal]

I agree, don't rinse it. You need the very fine particles. Your tank could be anything from murky to a milk vat but it will clear up after a few days.

 

[sebae0]

i rinsed mine thru a pillow case and it was still milky for about 5 days, imo it doesn't hurt to rinse it.

 

[wrassecal]

sebae0, not to be harsh on you but if it was still milky for 5 days why go to the trouble? I just changed my southdown dsb that had been up for 6 months or so in the 55 gal over to a 135 gal and it was still pretty murky for a couple days.

 

[bang guy]

I suggest not rinsing it and letting it settle on its own instead of filtering the water. You will have some foam on the water surface that can be skimmed off. It will settle a LOT faster if you are cycling the tank at the same time.

 

[goldrush]

How about if you are just adding 1/2" or so to increase the depth of your DSB. Any suggestions? Extremely well established reef.

 

[sebae0]

wrassecal none taken, but it would have been alot worse if i didn't do it. you should have seen the stuff coming thru the case. thats just what i did in no means am i saying that it is the correct way, was just giving the other side of it. my tank is fine and i don't beleive it hurt anything by rinsing. plus i was in the process of combining 2 smaller tanks into 1 big one and had to add everything in quickly so that made my decision for me.

 

[bang guy]

Originally posted by goldrush
How about if you are just adding 1/2" or so to increase the depth of your DSB. Any suggestions? Extremely well established reef.
Mix about 1/2 bucket of sand with enough tank water to cover the sand and some flake fish food. Stir it once or twice a day in the bucket for a week. Then add it to your tank. The cloud will settle in a few hours. If you want to do more at a time use more buckets.

 

[trompet3]

bang - I don't get how that works?

 

[bang guy]

Once the fine grains of sand are coated with bacteria two things happen:
1 - The Calcium, Magnesium, and Carbonate in your tank water won't precipitate onto the small grains of aragonite you're introducing. This can be a lethal problem for an established reef tank.
2 - The sand will settle much faster once it has a bacterial coating on it.

 

[goldrush]

Thanks Bang. I want to ad about an inch to my sand bed(slowly).I didn't want to upset anything.You showed me the way. Halelulyah! (sp?)-lol