sand bed depth

[bkvreef]

I am curious how deep everyones sand bed is. I have heard that a deeper bed helps build up the bacteria that will break down waste and such. Is this true. And if it is wouldn't it make sense to have a deep bed since most aggressive tanks probably don't have any or much stirrers for their sand bed.

 

[nicetry]

For an aggressive/predatory tank, I'd look at a shallow sand bed, brisk water flow and good skimming. Deep sand beds are fine but they need to be maintained/replenished to make them functional. There are a lot of deep (and dead) sand beds out there. Only the ones teeming with infauna will give you the filtration benefits.

 

[bkvreef]

Originally Posted by nicetry
For an aggressive/predatory tank, I'd look at a shallow sand bed, brisk water flow and good skimming. Deep sand beds are fine but they need to be maintained/replenished to make them functional. There are a lot of deep (and dead) sand beds out there. Only the ones teeming with infauna will give you the filtration benefits.
How do I make sure that it is live?

 

[bang guy]

Most of the animals in a sand bed are microscopic but you can still tell if it's a healthy live sand bed by the number of worm tracks. You should see them against the glass in large numbers if the sand is healthy.

 

[bkvreef]

Originally Posted by Bang Guy
Most of the animals in a sand bed are microscopic but you can still tell if it's a healthy live sand bed by the number of worm tracks. You should see them against the glass in large numbers if the sand is healthy.
if it's not what can I do to make it healthy?

 

[bang guy]

Providing you have good water and good waterflow all you have to do is add some good live sand about once a year. From a fellow hobbiest with a healthy sand bed or from a store that sells freshly collected sand from the ocean.
This is the good stuff ---> Premium Keys Live Sand
For a once a year investment is really make the tank a lot more healthy.