sand bed

[deer99]

can any one tell me if its ok to stir the sand bed when you do a water change. they say not to vacum the bed but just did not know if you can stir it.:notsure:

 

[elfdoctors]

Yes it is fine to do this to improve the circulation within your sand bed. However, it is probably best to do this when you are not doing a water change so that you don't lose a lot of the smaller particles.

 

[morefire66]

That strange!!!! I thought every time you did a water change, u
should always shovel the sand bed or crush coral to remove any
debris from it.....Please correct me if i'm wrong.....

 

[lefty]

It's fine to siphon out the particles on top, but you don't want to create a sandstorm and siphon all your sand out.
-lefty

 

[morefire66]

Hey Lefty as per your response, if you only siphon on top does it increase your nitrate reading?????

 

[pyro]

I'm assuming you don't have a deep sand bed, correct?

 

[morefire66]

Yes my sand bed is not deep, I was told the thicker the bed is the more problem you will have....

 

[lefty]

If you only siphon the top, it should decrease your nitrate reading because you've siphoned away all of the stuff that'll break down and turn into nitrates.
-lefty

 

[morefire66]

thanks lefty i will try this hopefully this week-end when i do a water change....