Sand, crush coral or nothing on bottom of tank

[thetrex]

Good Morning
I am going to start the set up on my new 90 gallon tank and I am at a cross road. Should I place nothing on the bottom of the tank. I like this look and I think it would make it realy easy to keep the fron of the tank clean. I realy dont like sand and crush corals are ok but a lot of uneaten food get trapped in the crushed corals. My LFS is starting a 220gallon tank and has nothing on the bottom of their tank and it looks good. I also heard about using star board and in sort of ify on that. Any coments or sugestions.

 

[nicetry]

Steer clear of crushed coral. While usable, the drawbacks outweigh any benefits. Sand is preferred. You only have to figure out the desired depth. DSB's are still popular and functional in denitrification. SSB's are gaining momentum, as are bare bottom systems with good flow, to prevent any waste from building up. Starboard gives you the look of sand but the practicality of a bare bottom tank. Which ever you decide, maintain good flow, strong skimming, have a decent amount of LR, water changes, sensible stocking and a form of nutrient export, to ensure good water quality.

 

[thetrex]

The bare bottm seems like the way to go to me. Easy to clean and if you have the right cleaning crew you shold not need to clean the bottom of the tank.

 

[connor]

i would use live sand or like reg. sand bare bottoms are ugly and if u were a fish would u like to live in just a box with a few rocks

 

[tanksalot]

if you were a fish would you like to live in a box at all?
I went with the bb but have a nice carpet of GSP and shrooms to cover the bottom. I should say once it all fills in it will cover the bottom.

 

[bigarn]

If not sand, then definitely BB. Stay away from CC substrates.

 

[edwar050]

Sand or bare bottom depending on preferance. Regular weekly maintenance siphoning will help either way-