sand stirrers?

[ka0z4allu]

I need an idea of what I can put in my 10 gallon tank that will stir up the sand bed? A false perc is my only fish along with a small cleaner crew and a couple of soft corals.

 

[liquidskys]

I was going to say Tomato clown..
but the perc and tom. wont get along..
why do you want to stir up the sand?
I've heard that you are supposed to leave it alone as much as possible so you dont release the trapped amonia, nitrates and nitreits into the water?

 

[scuba-raru]

K,
Ive got a 10 gal myself. Im also looking into getting some sand stirrers, you can get some brittle stars they are good for that. Also sand crabs, get a few and they will churn it up.
Ive got a bicolor pseudochromis in there too but to be honest im thinking about trading him in b/c he kills all shrimp and crabs I put in, just harrasses them to death.
What kind of soft corals do you have? I want to put some in and need ideas.
Liq.Sky: you want to stir the sand to promote breakdown of waste materials in the sand, with the stirrers its a slow process so theres no trouble of shocking your system w too much ammonia.
Let me know about your soft corals ok, hope that helped.
R.

 

[ka0z4allu]

I have 2 ricordea, a small zooanthid colony, and a few different color mushrooms. IMO the mushrooms are a very good starter coral and my favorite in my tank. I was thinking about those little sand sifting crabs, we have tons of them in the surf at the local beach, but I really want a fish (goby or blennie) that will kick up the sand and be happy in my tank for a couple of months. I think I also need to find someone that will let me buy a cup of seeded sand with worms and pods and stuff in it, as my sand seems pretty lifeless. I have found one worm but he stays in a rock and never goes into the sand.:thinking:

 

[scuba-raru]

Someone recomended a Clown Goby (ive got a percula clown in the tank along withh the Pseudo) but im not sure how good of sand stirrers they are.
Id throw a couple brittle strars in there for the sand stirring task, you may not see them ever but they'll be in there mixing it up.
Can I ask you what kind of lights youre running? Ive got 1 9W 5000K Daylight & 1 9W Actinic Blue, think that would be enough for the soft corals you have?
Thanks
R.

 

[ka0z4allu]

I have a 65 watt 50/50 retro and two 10 watt 50/50. I think the mushrooms might be ok, someone may correct me on this, as mine do better with less light. As far as the others, they really need more light. I built myself a hood with a 1x6 piece of wood and retrofitted it with the lights. I got the 2 coralife 10 watt 50/50 self ballasted bulbs for 10 dollars a piece and the 65 watt power compact retrofit for 35 dollars off of ----. I think that my 65 watts is about the min. that should be used for corals. I think I am gonna add another 65 and take the 2 10 watt bulbs out. The canopy I made was really simple and I had home depot even cut the pieces for me cost me $5.00 to make. Simple design2 side pieces, one across the front, and 2 across the top, with a 3 small pieces of 1x1 screwed in an inch up from the bottom which allows it to rest on the top of tank and cover up the black trim on the tank. For access I simply slide out the whole camopy and it will rest on the top of the tank allowing access to the back. Just an idea. or you could get a light fixture that is prebuilt and will mount over your tank.
HTH

 

[viet-tin]

Originally posted by ka0z4allu
I need an idea of what I can put in my 10 gallon tank that will stir up the sand bed? A false perc is my only fish along with a small cleaner crew and a couple of soft corals.
u can get a bunch of hermit crabs. They do good at scavengin or even pep shrimp. I would stay away from stars because they will eat your fish whenever givin the chance.

 

[viet-tin]

Originally posted by liquidskys
I was going to say Tomato clown..
but the perc and tom. wont get along..
why do you want to stir up the sand?
I've heard that you are supposed to leave it alone as much as possible so you dont release the trapped amonia, nitrates and nitreits into the water?
I think thats why you are suppose to stir your sand with these animals. So these levels dont sit in the sand and build up. If you let it build up it will cause big problems in the future. There was a thread about this somewhere. They had some good points about havin a clean up crew.

 

[ka0z4allu]

viet-tin is right on that. If the sand is stirred up all the time, then there is no chance for detrius build up and such. That is the reason alot of people are going with a very small amount of sand in their tanks now or none at all. DSB have advantages in a tank, but they can lead to serious problems if ever disturbed. By keeping the sand turned over, you eliminate the chance of a build up.

 

[scuba-raru]

Thanks for the lighting info, Ill see what I can set up. I may just keep it simple for now since Im on a budget but soon hope to put some $$ into the tank,lighting would be a great addition.
Guy at the FS said I would do well with polyps and some soft corals w available light but not to push it too much. No hard corals.
Can I just add more powerful bulbs to my existing fixture? is that possible or is heat build up an issue? Ive got a cover that fits the 2 bulbs im using right now.
Good luck with your stirrers. (I didnt know Brittle Stars ate fish, arent they only algae eaters?)
R.

 

[ka0z4allu]

The ballast that comes with the tank is only NO mormal output. You at least have to have VHO's very high outputs or PC's power compacts in order to keep corals alive. I would recommend saving your money on the corals and spend it on some good lighting instead. You will be happy that you did. In the meantime read and learn as much as you can on lighting. And yes, brittle stars will eat fish. The green brittles are notorious for eating fish but any brittle will eat one if given the chance to catch a sleeping fish!

 

[scuba-raru]

Well those tricky little SOB's...I didnt know that about them.
Thats a good idea about getting better lighting Ill grill my FS guy as to what he recomends, its a GREAT shop out here that knows what theyre doing.
Thanks for the info.
R.

 

[ka0z4allu]

I will tell you IMO when you get ready to buy your lights, look on ---- or at least go retrofit. It's simple to wire them yourself and besides allowing you more flexibility in how you setup your lights, It is also a lot cheaper.

 

[scuba-raru]

Cool, will do. Thanks for the tip. Ill drop you a line when im ready in case you have any new advice. Thanks again.
Later,
R.
P.S. The hell is IMO?...I guess its like "in y own experience" or something

 

[viet-tin]

You guys are lucky. You dont have to spend so much money on your lighting. Your tanks are small so Vhos or Pcs will be fine. I have to go out and spent money on very exspensive metal halides.:nope:

 

[ka0z4allu]

cool add me to your buddy list then I'll be glad to help you if I can. IMO In my opinion
If you look at the top of the new user forum, there is a sticky note at the top of page , the second post down that has the acronyms or the abbreviations used on this website. It really comes in handy when you need to find out about the rotflmao, sps lps vho and all the other abbreviations that are used in posts.

 

[ka0z4allu]

yeah lucky in one way but I am saving as fast as I can to upgrade to a bigger tank. So It will be unlucky in $ in the long run!

 

[scuba-raru]

ok, youre on the list, Ill tell you what im up to in a few weeks. Thanks for the glossary tip too, sometiemes I get kinda lost with all the jargon, but thats cool.
Viet: small tanks are cheaper but you have to put up w a more sensitive system, Im gettin a 50 Gal or bigger when the bills come rolling in...then im gonna REEF the SH*T out of it .
Ill be in touch
R.