seeding LR and LS

[englewood jack]

I have some base rock and 2-3 inches of quickrete medium sand in my tank. I will be adding some live rock eventually but I for know I was wondering if it possible to seed the rock and sand with Copepods. I see on this site they are selling 200 for 11.99 and I was wondering is that alot to add to a 90 gallon tank or just a tiny bit? Eventually I would like to get a 4WD Goby (they look sweet) and I want him to eat like a king. Thanks in advance for the help!

 

[earlybird]

Some people have difficulties with ther 2 spot or 4wd goby but I don't know why. I don't know anything about the sand you currently have. Is it reef safe? Sand sifting gobies don't just eat pods, they also eat worms and other microfauna that is in "live" sand. The sand can be seeded with the introduction of live rock or you can purchase a few pounds of live sand and seed it this way. Keep in mind however, that live sand plays a major part in the denitrification process and sand sifting fish will deplete the sand of both good and bad organisims that play a role. You will most likely have to add live sand at regular intervals to keep it seeded. Hope this made sense.

 

[englewood jack]

The tank is about 3-4 months old and I do not have anything live in there other then the 2 fish and a few crabs/snails. I would like to work on getting the sand and rock teaming with life. When you add LS do you take out the other sand?

 

[renogaw]

the pods will seed your rock, but really should keep them in a fuge away from the fish so they have a chance to breed.
by seeding the rock and sand though they aren't talking about animals--they are talking about seeding it with bacteria. Earlybird is right, get some true live sand and in time the sand will seed itself. I'd definitely like to know though if that sand is tank safe--whenever i think if quikcrete i think of concrete...

 

[englewood jack]

How much live sand would I need to start the seeding? As far as a refug, I do not have one. The fish that I have in there would tear the 200 (or more) copepods without giving them a chance to reproduce?

 

[earlybird]

quikrete sand is going to be problems in your tank. I just looked it up and it doesn't go through any process to eliminate metals and pollutants. This would definitely do dammage to your livestock and could be detrimental to you rock and bacteria. How long have you had that sand in your tank? Have you had any problems.
Here's the website for the quikrete sand quikrete sand

 

[larryndana]

i'd take that sand out of your tank asap. or you will regret it later.

 

[renogaw]

Originally Posted by Englewood Jack
How much live sand would I need to start the seeding? As far as a refug, I do not have one. The fish that I have in there would tear the 200 (or more) copepods without giving them a chance to reproduce?
yea, they'd be eaten in no time. some will reproduce and find homes, but 20lbs of rock isn't enough to give enough hiding space.

 

[englewood jack]

I have researched the sand and have seen on many forums people have used it with great success. It is very fine and clean (rinsed it very well). I used to have CC in there and swapped it out approx 2 1/2 mos ago. I have not had any other problems (other then an algae issue). It is much more fine and cleaner then the playsand that some use in their tanks.

 

[renogaw]

depending on what it is made out of though it may have high quantity of silicates, which will cause you to have algae problems the rest of your tank's life.

 

[englewood jack]

Originally Posted by renogaw
yea, they'd be eaten in no time. some will reproduce and find homes, but 20lbs of rock isn't enough to give enough hiding space.
I have much more then 20LBS of rock in the tank, it is not stacked up like some but it is spread (large pieces, 10-12" long, 6" high) from one end to the other in a horseshoe shape [_----_]. I was hoping I could purchase 2-3 of the 200 packs and put them in there. I do believe this rock used to be live at one time or another but between the time first owner owned it and it being setup in my house, it was dried out.

 

[earlybird]

Originally Posted by Englewood Jack
I have much more then 20LBS of rock in the tank, it is not stacked up like some but it is spread (large pieces, 10-12" long, 6" high) from one end to the other in a horseshoe shape [_----_]. I was hoping I could purchase 2-3 of the 200 packs and put them in there. I do believe this rock used to be live at one time or another but between the time first owner owned it and it being setup in my house, it was dried out.
Wouldn't be a bad idea to buy 10lbs of live sand and some live rock from swf.com. Your rock died when it dried out and you lost a lot of beneficial organisms that live in the rock and I'm not speaking of bacteria. Lots of hitchhikers, mostly good and some bad (not always) come with live rock. The live sand and live rock will seed your current sand. When adding this keep in mind there will be a little die off and your tank might have a level spike. Depending on how big of a spike, you may have to put your fish in a seperate tank for a few days. If its small you can do water changes. Then I'm sure at night time within a few weeks you'll have some pods. At this time you can help your numbers by buying pods. The more rock, the more refuge for the pods to continue to reproduce and have a permanent population in your tank. It's not a speedy process.

 

[larryndana]

ok, i understand cutting corners. i wouldn't agree with doing that with your sand. i've been looking at prices online, seem like about 15 to 20 dollars you saved per 40lb bags.
remember this is just my opinion, not flaming you. I hope it works out.

 

[renogaw]

without a fuge the copepods will get eaten and will not be able to reproduce safely. no matter how much rock you have in there. period. if you plan to get a mandarin forget about it, it will starve to death. if you don't plan to get a mandarin, don't worry about the pods.

 

[earlybird]

Originally Posted by renogaw
without a fuge the copepods will get eaten and will not be able to reproduce safely. no matter how much rock you have in there. period. if you plan to get a mandarin forget about it, it will starve to death. if you don't plan to get a mandarin, don't worry about the pods.
There was a post on here in the archives that I ran across. The guy did not have a sump or fuge but had a fairly large pvc pipe in the back of his tank. There were no pictures but from what I gathered, he had some rubble in there and the pvc was capped at both ends. He had drilled slits into the pipe and he was able to sustain pods. In essennce making a small refuge in his display tank. The guy just wants a sand sifter and IMO if he seeds his current sand with new real live rock and sand and then wait a few months he should be able to have one IMO. I'm still questioning his sand though, he said he researched it but I've never seen anything on that sand on here.

 

[larryndana]

there was also another post where someone suggested using a hanging soap dish. its almost like a oblong cup with suction cups to hold it up and holes where pods can come and go. he put it close to the top of the tank and put some micro algae in it....some others decided to put a little live rock rubble.
although, a pile of live rock rubble in a corner or back should be safe for them to reproduce. same goes with some chaeto algae.
the only question here is, would this produce enough pods for a mandarin. I'm not sure.

 

[cnall]

I'm kind of a newbie, but I added a few scoops of live sand from my brother-in-laws established tank and within weeks I had a variety of life in my tank...this could be a possibility for you, might want to ask some of the experts on here though if that would work.

 

[aztec reef]

yeah that's great for tuning your sandbed, but eventually it will be depleated that's why you got to keep providing biodiversity on sandbed. the pods need a fuge to keep reproducing and multiplying..

 

[aztec reef]

Originally Posted by earlybird
. I'm still questioning his sand though, he said he researched it but I've never seen anything on that sand on here.

it's silica based... so it's not my game.... I like to keep that $@!# off my tanks.

 

[englewood jack]

Thanks for all the information. Sorry for the delay, out of town. I am looking to buy a sand sifter so that it would keep the sand clean and from what I understand they eat the bugs. Thanks again.