Stinging thorns in my sand?

[handbanana]

Ive been moving my sand around my tank and in and out of buckets recently and twice ive noticed tiny white "thorns" in my fingers. Just like Prickly Pear cactus thorns only white.
I disregarded it the first time but the next I figured something had to be up. they dissapear after 20 min or so. Is there something in my sand and should I be keeping my paws out of it?

 

[socal57che]

worms....
bristle worms. lol
Start wearing gloves.
don't stir your sand.

 

[hawkfishman]

i dont have to stir my sand. my damsels do the tail shake all flippin day so they do it for me especially my big bluefin (bubba).....when he does it, its like a small whirlpool starting up lol

 

[handbanana]

Great! I googled Bristle worms and THAT was not what I wanted to see.
A free gift with my live sand? Anyway to get rid of them?

 

[socal57che]

Bristle worms are an important part of your cleanup crew. They are detritivores. Keep them. Their numbers will wax and wane, but a large number that does not diminish (or that continues to increase) can be a sign of overfeeding.

 

[handbanana]

That I did not Know! Thanks Socal! Crazy how much stuff I keep learning off this site!
So I should just keep my hands out of my sand huh? I like to try to arange it so its level.

 

[socal57che]

Your sand bed is also part of your natural filter and disturbing it disrupts the process, not to mention the possibility of releasing deadly compounds if we are talking about a well established tank. Do you have a deep sand bed or shallow? You definitely don't want to be stirring up a DSB. Smoothing the surface a little isn't going to wreak havoc and I don't mean to scare you. I like to agitate the surface a little, but don't go too deep.

 

[shrub125]

LOLOLOLOLOL, i was just about to do this until i saw this thread.
What kind of live sand did you buy?

 

[handbanana]

My sand bed is only about 3" deep in some places. bare in others due to my powerheads. Thats why I move it around. Id like to add another 3" of sand but am a little strapped for cash at the moment.
My tank is less than a month old. I didnt think there would be anything in my sand. Im still aranging stuff so I was moving my sand around. it tends to pile up in places. Is there toxins in my sand at such an early stage? Theres worms so im ruleing nothing out.

 

[handbanana]

Originally Posted by Shrub125
http:///forum/post/3212873
LOLOLOLOLOL, i was just about to do this until i saw this thread.
What kind of live sand did you buy?
I bought 20 lbs of primium keys LS from this site. I definately did not SEE any worms in there when I added it.

I felt them tho

 

[shrub125]

Lol i bought a packaged store brand
Caribsea Ocean Direct to be exact, i'm not sure i will see what you have in it though.

 

[socal57che]

Originally Posted by Handbanana
http:///forum/post/3212875
My sand bed is only about 3" deep in some places. bare in others due to my powerheads. Thats why I move it around. Id like to add another 3" of sand but am a little strapped for cash at the moment.
My tank is less than a month old. I didnt think there would be anything in my sand. Im still aranging stuff so I was moving my sand around. it tends to pile up in places. Is there toxins in my sand at such an early stage? Theres worms so im ruleing nothing out.
Google "reef aquarium deep sand bed" and read some of the articles. As the bed matures it will develop layers of bacteria that break down waste. If you disturb the layers within the sand bed you can release the nitrates being broken down. DSBs are known for their natural nitrate reduction. 3" is on the shallow side of a DSB and the deep side of a shallow bed. You should definitely read some of the articles I mentioned. I wish I could post direct links to them. Look for the name Anthony Calfo. There is way too much info to post here.

 

[socal57che]

Handbanana, inbound PM.

 

[handbanana]

Got it. Thanks. Going to perhaps buy another bag of aragonite next week.

 

[socal57che]

you have mail

 

[ali19]

Originally Posted by Shrub125
http:///forum/post/3212884
Lol i bought a packaged store brand
Caribsea Ocean Direct to be exact, i'm not sure i will see what you have in it though.
Your tank is just set up right? You wont find many problems if you stir it up because it won't yet be full of the toxins yet so you could rearrange it if you wanted to.