substrate

[nofishnplease]

i replaced my gravel with 30# caribsea dry aregonit reef sand and 40# same brand of live sand. i have a few questions
1. when i do water changes do i still vacuum from the gravel?
2. should i get some kind of sand sifting critters?if so what?
3.i found a 1-2inch catipillar looking bug on the glass any idea what it is?

 

[trigger11]

Originally Posted by nofishnplease
i replaced my gravel with 30# caribsea dry aregonit reef sand and 40# same brand of live sand. i have a few questions
1. when i do water changes do i still vacuum from the gravel?
2. should i get some kind of sand sifting critters?if so what?
3.i found a 1-2inch catipillar looking bug on the glass any idea what it is?
No, you should not vacuum the sand. It will stir it up too much. Vacuuming the gravel was a good idea because the gravel allows for detritus to build up in it.
You could get some kind of sand sifting critter. I would avoid a sand sifting starfish though. Sand sifting gobies are pretty cool. Sometimes they can be jumpers from what I have heard though.
Not exactly sure what the catepillar bug is without seeing a picture. Sounds like would be some sort of copepod though but I am not certain.
~Trigger

 

[nofishnplease]

i have a hugh lion so a small fish is out of the question. is there any type of snails or crabs that sift the sand.

 

[al mc]

Nassarius snails are good sand sifters. The other organism on the glass: if it is 'colorless', probably a copepod. If orange/red/black.....probably a bristle worm.

 

[lecithin]

Yeah, def get a some nassarius snails for the sand.

 

[1journeyman]

Make sure you have brisk current throughout the tank preventing dead spots on the sand bed. How deep is the sand?
Sand "sifting" fish are a bad idea. They sift the sand eating the critters that makes your sand "live".
Bagged sand is a ppor substitute for true "live" sand. If you have a reef club or friends get a couple of cups of true live sand to seed your bed.
Nass. snails do a great job of turning over the top layer of sand. Worms, pods, tiny stars will occur naturally in quality sand and also help.