Oh, this seems like one of those old discussion that I seem to resurrect from time to time, but it's something that I've been thinking about a lot lately:
Barebottom or sand in my new tank?
This is one of those topics that will bring out adamant supporters on both sides, and each has valid points. The reality to me is almost entirely (almost) aesthetics, actually! It's not about nutrient build up, keeping the tank clean- you know, the traditional arguments one way or another. With due respect to the "it helps you keep your reef cleaner" crowd, I know very well how to keep a tank looking clean, so I won't use that as a basis for my decision.
I've maintained deep sand beds, shallow sand beds, rubble bottoms, Ricordea bottoms-all sorts of substrates-during my reefing "career", and I'm just as open to any of these ideas as I would be if I never even had a reef before. I even saw some tank at MACNA that used good old crushed coral substrates and looked awesome!
Weird. Why do I deliberate over this stuff in such an agonizingly tedious manner? I know now that i am truly "back in the game..! "
I like the idea of bare bottom for really one reason, believe it or not: You can throw wicked water movement into your tank and not care a lick about sand flying all over the place. Yes, detritus stays in suspension in a BB system, which is a big plus when you feed a lot, but the aesthetics are a bit annoying to me, at least early on, before coralline and such grows on the bottom. I'm not sure what it always bothers me...I mean, with a beautiful rock scape and a lush growth of colorful corals, the last thing you'll focus on is the bottom, I think.
We just set up two of our 500 gallon show tanks here at UC- and one is a bare bottom soft coral-dominated tank, the other a stony coral-dominant tank and bare bottom, with what will ultimately be a rubble-zone area at one side.
I like them both.
Dang.
Ever had this dilemma? It was big deal in 2005. Not so much these days.
Except to this weird.
I guess a coral purist would say not to do anything-add anything- that detracts from the corals, and that includes sand or other substrates. Or, that it represents bioload and competes with corals for available nutrients, trace elements, etc. A reef tank- or more properly, a coral tank, doesn't need all of that distraction...
But I'm building a reef tank. I think. Right?
And of course, the pro-substrate gang would say that the substrate provides a more natural aesthetic simulation of the reef environment, provides more homes for micro-fauna, on-site nutrient processing, fosters some food for corals, and other biological benefits.
So that just levels the playing field for each camp, right?
I also tend to think about this in terms of my setup. I'm planning on using an AIO tank, which will not have a traditional sump-type setup, and as such, cannot really have a "traditional" refugium (although these days, I tend to think "refugium" is best re-quantified as a "macro algae refugium"- but that's a discussion for another post, right?). This means that the idea of interpreting a benefit of the sand as a biological" filtration adjunct is irresistible! Or is it?
I mean, bacteria congregate on rock, acrylic surfaces, etc....all of which can support a population of dentrifying bacteria quite nicely, right? Rock can be seen as "boiled", because it also has other "macro forms" of live living in it, all of which release metabolic waste, etc. as part of their life processes...
Urrghh! It's enough to make a guy's head spin. Or mine, anyways.
In the end, I think I'm back to the argument about aesthetics...And it's a matter of which way I want to go: As natural as possible, or more "deconstructed" and artistic? None of this would have been as difficult for me to get my head around once again if I didn't see a picture of a bare bottom freshwater tank not that long ago (you recall I shared a pic of it here)...That made me think, "Well, if the FW guys are doing it and it looks cool, that validates the reef bare bottom mindset, right?"
Oh, boy. In the end, it's about doing what makes sense for me. About what I like.
And my problem:
I like it all.
The "bipolar nightmare" continues...
"Fellman, just get the tank going already...."
I hear ya. Told you I'd share all of the nitty gritty stuff as I begin my build!
Thoughts?
Stay wet...because I won't in my own tank for a bit, I think...
Scott Fellman
Unique Corals
Barebottom or sand in my new tank?
This is one of those topics that will bring out adamant supporters on both sides, and each has valid points. The reality to me is almost entirely (almost) aesthetics, actually! It's not about nutrient build up, keeping the tank clean- you know, the traditional arguments one way or another. With due respect to the "it helps you keep your reef cleaner" crowd, I know very well how to keep a tank looking clean, so I won't use that as a basis for my decision.
I've maintained deep sand beds, shallow sand beds, rubble bottoms, Ricordea bottoms-all sorts of substrates-during my reefing "career", and I'm just as open to any of these ideas as I would be if I never even had a reef before. I even saw some tank at MACNA that used good old crushed coral substrates and looked awesome!
Weird. Why do I deliberate over this stuff in such an agonizingly tedious manner? I know now that i am truly "back in the game..! "
I like the idea of bare bottom for really one reason, believe it or not: You can throw wicked water movement into your tank and not care a lick about sand flying all over the place. Yes, detritus stays in suspension in a BB system, which is a big plus when you feed a lot, but the aesthetics are a bit annoying to me, at least early on, before coralline and such grows on the bottom. I'm not sure what it always bothers me...I mean, with a beautiful rock scape and a lush growth of colorful corals, the last thing you'll focus on is the bottom, I think.
We just set up two of our 500 gallon show tanks here at UC- and one is a bare bottom soft coral-dominated tank, the other a stony coral-dominant tank and bare bottom, with what will ultimately be a rubble-zone area at one side.
I like them both.
Dang.
Ever had this dilemma? It was big deal in 2005. Not so much these days.
Except to this weird.
I guess a coral purist would say not to do anything-add anything- that detracts from the corals, and that includes sand or other substrates. Or, that it represents bioload and competes with corals for available nutrients, trace elements, etc. A reef tank- or more properly, a coral tank, doesn't need all of that distraction...
But I'm building a reef tank. I think. Right?
And of course, the pro-substrate gang would say that the substrate provides a more natural aesthetic simulation of the reef environment, provides more homes for micro-fauna, on-site nutrient processing, fosters some food for corals, and other biological benefits.
So that just levels the playing field for each camp, right?
I also tend to think about this in terms of my setup. I'm planning on using an AIO tank, which will not have a traditional sump-type setup, and as such, cannot really have a "traditional" refugium (although these days, I tend to think "refugium" is best re-quantified as a "macro algae refugium"- but that's a discussion for another post, right?). This means that the idea of interpreting a benefit of the sand as a biological" filtration adjunct is irresistible! Or is it?
I mean, bacteria congregate on rock, acrylic surfaces, etc....all of which can support a population of dentrifying bacteria quite nicely, right? Rock can be seen as "boiled", because it also has other "macro forms" of live living in it, all of which release metabolic waste, etc. as part of their life processes...
Urrghh! It's enough to make a guy's head spin. Or mine, anyways.
In the end, I think I'm back to the argument about aesthetics...And it's a matter of which way I want to go: As natural as possible, or more "deconstructed" and artistic? None of this would have been as difficult for me to get my head around once again if I didn't see a picture of a bare bottom freshwater tank not that long ago (you recall I shared a pic of it here)...That made me think, "Well, if the FW guys are doing it and it looks cool, that validates the reef bare bottom mindset, right?"
Oh, boy. In the end, it's about doing what makes sense for me. About what I like.
And my problem:
I like it all.
The "bipolar nightmare" continues...
"Fellman, just get the tank going already...."
I hear ya. Told you I'd share all of the nitty gritty stuff as I begin my build!
Thoughts?
Stay wet...because I won't in my own tank for a bit, I think...
Scott Fellman
Unique Corals
War Coral
