Bummer. Could Use Some Help!

[Zerobytes]

So, forget to clean the sand before I put it in the tank. Anytime it moves of course I get the sediment clouding up the tank and all that goes with that.

And there is already a thin layer in the sump.

I can deal with the sump easily enough during a water change but concerned about the pumps, pipes, long term headaches/issues and all that.

Should I tear down and start over? Not that I want to do that and will probably set me back a few months by the time I got it all sorted out. But, if so, now is the time as I just started cycling.

I saw comments where others put polishing filter socks on and waited for bacteria to cling to the small particles. But really appreciate advice on how to best proceed.

Thank you!

 

[Thingsibuild]

If the tank is just being set up. Suck it out with a hose, clean it up put it back in.

 

[ShaunRobinson]

Hi, I have very fine sugar sized sand in my tank and when I put it in I didn’t rinse it at all because I didn’t have mesh small enough so I just put it in anyway. It was very cloudy for a day or 2 but soon settled down. Put a filter sock over your overflow pipe with some filter wool inside it. Change the wool every day and it will catch a lot of the sediment.

 

[Zerobytes]

Thanks Things.

Do you mean take all the sand out and clean it? How do you go about getting it out without draining all the water?

Sorry, I'm new to this if it wasn't already obvious?

 

[Crested]

I had a similar problem when I set mine up. I got a bag of 100% polyester (the kind that is flat and rolls up, not the big ball of it) from Walmart and put it in my overflow to catch the particles and stirred the sand bed up and put in a new sheet of polyester daily until most of the dust was gone. The first few days the polyester got really dirty and basically turned the same color as my sand bed, but I guess that's how you know it's working haha

 

[Zerobytes]

Hi Shaun. It settles down, np, but stirs right back up when disturbed for any reason. And concerned it will always be that way which would not be good.

 

[Thingsibuild]

How big is the tank?

 

[Zerobytes]

Good point as I forgot to mention that. It's a Red Sea Reefer 170. So, I guess the display is ~35g.

 

[Thingsibuild]

Do you have a hose for water changes?

 

[Zerobytes]

Not really. When filling initially I ran a small cheap pump out of the Brute to the DT. I guess the tubing was about 6ft.

 

[ShaunRobinson]

Hi Shaun. It settles down, np, but stirs right back up when disturbed for any reason. And concerned it will always be that way which would not be good.

It won’t always be that way and will settle down if you use filter wool to catch a lot of the sediment. Mine was exactly the same for a while and now I have a sand sifting Goby which is constantly digging and the water doesn’t go cloudy.

If it puts your mind at ease and you wish to remove the sand easily then do as suggested above, get a length of silicone hose with a decent half inch or bigger diameter, start a syphon and suck the sand up from the bottom into a bucket. If you have some mesh that the sand won’t fall through then syphon the sand into this with the bucket underneath to catch the water. You can the. Rinse your sand a few times before adding back into the tank.

Shaun.

 

[Zerobytes]

Ahh. I didn't;t realize I could siphon the sand.

 

[PDR]

I used to vacuum my sand bed through multiple filter socks into my sump while the return is still on. Worked pretty well, just need a lot of filter socks to swap out during the process.

 

[Zerobytes]

Hi PDR. So, just the normal vacuuming process and try to get the small particles and route that to the filter sock in the sump. Would the RS "Fine" sock catch them you think?

That's an interesting idea.

 

[cracker]

Hello , I'm also one who will wash all the silt I can from any sand ! Consider vacuuming the silt out of the sand a little at a time. It will take a few times but a lot will be removed.

 

[PDR]

Hi PDR. So, just the normal vacuuming process and try to get the small particles and route that to the filter sock in the sump. Would the RS "Fine" sock catch them you think?

That's an interesting idea.

Basically yeah. I don't know much about that filter sock, but an alternative would be to stuff the filter sock full of filter floss and just swap it out as it starts to overflow when vacuuming.

 

[Zerobytes]

Thank you all for the advice. By siphoning as well just getting it to run through the dense filter sock I was able to get a lot out and it doesn't get very cloudy when stirred up. I think it will settle down over time and be Ok.

Will make a big, bold note to learn from this.

 

[brandon429]

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/t...ead-aka-one-against-many.230281/#post-2681445

I linked ya to the first post in a twenty page sand rinse thread because you are right it’s better to start silt free. New tank builders can see your build and start easier it seemed ok for me to link since it’s such a good example of pre rinse benefits

In no possible way is not rinsing a better idea, too bad the instructions on the bag don’t accurately tell how to handle their own product.

 

[A sea K]

I used to vacuum my sand bed through multiple filter socks into my sump while the return is still on. Worked pretty well, just need a lot of filter socks to swap out during the process.

This is what I do but use one of these instead https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/brs-felt-filter-sock-with-draw-string.html
I just clip it to the edge of the sump and the one (large size) sock is enough for my 80 dt without the need for changing.

 

[brandon429]

Zero bytes


if you could show us your reef now it would help to track long term aggregations and silt removal over time

on cell video it would be neat to see a corner of the sandbed stick stirred up lightly, to assess clouding if any



of course now it’s complexed with standard tank waste but overall what was the trajectory of this tank this last year? very curious. Your thread has helped convince about ten thousand people to pre rinse their sand for sure.