I have copepods on my sandbed but how do i clean my sand?

[Warpigdave]

I have numerous copepods on my sandbed but I’m now wondering how I can even clean my sand with destroying my copepods. Or do copepods hide in rocks when lights are on? I’m just worried they hide in the sand and I’ll suck them up and my mandarin will have less food.

 

[Jekyl]

Clean as normal

 

[Jay'sReefBugs]

I've never touched my sand bed that's what my CUC is for but that's just me

 

[Warpigdave]

I've never touched my sand bed that's what my CUC is for but that's just me

My cuc doesn’t seem to do a great job at cleaning stuff off my bed. I have
6 nassarius snails
4 cerith snails
6 Mexican hermits
4 larger hermits (Halloween, electric blue)
A conch
Maybe i need more cuc?

 

[Jay'sReefBugs]

My cuc doesn’t seem to do a great job at cleaning stuff off my bed. I have
6 nassarius snails
4 cerith snails
6 Mexican hermits
4 larger hermits (Halloween, electric blue)
A conch
Maybe i need more cuc?

Try a bunch of small blue legs . They always seem to do great for me . Their size allows them to get into very small places. Just get some extra shells for when they grow

 

[Sesty22]

Grab a handful of dwarf ceriths!

 

[brmc1985]

My cuc doesn’t seem to do a great job at cleaning stuff off my bed. I have
6 nassarius snails
4 cerith snails
6 Mexican hermits
4 larger hermits (Halloween, electric blue)
A conch
Maybe i need more cuc?

How big is your tank. Sand sifting gobies do good work. I have one in my 180 and have never vacuumed my sand bed.

 

[damsels are not mean]

I have numerous copepods on my sandbed but I’m now wondering how I can even clean my sand with destroying my copepods. Or do copepods hide in rocks when lights are on? I’m just worried they hide in the sand and I’ll suck them up and my mandarin will have less food.

If you want to clean it don't worry about killing them. They are all in the rocks and probably in your sump too.

 

[KonradTO]

Why cleaning? The substrate has its own ecosystem with microfauna living off what's left from feeding. Why buying cuc if after you take the detritus away?

 

[jda]

Why do you want to clean your sand? Is there a special circumstance? I do believe that they all eventually need cleaned, but like after 3-4 years - even then, so like 20-25% every three months for a year so that the microfauna can spread back to the cleaned areas. IMO, routine sand cleaning is a mistake.

 

[Warpigdave]

Fish waste just sits on my sand bed. It doesn't look great. Maybe I need more cuc?

 

[PeterEde]

My cuc doesn’t seem to do a great job at cleaning stuff off my bed. I have
6 nassarius snails
4 cerith snails
6 Mexican hermits
4 larger hermits (Halloween, electric blue)
A conch
Maybe i need more cuc?

Try a Gobie. Mine is forever doing landscaping. I have holes under every rock. No chance having a flat level sand bed in my tank with the Sleeper Goby

 

[Mikosreef]

Fish waste just sits on my sand bed. It doesn't look great. Maybe I need more cuc?

What you need is better flow to suspend the waste and break it up in the water column rather than letting it sit and decompose on sandbed.

 

[Uriken]

How's your flow? I added a couple small magnetic based Hyger small wave makers mid level on each side of the tank to help with things wanting to settle easily on the bottom (Careful placement not to blow the sand around). Then added a couple sand sifting starfish and a diamond goby (sand sifter) and things have improved over a course of a week. I try not to disturb the sand beds with it biological elements being established within its layers. The pods on the other hand in my tank have made the sand and rocks home and any vacuuming process is likely to reduce the population a bit. Id lean toward trying to use cleanup crew that can do the work for you.

 

[Warpigdave]

What you need is better flow to suspend the waste and break it up in the water column rather than letting it sit and decompose on sandbed.

I have 2 sicce voyager 3 1200 gph, one on each side of the tank. 90 Gallon both at the top. And my return flowaim towards the bottom. Should I put one of my powerheads at the bottom?

 

[Uriken]

It sounds like you can use a bit more flow at your lower sand level BUT take caution that when making these adjustments that the last thing you want is to disturb the sand bed to the point your blowing the sand around which would start a real problem. The wave makers I added ended up being mid-level on the sides and I could dial in their strength to not kick up the sand and disturb the biological layers.

 

[wonroc]

Anyone who has syphoned their sand knows that their is a dark waste material lying in your sandbed. Im sorry, the cuc are NOT eating that stuff. That stuff is the decomposed waste and crud.

 

[damsels are not mean]

Anyone who has syphoned their sand knows that their is a dark waste material lying in your sandbed. Im sorry, the cuc are NOT eating that stuff. That stuff is the decomposed waste and crud.

The stuff that is left in the sand is just inert solids left over.

 

[RobB'z Reef]

they're super horny lil guys and will replace themselves in short order. Just don't over vacuum too frequently.

 

[Rick's Reviews]

I have numerous copepods on my sandbed but I’m now wondering how I can even clean my sand with destroying my copepods. Or do copepods hide in rocks when lights are on? I’m just worried they hide in the sand and I’ll suck them up and my mandarin will have less food.

I'm new to this sand bed cleaning, I also purchased a vacuum, my aquarium is still new in regards to others, nearly a year old
I thought similar to you in regards to sucking up copepods, I had them before I introduced livestock.
Now i just suck them up, they are in my filters, in my corals and like you on my sand bed.
for me I just do what's best for whole aquarium life, hoover If needed (just top off debris) pooh and crabs molts, I think narcurest snails dig deep but hide, some other snails also, I'll send pics... let them turn your sand slowly...
I turned my sand once using my net to grab all what I thought was poo and my nitrates went up so high I had to emergency change water