Parameter swing adding sand

[rmiles54]

Help.
Hello, I’m not sure if this is where I should be posting these questions, but hopefully someone has some insight or can point me in the right direction. My tank is 180 gallons. Bare bottom. In the last 2 years it’s been up and down. Algae, bacterias, unexplained fish and coral loss. The last 2 months or so it has seemed to level out. A move has been planned for awhile now(across the room) and I want to take this opportunity to make a few changes. I want to add around 100lbs of CaribSea Arag-Alive Bimini Pink sand. The bare bottom has been nice but my wife and I have grown to miss the more natural look that sand has. The tank will be drained to be moved. I will keep around 100 gallons of water and replace the rest. All rocks will remain wet except for scaping and refill. Fish and Coral not attached will be in a holding tank. My question is will it be safe to go ahead and put my livestock back in once filled? Or should I anticipate some form of cycle happening again? Diatoms, new algae outbreaks, ugly tank stuff? If so should I try and combat or just let it run it’s corse? Any ballpark on how long if I should wait? I have 150lbs of liverock that started dry and has established over the last 2 years. I am also going to add a new sump and plumbing to make my setup a little more user friendly. Skimmer and pumps will get a good cleaning. Also what effects will the newly added sand have on PH? I’m able to keep holding tank up if it would be best, wife is not thrilled about that with the holidays approaching but understands the importance of keeping everything healthy. I’m hoping to get moving on this by Saturday. Looking forward to any tips, suggestions, or ideas anyone has.
Thank you kindly
R

 

[Ruben's Reef]

Hi. So the tank is actually running and you plan to do the move in one day but you will add sand, that correct, right?

 

[rmiles54]

Correct. Drain move across the room and refill. I would like to add the sand after I stack the rock right before I put the water in.

 

[Ruben's Reef]

Great. When you add the sand it will put your water cloudy unless you clean well the sand. You might run thru a mini cycle, reason why I will put the rock and sand but wait and test the water before putting any life stock. Also make sure the water temp is the same as where you fish and corals are so they don't get a shock.

 

[Pntbll687]

I would rinse the sand before you add it into the tank. This way you won't have much clouding and will be able to see fish back in faster.

I would also grab a bottle or two of Dr Tim's one and only. Add it before the fish go back in. It will add good bacteria and help if there is a mini cycle that happens.

 

[Ruben's Reef]

I would rinse the sand before you add it into the tank. This way you won't have much clouding and will be able to see fish back in faster.

I would also grab a bottle or two of Dr Tim's one and only. Add it before the fish go back in. It will add good bacteria and help if there is a mini cycle that happens.

There you go. That's a great plan. Let us know how everything goes.

 

[rmiles54]

Thanks for the responses. I’m still a little confused as to what to do or expect. There is sand and water in the bag. On the bag it says reef ready today in one location and another says fastest cycling. Are you saying it’d be best to rinse the sand (fresh Salt or RO water) to eliminate any bacteria die off that occurred in the bag? Thanks

 

[Ruben's Reef]

Thanks for the responses. I’m still a little confused as to what to do or expect. There is sand and water in the bag. On the bag it says reef ready today in one location and another says fastest cycling. Are you saying it’d be best to rinse the sand (fresh Salt or RO water) to eliminate any bacteria die off that occurred in the bag? Thanks

No. That's the same sand I use on mine. I put the whole bag on the tank since it comes with the bacteria. The only problem is how cloudy will be after you add the water but that's a good sand.

 

[Ruben's Reef]

If you use dry sand, then I will rinse it but no with live sand.

 

[Pntbll687]

Thanks for the responses. I’m still a little confused as to what to do or expect. There is sand and water in the bag. On the bag it says reef ready today in one location and another says fastest cycling. Are you saying it’d be best to rinse the sand (fresh Salt or RO water) to eliminate any bacteria die off that occurred in the bag? Thanks

I used 200lbs of that sand in my tank, and wish I had washed it first. It is incredibly Dusty and makes a mess whenever you need to clean it.

I would rinse it until the water runs Crystal clear through it. It will save you major time in maintenance later on. If you have any wrasses that will bury themselves, you'll be glad it was cleaned.

You don't have to clean it, I'm just telling you my experience and what I would do differently.

 

[rmiles54]

Thanks. Do you guys still like this sand? What type of cycle did you have? How much established rock ?

 

[rmiles54]

Well guys thanks for all the feedback and input, update on what has happened. With the existing 150lbs of live rock I opted to add the sand directly from the bag and not rinse. I transferred about 90gallons of water with the rock and replaced the rest with new. On day 3 I had a slight brown film come over the sand bed but that’s been about it. Turned my skimmer back on day 7 and has been working great. I read an article about using yeast to battle diatoms, May have seen it on YouTube also, Vivid Aquariums video if I’m not mistaken, only dosed twice, since brown stuff is gone and moved in some corals I had multiple pieces of. All did great, moved some others yesterday. About half has been transferred when I have some time to move the light from my holding tank and transfer the rest I’ll do so, hopefully this weekend. I’m working on placing everything to have a mix of color and room for growth over an extended period of time. I’ll update in another week if I experience any other sort of a cycle. Thanks again

 

[rmiles54]

Well I’m running into some issues now. Skimmer is working hard, I used the yeast for about a week, all was well. Moved more corals in. All coral is doing great, color is well, plump and healthy. I’m getting brown slimy looking stuff all over. It blows right off with a baster. Unsightly tho for sure. I was only lighting 2/3’s the tank. Brown stuff was only present where it could be in contact with light, so it is light driven to an extent. No fish so I’m not feeding. Nitrate and phosphate were slightly elevated last test Friday. Anyone have any suggestions or experience on what I should do next? Or just let it run its course? Thanks ..
Hope everyone is having a great holiday!!!