Deep Sand Bed

[tskyleth]

How do we know if the deep sand bed has crash???

Cheers

[Lester]

hmmm good question ... how an ???

[cjh]

knock the sandbed see whether it will sae ouch or not... if ouch means alive is break apart means crash....

[blueheaven]

What do you mean by crash?

A sandbed crashing can mean many different situations. Can be more specific?

[ciaolong]

the only way i know if a dsb has crash if all your live stock is dead by hydrogen sulfide

[mUAr_cHEe]

farnie question....

but gd question....

the only way like wad long-ge say....

you know your dsb crashed(died)... when all yr fishes die...

[hotlemond]

the only way i know if a dsb has crash if all your live stock is dead by hydrogen sulfide

a simple and logical answer to the widely misunderstood topic

well done, you are promoted to PhD liao. Now take a seat at the front roll with Ron Shimek

[kareen]

I believe at the bottom of a DSB, inevitablely there will be some hydrogen sulfide. Only when you disturb the DSB then the hydrogen sulfide is released to the water column. Therefore, I DON'T THINK (notice I stress I only) a dsb will eventually crash your tank unless you stired the sand massively to release so much hydrogen sulfide that killed all livestocks. The reason people change after a few years is because the DSB has accumulated so much debris over the years that it is now a nitrate factory then a denitrator (the reason you put one in)

PS: Pls correct me if I am wrong.

[hotlemond]

old tank symdrome

[Kelmen]

Well, in my case, the "crash" can be if many black patches are formed.

I got 2 DSB, main and refugium.

Main - 4", 0 grade sand.

Refugium - 6", mud type

Main looks good, at least upper got bubbles, and pods blooming. Also saw a worm.

Refugium - used to be good at past, but now, half depth of them are practically black patches. No more pods visible.

Tank just been running for about 3 months.

[ciaolong]

usally the hydrogen sulfide will not migrate up but unless do yourself (as kareen has pointed) or u have a sand sifter livestock.

The imaginary problem of a dsb is the presumed need for sifting in a healthy sand bed, simply does not exist. small organism movements "sift" the sand sifficiently (those are like worms and stuffs nothing huge like a star fish or goby) Any other other sifting of a health bed will cause serious harm.

another reason we also change the dsb is the reduction in fiversity of the sediment infauna as the bed ages. This is caused by extinction and replacement problems because the volume of our beds is simply too small for species to generate self-sustaining populations.

correct me if i am wrong

[Lester]

Does that means having a DSB is not good in long run ???

[madmac]

For any breakdown of organics, PO4 and N is release. Sandbeds are excellent sink for nutrients... if there are any, they will be stored there... until they become saturated.. until. The same would apply for bare bottoms tanks, if you let organics sit there, they will degrade into PO4 and N. Once the sink becomes saturated, serious and complex problems will arise, it can be sudden. Problems that may not only result in the loss of fish, which is in the highest chain of tolerance, (pls x out respiration), but the slow degradation of your corals too... I believe the signs will be there before a crash happens, jus be astute about it.

[ciaolong]

hard to say ... what is a long run ?

2 year - 3 years is quite a long time and u never know u might want to change your tank by then to a 14 FOOT hehe (somebody in perth did that)

the problem i point out with the diversity can be solved

just by adding recharge packs (i dont know if u can get in singapore)

basic u just add some new live sand into your tank fulled with organismz

also the post be4 i spelt diversity wrong (cant edit the post) sorry about that if ppl are wonder wat is fiversity lol

[Reeffer]

despite the many theories that people have put forward regarding dsb, i wonder if there are any concrete experimental results to validate the theories?

[ciaolong]

go read this book all these theories are in the book...

"Sand Bed Secrets - the common sense way to biological filtation" by Dr.Ron Shimek

[Reefbum]

IMO, if your sandbed is not reducing your nitrates then probably it is just a pile of sand at the bottom of your tank.Thats why more reefers are going for BB or shallow bed.