Jake Adams;4023481; said:
It is really a bad idea to use oolitic sand with in a saltwater fish aquarium, especially a nutrient heavy tank like a predator aquarium. Oolitic sand is used in some reef tanks because it acts like a manageable nutrient sink under some conditions; in a fish tank it just stores and releases wastes and harbors parasites. DO yourself a favor and remove the sugar fine sand from your fish tank.
With your average level of filtration the aquarium would stay much cleaner without any substrate to trap waste and you'll find your aquarium staying much cleaner and clearer over time. Most serious reefkeepers don't use oolitic sand in reef tanks any more either.
Actualy that is almost complete fiction for a number of reasons, and the statment shows some ignorance as to the biology involved in a aquarium.
Firstly Oolitic sand preforms the majorety of biofiltration in a system, the amount of surface area for nitrification to occur is around 3 acres per cubic foot infinatly more then live rock. Also, the sand will not store any more waste then there is in the water, as in if you have .5ppm ammonia in your water then you have the same in the sand, and as the ammonia goes down in the water so does the sand (except with DSBs but there are different things in play there). How would it trap these things? Its not a solid? Its not a gel? Its like a sponge, if you float the sponge in water it will absorbe some, but if you take it out the water drains.
If it was crushed coral I would agree, as it litteraly traps big chuncks of waste and leftover food allowing them to slowly break down and release unbelieveable amounts of Nitrogen products. Though this is due to large particle size (the exact opposite of oolitic sand).
Infact in a reef aquarium (as you discussed) you should be using even finer then standard Oolitic sands, smaller then .125mm grains are the best size for microinverts to thrive and naturaly clean the wastes in your tank. So anyone using anything larger then sugar fine, is relying completely on mechanical and chemical filtrations (which in my opinion is overly costly and much higher maintenance). But at the same time if done improperly the finer grain sand will cause problems, but if done properly (with true live sand, filled with microinverts and the like) it will almost completely remove the need for ammonia/nitrite/nitrate/phosphate water changes (water changes to replace trace elements is different though).
Yes the tank will stay "cleaner" without substrate, but ammonia and nitrite levels would be much higher do to the missing biofiltration provided by the sand. So that means more water changes.
Yes the sand can harbour parasites... but so can fish... and so does live rock... so if you want to keep parasites out of your system... then I suggest just filling a tank with RO water and enjoy its emptyness. Though more seriously, its call QT everything you add to your tank, starting with fish/inverts and continuing through any live rock or corals you add, thats the only way to deal with parasites reasonably as sand wont make a difference.
Haha can always count on kevin, this guy knows his stuff.
