I have a one week old tank now (10 gallons) and as I start to think about water changes, I'm wondering about possible ammonia buildup in the sand bed. I had a freshwater tank and that was always a concern with food particles filling through the rocks and creating ammonia pockets. But because sand is so tightly packed is that even possible? My sand bed is at least an inch thick, should I consider disturbing it occasionally or even removing some sand to make it shallower once the tank matures a little more? What do the experienced members do?
Aerating the sand bed
- Thread starter xbrl001
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I wouldn't mess with your substrate just yet, (finish the cycle first) but later on you might want to get into the habit of stirring up your entire sand bed on a regular basis though. Each month, right before a water change... Getting as much of that muck out as you can could be the key in the long haul. Run some sort of mechanical filtration for a few hours or so to polish your water and you should be set IMO. A little elbow grease can go a long way sometimes... GL.
GL.
GL.
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I wouldn't mess with your substrate just yet, (finish the cycle first) but later on you might want to get into the habit of stirring up your entire sand bed on a regular basis though. Each month, right before a water change... Getting as much of that muck out as you can could be the key in the long haul. Run some sort of mechanical filtration for a few hours or so to polish your water and you should be set IMO. A little elbow grease can go a long way sometimes... GL.
Thanks for the reply! I'll keep that in mind down the road.
