Best Sand Cleaning Solution for Larger Tanks?

[ainarm]

So for those that have sea cucumbers, there are lots of dire warnings on some of the sites about them. What precautions if any have you all taken to prevent issues? And looks like the tiger tail or the Atlantic sea cucumber are the better choices for this task? Opinions? Also have read things on here about sand sifting starfish. Seems that a lot of the opinion is that they will die of starvation after a couple months. For those that have them, what are you doing to prevent that issue?

 

[ScottB]

So for those that have sea cucumbers, there are lots of dire warnings on some of the sites about them. What precautions if any have you all taken to prevent issues? And looks like the tiger tail or the Atlantic sea cucumber are the better choices for this task? Opinions? Also have read things on here about sand sifting starfish. Seems that a lot of the opinion is that they will die of starvation after a couple months. For those that have them, what are you doing to prevent that issue?

I can't speak to sea cucumbers as I've never kept them.

Sea stars will starve without a large and mature sandbed that they can cruise through. Age and size? I suppose that depends, but a 65G one year old tank worked for mine.

 

[MabuyaQ]

Get some sand sleeping wrasses to stir the sandbed to help bring up detritus. Make sure you have plenty of flow so little can settle on the sandbed. Get some seacuccumbers and snails to feast on what makes it to the sandbed. That way you keep your sand white and hardly ever needs manual maintanance.

 

[nmqtrhrse]

Bella