Crushed Coral - How do YOU clean it?

[Dono]

Hi All!

If you're like me, then you love how crushed coral LOOKS but hate the maintenance that comes with it. It's a known detritus trap and to my knowledge there aren't any good critters/CUC that we can use to help stir it (or is there?!... dun dun dun...).

In my current & previous build a portion of my sandbed (typically the middle area) has been solid crushed coral, while the outer areas that're less prone to being stirred by heavy flow are filled in with Fiji Pink. My maintenance routine consists of me siphoning the CC portion of my sand bed monthly with a gravel siphon -- and I'm frankly sick of it!

Is this life of laboriously siphoning my CC the only option if I'd like to keep it? Please share what you've done to help reduce detritus build up in your Crushed Coral Sand Beds.

My current tank is SPS dominant and I just hate the look of bare bottom -- but frankly that's where I'm at.

 

[jda]

The stuff is too large for sand sifters and CUC to effectively work. Siphoning is about as good as it gets.

I use smaller sand because the conchs and cucumbers can keep it pretty clean and I only have to siphon and replace every 4-5 years.

 

[Porpoise Hork]

I went with crushed coral on my 75g build and am regretting it. It's nearly impossible to keep clean. I mixed mine with a mush smaller size sand but that all settles to the bottom anyway leaving only the crushed coral on top. I have been debating siphoning it out to replace it with a smaller aggregate that will better resist algae development and be easier to clean.

The only positive I can say with crushed coral substrate is that my large polyp palys do grow out over it making it much easier to frag them compared to setting chunks of rubble next to the colonies for them to grow onto.