Current thoughts on a DSB for a new tank?

[LivingSeas]

I just ordered my 300g. Should get it next week. I've been doing a lot of reading and some seem to
love a DSB, others a shalllow sand bed, and others bare bottom.

If it matters.. I plan on having about 200 lbs of live rock in the DT and the refugium will be
about 60g + 40 g sump/return. If I go DSB I will have a bunch of sand shifting snails annd such.

I'd like to get your thoughts on which to go with and why?

Thanks,
Mike

 

[KSzegi]

Seems like a DSB is one of those things that you either 'love em or hate em'. I am one that loves 'em. I will say, however, that my oldest dsb is only about 2 years old so I'm not qualified to endorse them for the real long term. My 90 has had the dsb for 3 years and my 300 is going on one year next month. I had run the dsb in the 90 for a year and a half or so when I upgraded my 180 to a 300 ...... and went from a shallow to a dsb because of the success I had with it in the 90.

I read so much for and against them before I decided to try and it is going to come down to what you want, what you like the looks of and what your management theory for your tank(s) are. My thoughts were .... a dsb is much more natural than a shallow bed or a bare bottom, closer to the ecosystem that I'm trying to replicate. After research, in my personal opinion, a strong case was made for the benefits of a dsb to the tank and I like the look of it far more than a shallow or bb tank - and it is actually less work to maintain than the other options. And after running them .... my opinion has not changed.

If you do go with a dsb, I would be careful about what sand-sifters you put in it. You don't want to add any 'sifter' that will hunt and eat the organisms/infauna that you need in the sand to keep it effective in it's filtration, and you don't want the sand bed constantly disturbed.....so some gobies, some sea stars etc are to be avoided.

I think it is important to keep in mind too that you can have a successful tank no matter what you choose - dsb, ssb, bb - and ultimately you have to decide what you want and go for it!

 

[LivingSeas]

Yea that was the very ambigious information I was coming up with.. but as you said.. it seems to make
sense from an ecosystem point of view and it looks dam nice IMHO..

I would like to get a sea star or brittle star.. Can you recommend ones that work with a DSB? How about clean up crew?

 

[KSzegi]

I do have several serpent stars in my 300 and some brittles in my 90 - they really aren't sand sifting stars, don't do any burrowing and hunting of the infauna within the bed.... which is part of your clean up crew! I think most of the brittles/serpents are safe except for the large green ones - which are predatory. I have a lot of micro-brittles too but you never really see them - just a striped little arm occasionally. As far as other clean up crew - bristle worms and other sand-living worms, I use trochus, nerite, cerith and a few nassarius and astrea - and I also have a couple of fighting conch. Other than that I do have a quite a few chitons and a couple of cucumbers.

As another hint - be patient with your dsb, it does take awhile to mature if you don't start with the Real live sand. If you are starting with dry sand like I did in my 300 .... I would suggest seeding it from an established tank and/or buying a detrivore kit or a few critters to start with.

 

[Downbeach]

Good read here:

Ron Shimek's Website...Deep Sand Beds

Good info and place to buy your infauna here:

: : : : Indo-Pacific Sea Farms : : : :

 

[Cooterbrown]

if you go DSB after a few months get a conch and a crapload of ness snails they do a good job. my favorite is my pink cucumber. he cleans about a sq ft of sand a day and gets it crystal clean. I'm using silica sand as it was cheap and i like the stark white color.

 

[spscrazy]

I liked my dsb until I had to take it out because my damsels & maroon clown decided it was a good idea to move 4-5" one day thought they were done but a few days later they moved a like amount in a different area did it several more times & wrecked havoc on my tank since they weren't gonna quit I had to take it down to just 1" so be carefull of the fish you add I had no idea either would do this