Deep Sand Bed

Grey Guy · Jun 15, 2017

Hello,
I have a DSB (deep sand bed) about 8 inches deep, in a 120 gallon tall aquarium. Lots of critters including bristle worms live and multiply in the tank. I have 4 small fish that are doing well. My coralline algae is growing fast. I don't have any algae problems and I feed the tank 6 to 8 frozen cubes a day. Yes, I said I feed the tank, not only the fish. I have to keep all the little critters alive and well fed, so that they can multiply and do their jobs well. I also have a sump full of live rock, a refugium, and an algae scrubber, which I'm sure helps a lot. My DSB is over a year old and has no visible pockets of gas or hydrogen sulfide. I sold myself on a deep sand bed, before I heard or read about them. I have had 2 or 3 shallow sand beds that ended up with hydrogen sulfide trapped in them. My logic was that if hydrogen sulfide occurs in the bottom of the sand, then why not make the bottom of the sand bed as far from the top as is practical. The DSB experts say that bacteria in the sand will convert the hydrogen sulfide into harmless nitrogen gas before it reaches the surface. There are many very successful methods, but I believe that the DSB is working better for me than all the things I have tried before.
There are many who fear that the DSB will become a phosphate spong. I'll have to wait and see. I think that the stability of the system is worth the risk.
Finding supporters of the DSB is very difficult. Mostly I hear doubts expressed from people who never had one. Hope this gives others a little more info than they had before.

Thanks,
Grey Guy

P.S. I HOPE THIS WAS THE RIGHT PLACE TO POST THIS.

luke33 · Jun 15, 2017

Hi Grey, equipment forum may not be the best place but oh well. There are many things that will work in this hobby so if you find a dsb works for you that's great. I tried one many years ago and after about three years the dsb went bad on me and nearly nuked my tank. That's why I've ran bb for the last ten yrs. I'd like to hear your thoughts in another 2-3 yrs. how old is the tank?

Grey Guy · Jun 15, 2017

Thanks you for your response, and I hope someday I'll have good news for you. My DSB is only about 14 months old. Many years ago, my first reef tank had an under gravel filter. State of the art. It was recommended by Martin Moe, that only 1 or 2 fish, and a few corals could be kept in this setup.
I said that, to say this; I see people on YouTube going wild with there 75, or 100 gallon reef, with a DSB. They load it up with 20 or 30 corals, and 20 or 30 fish, most of which are recommended for 180 gallon tank minimum. I mean, it's crazy to me. I think, "How can it last?" Well, it really doesn't. Then these people are made examples of why a DSB won't work. No setup will work if it's badly over crowded, but for some reason people with new DSB's think they can put in as many and whatever animals they can get. This is tragic for the animals. It takes a lot of time to figure out what any reef system is capable of, or what it's capacity is for sustaining life.