keeping sand white

[Psiber_Syn]

Ok I see these tanks and there sand is just glowing white how on earth do they do this? My sand is just reg carib sand not real deep I do stir it pretty often but it never stays super white I also just about every day find little rocks that I pick out and drop in the sump but almost everyday I find more rocks I have a nass snail and a tiger conch to keep the sand stirred up can't have a sifting star as Harley shrimp would more than likely have it for lunch i tried a diamond go by and my lawnmower I believe killed it over night I run my lights from 10 to 10 blues with the first and last Hr just moonlight whites run from 1030a.m. to 8 pm but I still have to clean the glass dayly so I'm just wondering what I'm doing wrong? Any advice?

 

[NanaReefer]

Following.

 

[Tyreef2016]

Following.

x2

 

[Roboson]

How big is your tank? And how much of the bottom is sand (as opposed to rock).

 

[Psiber_Syn]

Tank is 125gal sand might be half inch or so deep in the front and significantly deeper in the back all rock is against the back glass as much as it can be here's a pic might help

Looks much whiter than it actually is in the pic lol

 

[bubbaque]

There was a post not long ago, where he had really white sand and he said he did it by stirring 1/3 of it everyday.

 

[Psiber_Syn]

Even when I stir it it don't get totally white it's odd also there are spots in the tank that the sand looks a different consistency smooth and all then some spots looks more chunky with almost bigger pieces I dunno how to explain it lol

 

[Wilsoni]

I notice my sand stays nice and white when I sand vacuum it followed by dosing MB7. I have two Sand Conch and Nassarius Snails that help in between...

 

[Wilsoni]

Oh I also dose NoPox. The combination of that and MB7 keep my nutrients low and water crystal clear, which I also believe has an impact on keeping my sandbed nice and white.

 

[p7willm]

If you can explain it its a feature and not something wrong.

Your tank looks much more like a real reef than the one with the pristine white sand. When you dive on a real reef the sand around it is not a prefect white and there is a lot of stuff, old shells, bits of broken coral, etc., spread around. Tell your friends you spend hours each week making your piece of the ocean look more authentic. Tell them they just don't know how much work goes into getting the coloration of the sand just right.

 

[Wilsoni]

I had clumps in my sandbed at one point, I went through with a tiny stainless rake and scooped it into a pile then tossed all of it.

 

[Psiber_Syn]

Mb7 and nopox? Will have to look into this I have used chemiclean before it helped for a little while but eventually ends back up the same @Wilsoni

Yeah that's what I'm going for the authentic reef look lol @p7willm

 

[Roboson]

It'd pick up some more Nass snails. And some ceriths. Ceriths typically clean the top of the sand and Nas stir it.

 

[bubbaque]

Here is that thread I was talking about. https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/my-white-sand-method.252861/

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

Bump!

 

[ncaldwell]

My 125 has a black cucumber and 2 conches that keep my sand super white

 

[rovster]

I'm convinced the only way is with regular vacuuming. Only time my sand ever looks pristine is after I vacuum it. I have sand sifters and my pistol shrimp does a great job but it's very localized to where those critters hang out. I also have nassarious and conchs. My sand is by no means nasty but after I vacuum it goes to anew level!

 

[mmw64]

What is MB7?

 

[bubbaque]

Microbacter7. It is suppose to boost bacteria in your tank.

 

[Psiber_Syn]

I stirred mine up today we will see how well it turns out gonna doit daily looking for one of those little takes to get all the rocks out too

Anyone else use nopox? I'd like to try it but I don't have any nitrates or point of sale that show on my test kits