LF Advice on a canister filter for sump and cleanup

[nim6us]

Hey all!

I've got an issue with my sand. It was the first "live sand" I ever bought, which means it was packed wet to incorporate good bacteria. It was recommended to me not to rinse this sand as it would kill the good bacteria. True or not it's caused major issues with my tank. There's this fine silt all over my sump and in my skimmer and return pumps. Every time I blow the sand to clean it it kicks up more of this silt and it just gets everywhere despite running filter cups! It's been 8 months now, and it's so bad I had to break down my Nyos and clean all the parts because I was hearing grinding noises.

The point is I want to clean this mess up once and for all. Go through all my sand and sift out this silt, then clean my sump and grab all the excess buildup there too.

One of the best suggestions I heard was to just get a canister filter fill it full of mechanical filtration, then you can just put the return tube in the tank, and vacuum away until your hearts content!

As this won't be used all the time, and just to clean my sand and sump, I don't want to go too high end and spend hundreds on a filter that is overkill for my needs. At the same time, I don't want to go so cheap that it's not fit for purpose either. I was hoping someone had some experience and could recommend a model that was ideal for what I'm trying to achieve. Right now I'm leaning toward a Fluval 106, but I'm open to ideas.

 

[Brad Miller]

Everyone uses live sand
I personally used it several times and my water was a bit cloudy for about 30 minutes or so but that was it...
I would think that your socks should take this out and or settle out.
You sure you're not confusing detritus with the silt ?

 

[nim6us]

Did you rinse the live sand? I think that’s where I went wrong.

I’m fairly sure it’s not detritus. It’s white and like a chalky powder. My filter cups catch the bulk of it but the fact it’s not getting all of it leads me to believe it’s too fine. Again making me think it’s silt and not just detritus.

Either way it needs cleaned, any advice on the canister filter?

 

[Brad Miller]

Nope, never rinsed...
What exact kind did you buy ?

 

[nim6us]

CaribSea Aragalive Fiji Pink Live Sand

 

[cracker]

Hello nim6us, I'd wet vac it all out . Then toss it.get new sand & "rinse all the silt out " Save some the old sand to seed the new. After many setups over the years, the silt causes issues. That silt gets into pumps etc & wears them out . I believe the bacteria in live sand lives inside the sand not the silt & water . So consider washing all sand in the future. Sand & the bacteria will quickly reseed. I question just how live the seller says the sand is.
Have you seen the Bucket vacs from Home depot? They fit on a 5 gl, bucket are plenty strong,cost around 50 $. I use mine all the time for tight areas like sumps.

 

[nim6us]

Yeah in retrospect I should have washed the sand, ALWAYS wash the sand. I was just so obsessed with getting a jump start on my cycle, thinking this live sand would shave weeks off my overall time. In the end it was almost 8 weeks anyway, so lesson learned.

There are no shortcuts in this hobby

 

[davocean]

Live sand can come w/ a lot of dieoff.
I prefer dry, and when possible a scoop of established sand to seed it.

I learned the hard way a long time ago taking advice from some people telling me how that dust helps w/ anerobic benefits or something, ugh, never again!
Every time I moved anything or adjusted scape my tank was clouded for days.
Always rinse sand!