Renewing my Salt tank

[Guy3103]

Hey you guys, been away for a very long time as I moved with my family to another country and left my salt reef tank behind.

I am back now and obviously there is nothing good with the tank... my powder blue died my dejardini died and all of the corals turned black and it's basically just the fish that survived now and the stones.

I already had my order for new fish and corals but I then thought maybe I should refresh it a bit and am now considering to completely change the inside of my tank by having new sand, stoned, background etc'.

I wanted to ask if anyone here had a similar experience and obviously would appreciate any useful tips from your guys about whether there any sense behind what I'm doing.

 

[Victor_C3]

It sounds as if your system, for the most part, is stable and well established. Unless there is a really good reason to start 100% fresh, I’d keep your rock and sand in place. Just give everything a thorough in-tank cleaning to remove excess detritus, but I’d do everything I could to preserve the biome that’s been established.

If you’re worried about a lack of biodiversity, just add a few pieces of live rock. Slowly reintroduce some corals, add a few members to your cleaning crew, and you should be back in action relatively quickly.

 

[hikermike]

Agree with above as I have had several similar occurances. If you have fish alive all can not be that bad.. If all dead, would tear down tank. Would carefully stir sand to aerate...do this with some narcarius snails and maybe a conch...cerith will also turn it over slowly. Change 10-20% water weekly until you are confident in quality. If fish alive, tank is in balance so be careful adding new creatures until you get your bacteria up and growing faster. Crabs/shrimp/snails=low BIoload and deal with waste issues.

 

[Guy3103]

Thanks guys but you know that feeling when you just want to start fresh even though the current situation is not that bad?

Let me explain more in detail what's on my mind right now:

The sand is very rocky and I would love to have that powder sands with gobys hiding under it. The background I have is of a strong blue that takes all the attention to it and spread this blue light to all the aquarium. I want to change it to a dark blur or black background. The rocks are all messy and full with waste of dead corals... I just want new clean stones and a new structure... just so it all looks fresh and and new. I hope this would give me some kind of motivation to start it all over again with the same positive attitude I had 3-4 years ago.

 

[hikermike]

Well...now that you brought the sand issue up.... You will have to remove the "ruble/rough sand" as fine sand will just sift down into it. In some aquariums, if you want both maybe you could isolate them with a wall made of plastic sheet. Problem is this: If you want a sand sifting type of goby (real fun) they will carry that sand all over the place. Rumors are true, I actuall would watch my yellow headed goby carry a mouthfull of sand half-way down the tank and dump them on my corals! Over and over again! This unwittingly led to his demise as he turned all the fine sand over to the rough stuff which either kept him from getting enough food or clogged his gullet but he died quickly.

 

[Hemmdog]

Well...now that you brought the sand issue up.... You will have to remove the "ruble/rough sand" as fine sand will just sift down into it. In some aquariums, if you want both maybe you could isolate them with a wall made of plastic sheet. Problem is this: If you want a sand sifting type of goby (real fun) they will carry that sand all over the place. Rumors are true, I actuall would watch my yellow headed goby carry a mouthfull of sand half-way down the tank and dump them on my corals! Over and over again! This unwittingly led to his demise as he turned all the fine sand over to the rough stuff which either kept him from getting enough food or clogged his gullet but he died quickly.

Wow the exact same thing happened to mine! He died mid-sift!

 

[hikermike]

Here's another maxim/rule. If it ain't broke, don't fix it...is so true for saltwater tanks. It always seems to be your expensive fish you lose but the only times this has happened has been when things were coasting along and I just wanted to make things better...like a 75% water change instead of routine 10% cuz the water looked "old" or wanted to clean off the live rock etc. Make little adjustments only. And by the way, breaking down the tank, saving the water and live rock and filters and starting new tank with them...it's still a new tank that has to cycle and then "mature" for months before it's like it was before. I know this from unhappy experience.