This is why I vacuum

[MixedFruitBasket]

I vacuum my substrate deep. Meaning I slide the tube under the substrate. I also only have a semi permanent rock scape so I can move it (which I do about once every six months) and get under it to remove the junk. And this one big bucket as to why. Oh and by the way I vacuum at least twice a week for regular maintenance so this is not build up. It’s only this horrifically bad when I go under the rocks. But it goes to show you what’s under there. And when I do it 2x a week the water is pretty dirty. If I don’t deep clean and just do a water change my water is crystal clear in the bucket. So you’d never know that much garbage was in the tank.

 

[paintman]

Yes but some people now consider that gunk liquid gold and will shame you for removing it from your tank. It's amazing how this hobby can have so many varying opinions. I myself vacuum that stuff out as well.

 

[JGT]

Yum, soups’s on.

 

[JumboShrimp]

Combine that with what a skimmer pulls out— our tanks are cesspools! Lol!

 

[BanjoBandito]

I like to "lightly stir" some of my sand prior to a water change

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

FWIW, I let detritus accumulate in my sump over many years to an inch thick mud. Not sure if it was a net pro or con, but it didn't concern me.

 

[62518161]

Never clean mine and it’s fine.

 

[PR_nano]

I vacuum mine but my back chamber (AIO) that's another story. There is a lot of detritus back there that I prefer not to disturb.

 

[brandon429]

fun trick regarding detritus variations tank to tank

make a tank transfer thread where zero rinsing of sand occurs, and in all work examples using other peoples reef they must keep all that sandbed waste intact and move it over

by page four, death loss of tanks galore. that analogy is handy because it doesnt undercut those who do store up waste in tanks at all, simply try and manage the waste in other's tanks a few pages and post them outcomes. there is an incredibly high demand for techniques that work that reefers can use to move their tanks home to home, lets see some muddy sand relocations done

*that specifically does not mean a single example, where the writer moved their own dirt, that's totally opposite of the description above.

other people's reefs someone guided, full of detritus, moved to new homes or as tank upgrades and logged for a few pages. there's a reason that work example does not exist on the internet.

 

[Townes_Van_Camp]

I give mine a vacuuming when I feel like I’m getting too much algae growth in the sand vs the glass. Maybe every two or three months

 

[RMS18]

I have about 3/4 of detritus in my rock champer in the sump. I also stopped vacuuming my sand bed every week, and cyano went away and my sand is whiter than ever.... Hmmm

 

[BZOFIQ]

I never cleaned mine, never disturbed it, never had issues, would never move it as is from tank to tank.

 

[MixedFruitBasket]

Yes but some people now consider that gunk liquid gold and will shame you for removing it from your tank. It's amazing how this hobby can have so many varying opinions. I myself vacuum that stuff out as well.

I’d be more than happy to sell it for 5.00 an ounce. I mean if it’s liquid gold that would be a steal.

 

[Saltandfresh]

I vacuum my substrate deep. Meaning I slide the tube under the substrate. I also only have a semi permanent rock scape so I can move it (which I do about once every six months) and get under it to remove the junk. And this one big bucket as to why. Oh and by the way I vacuum at least twice a week for regular maintenance so this is not build up. It’s only this horrifically bad when I go under the rocks. But it goes to show you what’s under there. And when I do it 2x a week the water is pretty dirty. If I don’t deep clean and just do a water change my water is crystal clear in the bucket. So you’d never know that much garbage was in the tank.

Can I ask what you use to vacuum your sand bed? I’ve been using the same vacuum for about 5 years. It’s starting to leak and I can’t find a replacement anywhere. Any advice is greatly appreciated!

 

[Dan_P]

I vacuum my substrate deep. Meaning I slide the tube under the substrate. I also only have a semi permanent rock scape so I can move it (which I do about once every six months) and get under it to remove the junk. And this one big bucket as to why. Oh and by the way I vacuum at least twice a week for regular maintenance so this is not build up. It’s only this horrifically bad when I go under the rocks. But it goes to show you what’s under there. And when I do it 2x a week the water is pretty dirty. If I don’t deep clean and just do a water change my water is crystal clear in the bucket. So you’d never know that much garbage was in the tank.

It looks impressive but this would not represent much material once it is filtered and dried.

I wonder if vacuuming sand does similar things to sand as waves and water currents do in the ocean.

 

[Ef4life]

I used to do it every week, but my tank became too clean ( zero no3/po4) I cut back to about once a month and it’s staying right where it needs to be

 

[Fishingandreefing]

FWIW, I let detritus accumulate in my sump over many years to an inch thick mud. Not sure if it was a net pro or con, but it didn't concern me.

Wait what? I only clean the sump and the sponges in the baffles. I don’t touch the sand. Hopefully I didn’t disturb anything lol

 

[blaxsun]

There's an absolutely gorgeous tank that was recently featured here that the guy never vacuums. He's got something like 200+ Nassarius snails pulling combat duty keeping the substrate clean. I'm going that route as I went with Oolite and it's next to impossible to vacuum. I'm about 10% towards my end snail goal, but I'll get there eventually!

 

[sghera64]

I have a deep sandbed. I have tried leaving it alone for many months and things "seem fine". But I think what really happens is the system decline is so slow, I just don't notice. When I vacuum 1x / mo, I have fewer unexplained problem (algae) on the rocks, glass, elsewhere. I have a Diamond back goby now that helps, but I use this simple DIY contraption to go very deep into the sand, really remove all the detritus and leave just about all the sand safely in the tank. Have a look at the video in this R2R LINK

 

[Jax15]

I vac once every 6 weeks. As long as you're consistent, it's probably fine whichever route you take. Personally I think it's better to pull out all the gunk in the sand as it doesn't really affect the beneficial bacterial, it's just another way to filter the tank. I also love the way the sand looks after a good cleaning.. white and lumpy, not flat with a crust growing on top! My style of reefing always prefers heavy filtration, leaving room to add a variety of coral foods / planktons / frozen foods to keep fresh nutrients working their way in, and old nutrients working their way out. It also keeps my inhabitants happier I believe, compared to restricting nutrient import to avoid algae. I'll always have a 1-2" sand bottom -- and I'll always vacuum it every 6 weeks.