Time for a Nice Bare Bottom!

[Thle009]

Good luck. You can also just paint the bottom (on the outside of course.) And it still look good.

 

[john.m.cole3]

Should I put my corals in a 10 gallon tank while doing the removal?

 

[john.m.cole3]

I decided to put as many corals as possible in 10 gallon tank before starting anything. I moved as much sand as possible to the right side of the tank and rocks to the left. Got all that sand out with a squeegee and a cup, then moved the rocks to the clean side to clear out the left. I put filter floss in the dunno to catch detritus. It took 2 hours total. My nitrates were 40 before. The tank took over 3 hours to clear.

The next day nitrates have dropped!

 

[Steve1500]

I removed all my sand and haven't regret since. It's amaze how much poop they generate every day. There's an option to make fake sand if you prefer.
http://aquanerd.com/2011/01/faux-sandbeds-going-bare-bottom-with-a-more-natural-look.html

Anybody ever try the faux sand bed? The aquanerd link just says to mix with liquid epoxy and sand, but can anybody provide more detail on how this is done and more importantly, how does it hold up or does it cause any issues?

 

[Devaji]

Anybody ever try the faux sand bed? The aquanerd link just says to mix with liquid epoxy and sand, but can anybody provide more detail on how this is done and more importantly, how does it hold up or does it cause any issues?

there is a vid that IM did trying this out did not work very well for them. but I am sure it has for some ppl.

 

[john.m.cole3]

i ended up painting a stone finish to the under side of my tank so it's a bare bottom that has the look of sand... kind of

 

[shred5]

Anybody ever try the faux sand bed? The aquanerd link just says to mix with liquid epoxy and sand, but can anybody provide more detail on how this is done and more importantly, how does it hold up or does it cause any issues?

Yea beware. I heard some epoxy's can expand as it cures and break the glass.

I have never tried it but others have.

Personally I like white starboard on the bottom for barebottom. Not a fan of just glass.

 

[cracker]

Hey John , You will be very happy You took the sand out ! I removed my sand at every water change. Took a while but got 99% of it out. it's helped big time at cleaning time . it just takes a while getting used to the look. Helped with nutrient levels etc. Just look at the post removal pic. all the crud that was trapped in there ? I have maybe 7 or 8 nassarious still. I was amazed at how much stuff just settled down into the sand bed .