upgrading and I need some advice

[JVH]

Thanks everyone in advance for reading my lengthy message/question.

I was at Reef a Pooluza this weekend and I ordered a CAD Versa 68g tank. I'm excited to get it and its not as fancy underneath as Red Sea reefer or some others but the price was amazing and the tank itself is beautiful made. Nice Glass and customizable sump.
I have several questions and I am in need of advice on the transfer.
I will try to be as efficient in my questions as possible.

SO, I currently have a 29g w/30lbs of live rock. I have many (LARGE) bristle worms that some say they are good and harmless and others say they clean the sand.. Well I think one killed my baby Maxima clam (different sorry for a different day) But I would like NOT to bring them over to the new tank..

For my new Tank...

Should I get all new rock, sand and water and cycle from scratch?
Should I do weekly water changes (which I do) and add that water to the new tank? Then top off w/ rodi to complete? To jump start the cycle?
Most important Should I dry out or freshwater dip my existing live rock and add to the new tank and rock? I really would like to avoid bringing over bristle worms..
That being said, I guess I have to start with new substrate? I wanted a dragonet so I feel like I am leaving my pod population but I am leaving other critters as well..
Plus I would like to use some if not all of my 30lbs of live rock.
Is drying out after freshwater dip good?

Any thought, advise or direction on how to transfer an upgrade?
And regarding substrate, I LOVE the look of the black sand. I heard it looks dirty quicker. More than the white? Any other disadvantages to black sand? I don't care that it doesn't look natural.. Its not natural to have a reef in your living room! LOL
I normally WC and vacuum every 7 to 10 days. Will that increase with black sand?

Well, thanks for reading and please bring on the advice and any pic with different sand or gravel..

 

[hunter01975]

you should bleach your live rock rinse in rodi water let sit and dry for a few days, then soak in rodi water with a de chlorinator for a day and then let them dry for at least a week.

black sand is amazing.. I ran it on my last tank.. looks cleaner way longer than white sand. just make sure to wash your old rocks really well and get as much white sand out as possible. I would recommend using a power head to wash them under the fresh water to blow it as much as possible.
take a magnet with you while shopping for black sand some of the black sands can be magnetic. just put it on the bag and see if any sand sticks to the magnet threw the bag.

 

[JVH]

Thank you hunter! GREAT advice about the black sand! I'm an a big afraid to do anything to the rock...You don't think just fresh water soak and dry in the sun a few days wont be enough?

 

[hunter01975]

to be honest man I am not 100% sure you will kill off all the living organics on it with out bleaching the rocks.. And I would say it would be well worth it to bleach now than have a pest issue later in your new tank. some folks ever use muriatic acid to clean rocks..
Also a good rule of thumb is to get a little 10 gallon tank and quarantine your corals for a few weeks. and to make sure and dip corals before putting them into qt tank.. this will help keep pest down a ton.. doing this will keep your main tank a lot less likely to get pest. I would go buy a brand new 10 gallon tank tho so you know that no copper treatment has ever been used.. do the petco 1 per gallon sale.

 

[booth2010]

I would do the bleach bath, its not hard and after you let the rock soak afterwards there isnt much to be afraid of. I agree with hunter, I do not know for 100% certainty that a freshwater soak and leaving out for a few days would do the trick. All depends on how hardy them little jerks are lol. (BTW not sure if thats an okay word here, please star it out if it aint)

 

[JVH]

lol! I can't imagine saying "little jerks" is bad! Whops! Will soon find out I guess...I
Well, since my tank is a week away from arriving and several weeks from setting up, I'll have to think about it.. Maybe a freshwater dip/soak and sun bath from 2 weeks will kill the hitchhikers!

 

[kschweer]

Congrats on the new tank! I was looking at them at RAP and they are very nice. I too would go with either a bleach bath or a bath in a strong water/vinegar solution. If you decide to reuse your rock. I would not reuse your sand wether you go with black or not. A lot gets trapped in the sand and once you disturb it moving it only bad things can happen in my experience. And as said above some of the black sand can be magnetic so watch out for that. Best of luck and be sure to start a build thread when you're setting everything up.

Also where in NJ are you located? I'm from jersey too.

 

[JVH]

Kschweer, Thank! I'm very excited to get it going.. I was originally looking into the Red Sea reefer but this was cheaper and ordering it at the show I got 30% off! It was a hard deal to pass up. Sup isn't as nice of a set up but glass looks just as nice and strong!
Thank for the advice. I think I will go with a strong vinegar bath then a long fresh water soak! Also, I will check on the magnetism of the black sand! If its ok in the bag I should be good?
Also Im in North Jersey Sussex county. You?

 

[kschweer]

No problem. If you search around the site you should be able to gather a bit more info on the dofferent black sands. Some brands tend to have more that attracts to the magnets then others. I'm down south in Brigantine (right by Atlantic city).