Cleaning sand...

[fryebaby9431]

Hey guys I have a 40 gallon breeder tank and my tank is FOWLR. I am running a hang on the back refugium
Stocked with macroalgae and live rock and sand and also a hang on the back filter. I am about to replace the hob filter with a protein skimmer when the refugium is established. My water perameters and perfect my water is crystal clear, I do my weekly 10% water changes. But how do I get the fish poop and little bits of algae floating on the sand out of my tank? Will the protein skimmer pick up the fish poop? How do I get it out ??


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[on the spot]

You could siphon it out when doing your water changes.

you could increase your clean up crew.

you could wait it out.

HTH

[billdogg]

You don't say how deep the sandbed is. If it is the usual 2" or so, I would suggest using a python siphon to vacuum about 25% at each water change. If it's more than that, it is best to leave it be and let your CUC take care of it.

If detritus is settling on the sand surface, you don't have enough flow and/or are feeding too much. Increase the flow by adding a powerhead or two to keep things in suspension. Adding a protein skimmer is always a good idea, but it, by itself, cannot do a thing about particulate matter in/on the sand. I would consider keeping the HOB filter to help with removal of the bigger "stuff".

[Maggie321]

Do you have poor flow on the lower levels?

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