Substrate Size, What Do You Use?

[reefgeek]

Hey guys and gals,
Just wondering if everyone could chime in and let me know what they use in terms of substrate. In previous tanks I used crushed coral or a mixture of that and finer sand. Was thinking to go strictly with a finer sand for my 300 gal setup but would like to hear about any drawbacks or benefits that anyone here may have had.

Poll will close after 2 weeks.

 

[MrHermit85]

I wont be using finer sand ever again. I found it blew all over the place and my fish just made a mess of it every few months. My next sand will be seafloor special grade. I have also used crushed coral but it limited my livestock selection somewhat so i added the finer sand. Plus as far as I know crushed coral does trap gunk.

 

[chief hill]

Sugar fine in my tank. It looks nice and I have never had any major issues with it.

 

[bart84]

Medium agrinite in mine. I tried the crush coral and it just trapped all the garbage.

 

[EricTMah]

I use special grade now. One size up from sand.

I've used sand before and found it blows everywhere.

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[reeferkeeper420]

Barebottom.

 

[yveterinarian]

In my reef tank I use a combination of Aragonite and Fine sugar sand. I like the look of the sugar sand but so many said it was had to keep it settled so I went with a mixture and love the look. I think I used 75% fine and 25% aragonite when starting. Previously I had used all Aragonite and didn't like it so changed when I set up my new tank.

All of my seahorse tanks are bare bottom and I like that as well - easy to keep clean

 

[teebone110]

if you want substrate, the special grade will be heavy enough not to blow around, I wouldn't go with anything lighter

 

[jroovers]

I've been thinking a ton about substrate and started a thread in the SPS forum on RC for when I start my 120 back up. I guess it all depends on the type of tank you plan on keeping (SPS with high flow, mixed reef or softies with lower flow), and what depth of sand bed you plan on having. I've used the sand, seafloor special, and Florida crushed coral and there are pros and cons to each. Even the seafloor special I found was susceptible to moving around in higher flow conditions for SPS. I'm seriously considering going barebottom or getting some HDPE board to put on the bottom, or trying to do a board with epoxied substrate on top to give the illusion of substrate (something Phil suggested as a possibility). Also, you need to consider your livestock - do you plan on having fish that need a specific type, depth etc. of substrate? If so, you need to consider that in your decision making process.

 

[Pistol]

seafloor special

 

[scubasteve]

caribsea seafloor special is what i always use a few snails and a goby keep it looking like new for me love the stuff even after a full year

 

[teebone110]

I've been thinking a ton about substrate and started a thread in the SPS forum on RC for when I start my 120 back up. I guess it all depends on the type of tank you plan on keeping (SPS with high flow, mixed reef or softies with lower flow), and what depth of sand bed you plan on having. I've used the sand, seafloor special, and Florida crushed coral and there are pros and cons to each. Even the seafloor special I found was susceptible to moving around in higher flow conditions for SPS. I'm seriously considering going barebottom or getting some HDPE board to put on the bottom, or trying to do a board with epoxied substrate on top to give the illusion of substrate (something Phil suggested as a possibility). Also, you need to consider your livestock - do you plan on having fish that need a specific type, depth etc. of substrate? If so, you need to consider that in your decision making process.

I like the sound of an epoxied substrate, but havent ever seen it? I wonder if coraline would just end up encrusting over it?

 

[jroovers]

I like the sound of an epoxied substrate, but havent ever seen it? I wonder if coraline would just end up encrusting over it?

There are some examples over on RC. The consensus is that yes, eventually coraline will grow over it, and pretty much anything else for that matter. I think the current TOTM on RC simply is bare bottom, but it doesn't look it as its been grown over with a white colored coraline or what the reefer calls "calcium algae".

 

[reefgeek]

Thanks guys for all the feedback, bare bottom is a no go for me. I think I will be going with a seafloor special grade. I may mix it up with some of the lighter sands but only enough to make sure I have a nice loose sandbed that would suit a sandsifting goby or other related fish.

 

[yveterinarian]

I'm seriously considering going barebottom or getting some HDPE board to put on the bottom, or trying to do a board with epoxied substrate on top to give the illusion of substrate (something Phil suggested as a possibility).

With my first bare bottom tank I painted the underside of the tank with a sand colored fleck tone paint to give the illusion of sand. I still love the look of it.

 

[EricTMah]

With my first bare bottom tank I painted the underside of the tank with a sand colored fleck tone paint to give the illusion of sand. I still love the look of it.

I'd love to see a pic of this yvete. I'm debating going bare bottom with my nano build and would like different ideas

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[curiousphil]

I've decided that I'm going to go with a mixture of sugar fine and seaflor special grade on my new tank - about an inch of each. Seeded with a few cups of my current Florida crushed coral, because I've got lots of little brittle stars and pods growing in it...

 

[AdInfinitum]

I have been watching jroovers thread on rc with interest too....

For a long time the goal was to reproduce a "natural" environment as much as possible to get inverts to survive and maybe grow.

Now that we have so much more knowledge as to the needs of these creatures and the technology to provide what is needed...eg lighting, random flow, pristine water, micron sized foods etc. The move for some is towards a "better than life" model. To maximize coral growth by peaking the key conditions they require. Higher than NSW .ca and alk. Phosphates and nitrates tuned to max coloration rather than to mimic nature.

This tends to make sand beds and the pods they grow and microscopic larva produced obsolete and unnecessary.

Darrlyv's tank was a great example...no fuge, interceptor used regularly to eliminate uncontrolled fauna, an orchestrated system producing coral growth above and beyond nature. The extension of that philosophy is bare or synthetic bottom if your goal is to grow beautiful coral colonies quickly as the primary focus of the hobby.

Alternately the challenge of building wider ranging ecosystems is a different goal, incorporating burrowing wrasses and shrimps and pod eating dragonets for whom some depth of substrate and edible fauna are required. Those compromises may lead to slower coral growth and a different aesthetic and different challenges.

The Coral Tank has become another specialized option in this hobby now which IMO is as significantly different than a Reef Tank as is a FOWLER.

BTW I use a mix of seafloor special and medium aragonite sand in the reef and the fish and softy tank.

 

[J_T]

I used fine sand... 8" of it takes time, but it doesnt blow around now. I have three of the jeb pumps on random flow patterns. Most mornings there is a rippled effect in the tank. The back and forth of the sand, and my gobies sleeping leaves it looking nice. Then they wake up, and start moving it. But it stays on the bottom. Not my rock, or corals.


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[yveterinarian]

I'd love to see a pic of this yvete. I'm debating going bare bottom with my nano build and would like different ideas

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Here are a couple of pictures of the tank. The first is the underside when I was painting it and the second was after it was done. (Ignore the bit of diatoms, the tank was just getting started up, but very easy to clean off)