Water Change

[SeaBee]

I'd like to post a stupid question. When I do a water change should I suck up the sand and try to clean it with that gravel cleaner thingy? Or will that cause a cycle? I have to do a 10 gallon change tonight so I thought I would clenan the sand a little...

 

[Bifferwine]

You shouldn't clean your sand. You should have your cleaner crew do it for you. If you do it, you will release a lot of crap into the water and could cause a nitrite or ammonia spike.

 

[dcantucson]

+1 Biffy
SeaBee do you have a special gravel cleaner thingy?

 

[SeaBee]

I have names for everything, do I not Tucan?

Nevermind what I do with my thingy.

So just suck the poo off the bottom? That ok?

I also want to ask you two what you add to your water. I use A and B twice a week, and plankton. So today I ask the LFS guy what THEY use...because I said look a the shelf with all the reef addatives you sell, what do you really need there? Now he sells me Bioculture and Carbon Source, biological filtration stuff. So Biff and Tucan, what do you guys add?

 

[SeaBee]

Oh, and I have 4 conch and like 15 Narsi snails, that good?

 

[Bifferwine]

I add nothing but calcium. And I add calcium about once a month.

If you are doing regular water changes, salt mix will contain what you need to keep most basic reef animals.

You shouldn't need any of the three things he sold you -- if you have live rock and sand, you've already got the bacteria that he sold you.