Live Rock Rubble - What’s That Then?

December 9, 2007

Live rock as we know is excellent at filtration within the aquarium as well as looking very natural.

[tag-tec]Live rock rubble[/tag-tec] is a term which is heard of again and again and quite often people don’t really understand what it is and what it can be used for.

So what is it?

In the large containers either at the LFS or at the distributors where the live rock is cured prior to being made available for sale there are loads and loads of bits of live rock at the bottom of the containers.

This comes from bits of rock either becoming loose and falling off, being knocked off during cleaning or some other method but over time there is quite a lot of rubble at the bottom of the container.

A lot of LFS’ throw this away however live rock rubble is very useful to the aquarist who has a deep sand bed.

For a [tag-self]deep sand bed[/tag-self] to work it must to turned over and for the deep sand bed to be turned over it must have a lot of organisms continuously digging through the sand. Not just any organisms though but a large diversity of organisms.

This is where the live rock rubble comes in - it is absolutely full of life!

If you are starting a deep sand bed or want to add some extra life to it then you simply get some live rock rubble and add it to the top of the deep sand bed. Do not add any large pieces though or if you do remove them after a while.

The life which is is the rubble will migrate into the sand and help turn it over.

It is also worth considering that you should do this every so often. The reason for this is that predation will occur in the deep sand bed and adding some more live rock rubble will add more organisms to the bed allowing for a fresh diversity of life.

The majority of LFS’ will let you have some live rock rubble for free, however there are some places who do charge for it. There are even web sites on the internet nowadays who sell live rock rubble.

Another element which live rock rubble can be used for is in the sump. If you have chamber installed in the sump then you can fill these partitions with live rock rubble to act as a type of pre filter and also provide some extra filtration to the aquarium. People used to do this with filter woo, bio balls etc however a lot of people nowadays do it with live rock rubble.

I use live rock rubble in my sump partitions and have to say that I have seen no bad effects from doing so.

So if you want some extra life or want to give your deep sand bed a boost them give live rock rubble a try, alternatively if you want to remove your bioballs go for live rock rubble - it really is worth it.


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DIY Hang-On Aquarium Filtration To Assist Water Quality

September 15, 2007

Water quality is at the top of [tag-tec]reef aquarium[/tag-tec] requirements, and also important for fish only aquariums. In any text, emphasis is always given to the need for excellent water parameters. Aquarists take care to ensure that this quality is as high as it can be and the level is maintained.

At the same time one of the fears of the marine aquarist is the appearance of algae. Certain algae are welcome, they enhance the appearance of the reef considerably. Others are certainly not welcome, such as green hair algae, or dark algae creeping over rocks and sand suffocating life if allowed to continue. [Read more]

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Feeding a Deep Sand Bed

July 11, 2007

In the salt water aquarium a [tag-tec]deep sand bed[/tag-tec] (DSB) is a very positive addition to the system. In addition to its filtration capabilities, it is interesting in its own right.

Why so interesting? This is because, if the DSB is functioning properly, it will have a population of tiny life forms that have made it their home. In fact, a population of these creatures is important as this assists the DSB to function correctly.

It can seem a little strange to consider feeding a sand bed. However, life and population numbers depend, among other things, on food supply. It is no different with a [tag-ice]DSB[/tag-ice]. If the life forms are short of food, then the population will decrease. If food supplies are adequate, then the population will be sustained or even grow.

The first thing to consider is this: is there any life in the DSB? Obviously, if there isn’t any life then there isn’t any point in feeding. The DSB should be checked, particularly at night after lights out, and the life forms will be seen if there are any. If there aren’t any, then they can be purchased. Or speak to a fellow aquarist who has a DSB with a good population. It is without question that the aquarist’s DSB must be healthy. A scoop or two of sand placed without delay in the target DSB will work wonders. Another option is to obtain one or two pieces of good quality ‘live’ rock and place them in the DSB. These rocks must not compact the sand, so small ones will probably be best.

The second consideration is: is it necessary and/or wise to feed the DSB? If observations show that the resident population is high in numbers then they must be getting food from somewhere. I hope it is not overfeeding of the aquarium!

The final consideration: is the DSB showing any signs of problems? For example, is there any blackening of the sand at the surface? Is there any blackening, or partial blackening, of the sand or parts of it when it is observed through the side of the sump/aquarium? If there are signs as described, then feeding the DSB may accelerate developing problems. There is a danger of dead areas where dangerous gases could develop. Any possibility of this must be removed.

Right, we’ve introduced some or more life forms to out DSB. Maybe there is already a good population and we want to try feeding. Feeding a DSB is the same as feeding anything else in the aquarium…overfeeding must be avoided. So, start slowly.

There are suitable feed items that can be purchased, such as frozen lance fish etc. Frozen food intended for aquarium use is probably the best. Flake food and the like is impractical. Some aquarists (including myself) have even used fish fingers intended for human consumption. (I have never had a problem with this. However, cut off any breadcrumb covering and be aware that additives may have been used by the manufacturer. Take care!)

Cut the fish when frozen (its probably easier frozen) into small cubes, about 1/4″ or so. A little larger does no harm. This supply can be stored in the freezer. When required, defrost in a little RO (Reverse Osmosis) water. Just defrost one or two cubes to start with.

Obtain a few clean and rounded sea shells that the cubes can be placed under on top of the DSB. The food should be on the sand with the shell above it. Put the first one or two cubes under shells spaced apart. Put them at least 12″ apart. Ensure there isn’t any air trapped under the shell. These small food cubes should disappear quite quickly. In fact, the hungry little beasts can usually be observed going for their meal if they move across the surface, others may well come up underneath the food. If this is successful, feed the same way but not every day. Once a week is fine. If the DSB continues in good health continue. Hopefully observations will eventually show a population increase. If required, increase the feeding by putting in food on an extra day. Is the DSB healthy? Are the creatures plentiful? Continue in this way but there is no need to feed every day. I suggest twice a week is quite ample. Do not continue to increase the food supply. Each time food is placed onto the DSB, move the positions around.

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Cryptic Zones

July 3, 2007

There is a scientific term used which is called ‘the [tag-tec]gradient concept[/tag-tec]‘. This term basically describes how various marine organisms can be graded according to the amount of light which they receive.

There are two zonal categories which are most commonly used, these are the exposed and the semi exposed zones. [Read more]

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The Deep Sand Bed - One Of The Most Effective Filtration Methods.

June 23, 2007

A [tag-tec]deep sand bed[/tag-tec] is probably one of the most common additions to live rock filtration utilised within the marine aquarist world at the moment. The other is called a plenum which I will cover in a future post.

A lot has been discovered over the years in relation to sand beds perhaps the biggest of which is the importance of the sand particle size and the depth of the bed.

Let’s concentrate on the sand particle size first of all.

It is beneficial to utilise sand particles in a deep sand bed which are normally below 0.2mm but above 0.05mm. Even after all the research has been performed it is still unknown as to what the actual ideal sand size is, however the majority of aquarists who run a deep sand bed in their aquarium utilise one which actually feels like silt when touched. There are other aquarists who utilise sand which feels more like mud to the touch.

The importance of particle size was found by aquarists who used under gravel filtration as their primary [tag-ice]aquarium filtration[/tag-ice] method. I will not go into the aspects of under gravel filtration as this is a type which is not used that much any more in the aquarium hobby, however I will quickly go over what was wrong with an under gravel system.

Normally in an under gravel filter substrate such as crushed coral was used. This was because the water had to pass through it easily in order for the biological filtration to function correctly. Crushed coral normally has a particle size of 2 -3 mm which allows water to easily pass through, however it also means that larger detritus particles easily get trapped. This means that unless the aquarist cleans the substrate regularly it will become blocked and the under gravel filter will not run at optimum performance. Worse than performance though is that unless it is cleaned it will block and then start to turn rotten. At this point the biological filtration is failing or failed, and the aquarium inhabitants are threatened by a second danger as hydrogen sulphide will start to form which may destroy any organisms possibly surviving the lost biological filtration.

No matter what type of substrate you use in the aquarium there will be organisms which will make this their home. A great many of these beneficial organisms will not live happily in sand that has a granular size either larger or smaller than they are accustomed to, they will not thrive which will therefore cause a large loss in diversity and population and the sand bed will suffer.

There is another reason that sand based organisms have problems with large grain size and that is that over time the sand grains actually stick together. They can be stuck together in such clumps that the water simply cannot penetrate the bed as a whole which causes dead areas. A while ago it was believed that this was due to calcium build up, however this is now not believed to be the case. It is now believed to be a secretion produced by the bacteria in the bed which causes this effect.

The granular size of 0.05mm to 0.2mm being so small allows the various organisms to be able to move around the sand as they wish without being hindered in any way, therefore they are able to consume detritus contained within the sand as long as there are enough organisms actually present.

There is a common term which is used within the marine aquarist world when it comes to sand beds and that is that the sand bed must get ‘turned over’. What this means is that while the creatures who call the sand bed their home are busy burrowing around looking for food to eat the sand is actually being moved around due to their burrowing activities. Turning over a sand bed is very important is it stops any dead areas from forming, and another important aspect of this movement is that water can penetrate very slowly through the sand bed fostering further bacterial colonisation. It is not unfeasible for a well populated sand bed to be turned over regularly, however again this is dependant upon the population numbers.

[tag-tec]Live sand[/tag-tec] is a term which a lot of aquarists and non aquarists alike have quite often heard about. Live sand is sand which has been taken from the ocean and is therefore full of the valuable life which all aquarists crave for. Live sand can be used in a deep sand bed as long as the particle size is correct therefore ensure that you check this prior to adding it to your aquarium.

Ok that’s the grain size covered in what I have to say is in a little more detail than I had first envisaged. Lets go onto the next area which is the importance of depth.

Another shortcoming of under gravel filtration is that it does not have the ability to convert nitrates into nitrogen gas. This is because the water which is passing through the under gravel filter is actually moving relatively fast and is high in oxygen content, for this reason the anaerobic bacteria which are required to breakdown nitrate to nitrogen gas do not carry out this function as the conditions required are low oxygen and slow moving water.

When a sand bed starts to get deeper than 2+ inches then anaerobic areas will start to form. Anaerobic areas in a sand bed are areas which are very low in oxygen content, this is because the oxygen is being used by the aerobic bacteria above. Water flow through these lower areas occurs partly because of the burrowing activities of the organisms which live in the sand but is primarily due to an activity called diffusion. All fluids have a tendency to perform diffusion and is basically where two amounts of the same fluid which contain a different amount of chemicals balance themselves out over time via utilising the movement of molecules.

It is these anaerobic areas which allow for de-nitrifying bacteria to function and therefore convert nitrate into nitrogen gas which will escape the aquarium at the water surface.

So an effective deep sand bed has the ability, because of grain size, depth and various organisms, to permit both nitrifying and de-nitrifying bacteria to co-exist and continuously break down matter all the way through to the conversion of nitrate to nitrogen gas.

When a deep sand bed is combined with live rock in the marine aquarium any solid waste which settles upon the sand is broken down via the deep sand bed and the rest is cycled via the live rock’s excellent filtration capabilities - a match made in heaven.

Leaving live rock out of the equation though when a deep sand bed matures the following will happen:

  1. Waste is broken down when it lands upon the surface of the bed either via bacterial processing or via organism consumption.
  2. The upper layer is so oxygen rich that ammonia and nitrite is converted into nitrate.
  3. At the same time the nitrate concentration is being converted into nitrogen gas the nitrate created in the upper layers is ‘pulled’ down into the lower layers of the sand bed.
  4. When the nitrate reaches the lower levels it is converted into nitrogen gas.
  5. The nitrogen gas which is created rises through the sand and diffuses into the water column before being released into the air at the water surface.
  6. The cycle continues.

Therefore with a deep sand bed we have a never ending biological filtration cycle which is complete all the way through to the conversion of nitrate to nitrogen gas. The majority of other filtration methods stop after the creation of nitrate and other methods need to be introduced into the aquarium to control this remaining part of the cycle, whether this is water changes or the introduction of physical or chemical devices.

In a deep sand bed nitrate levels can be kept so low that even professional water test kits can struggle to achieve a reading (provided that other aquarium management techniques are adequate). This is very beneficial when the marine aquarist is attempting to maintain sensitive creatures.

Another benefit of a deep sand bed is the continuous release of planktonic larvae. These come from the reproductive activities of the organisms within the sand bed. Along with the very low nitrate levels which can be achieved there could also be a continuous supply of fresh food which is beneficial if you are keeping corals which require feeding. For this reason it is important that if the sand bed is not located in the display aquarium but in a sump, it is placed after the skimmer otherwise this fresh food could be skimmed out of the water.

Building a deep sand bed is actually quite a simple process but it does depend upon where you are with your aquarium, i.e. are you upgrading an existing system or implementing a new one.

If you are an aquarist who is hoping to upgrade an existing sand bed system then I would recommend that you do not add more than 1 inch of sand depth per month. The reason for this is that you need to give the organisms which already exist in your existing sand time to move upwards in the sand. If you add say 4 inches of sand in one big go then the organisms would not have had the chance to climb to safety before their oxygen ran out.

A better way in my opinion is to actually remove any existing sand from the system and start with a fresh sand bed.

Building a sand bed from scratch rather than upgrading really is a simple task to undertake. All you do is purchase the sand of the correct granular size, clean it and put it into your aquarium around the live rock up to the required depth. Once you have added the sand you will need to seed the sand bed with some organisms. This can be done by either purchasing some ‘reef grunge’, obtaining some sand from a fellow aquarists deep sand bed or getting some of the grunge from your local fish shops live rock curing vats.

With the introduction of the above and the eventual migration of creatures from the live rock into the sand all you have to do is let good old mother nature get to work.

If you are adding sand into an established tank then you will probably experience a small dust storm. This can easily be removed via mechanical filtration and any dust which has settled on either the corals or live rock can easily be blown off.

There is a very important thing that you must perform prior to putting any sand into your tank though and that is to give the new sand a very good soaking in old aquarium water. When I say a good soak I mean along the lines of 1 to 2 weeks. The reason for this is because of any chemicals which may have become bonded to the sand while it has been in the bag. Soaking the sand will remove these chemicals and stop them from entering the aquarium.

Now that you have a good idea as to how the deep sand bed came into fruition, the importance of granular size, how to build one etc lets quickly go over a few tips.

  1. Small size sand grains below 0.2mm and above 0.05mm must be used. Using sand of the correct size will allow the substrate to be turned over.
  2. Some heavier material (Small live rock no larger than 1cm) may need to be placed on top of the sand if you have a high flow aquarium otherwise the sand will literally blow away and you will have a water based sand storm to deal with.
  3. The depth should be greater than 3 inches to create the required anaerobic areas which are essential for the conversion of nitrate to nitrogen gas. The average depth in the majority of aquariums is between 4 and 6 inches as no benefit has been seen in sand beds greater in depth than this.
  4. Diversity and population will decide if a deep sand bed will filter effectively. The sand bed should be alive with various types of life (copepods, amphipods, brittle stars, bristle worms etc). There are literally hundreds of different species which dwell in and around sand beds serving similar and different roles. The higher the population of organisms the better the sand bed will be able to filter which makes us happy as aquarists.
  5. Increase diversity whenever possible - we do not wish one or two species to become dominant.
  6. Avoid fish and other animals which feed upon life in and on the sand bed as in no time at all the life forms could be decimated. A small amount of predation will occur and this of course is the natural way.
    Passive sand sifters are a good idea as they help to keep the upper levels clear as well as promoting the re-growth of bacteria in these areas. I recommend that you keep the addition of these sand sifters low as they may remove the food source from getting to other organisms in the sand bed.
  7. Feed the organisms in the sand bed. Feeding increases both diversity and the population. A deep sand bed can deal with a large amount of food. When I say food I do not mean placing fish food etc on the sand bed I mean the food in the water, however feeding frozen fish food to the sand bed is good when you first start the bed as it increases the population. Do not just give the sand bed clean filtered, skimmed water ensure that it does get water which is dirty - i.e. un-filtered and un-skimmed.

There is a debate going on all over the marine aquarist world at present in relation to the possible longevity of the deep sand bed and the possible build up of metals. As of yet the build up of metals in a sand bed has not been proven and Dr Ron Shimeck is performing various experiments to ascertain answers. It has been suggested that it may be necessary to replace the sand bed every five years or so to remove this build up of metals, however again this is yet to be proven.

It is my firm belief that a deep sand bed combined with a live rock filtration system is one of the best natural filtration methods currently available to the marine aquarist. Remember to ensure that the particles are of the correct size, the depth of the bed is correct and that there are loads and loads of detrivores in the bed. If you don’t have enough detrivores then the bed will not be kept loose and cease to function.

Oh by the way don’t forget to purchase a torch if you do decide to implement a deep sand bed so that you can watch all the lovely beasties running all over the place at night time. It’s great fun!

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Man made aquarium filtration

June 19, 2007

Man made [tag-tec]aquarium filtration[/tag-tec] is a term I use when describing filtration devices which are not naturally occurring. This is equipment which is used to grow or culture the bacteria required to provide an efficient [tag-tec]aquarium filter[/tag-tec].

Good examples of man made filtration are but not limited to :

  1. External Canister Filters
  2. Internal Filters
  3. Fluidised Filters.

The majority of man made filters effectively follow the same principal and the majority of them utilise both mechanical filtration and biological filtration.

[Read more]

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The aquarium filter - how does it work then

June 15, 2007

Since yesterdays post we have had a few people contact us saying that it is all well and good talking about [tag-tec]aquarium filtration[/tag-tec] and different methods etc when there are a lot of visitors to this site who are thinking about starting a salt water aquarium and do not fully understand how an [tag-tec]aquarium filter[/tag-tec] actually works.

So here we go, this is the first of a couple of posts to touch upon the basics of aquarium filtration (what it is, how it works, methods etc)

The filtration system of any aquarium is absolutely essential. This filtration is the life blood of the aquarium system. It is especially more so in a marine tank as the life maintained is more sensitive to change. You must implement an effective and efficient filtration system.

Think of it this way, when you are building a flat pack piece of furniture you slowly assemble everything using as much patience and care as you can muster, you follow the instructions to the letter and at the end you have a fantastic piece of furniture which will take pride of place in your home.

However….

If you skip steps or do not follow the instructions given then it won’t turn out exactly as planned and won’t function as it was designed to do.

This is exactly the same in a marine aquarium - if you miss steps out, rush or do not understand why then this is a sure fire plan to potential disaster.

So let’s have a look at what the aquarium filter actually is and why it is a requirement.

The filtration aspect of any aquarium ensures that if maintained correctly excellent water conditions can be achieved, the exact water conditions which are both expected and demanded by the species you are hoping to keep.

There are three different aspects to filtration which each perform different functions, these are:

Mechanical Filtration
Biological Filtration
Chemical Filtration

OK - still with me, lets have a look at those.

Mechanical Filtration

This aspect of filtration is normally defined as the removal of particulate matter from the water. This is important as it removes matter from the water before it has time to break down naturally and release polutants into the water column,

A simple piece of mechanical filtration is a sponge which water is passed through. The sponge traps things in it which can be later removed by the aquarist for cleaning.

A lot of aquarium filtration devices actually combine an aspect of mechanical filtration into their design - canister filters, for example quite often have a sponge integrated into the container for this purpose. Powerheads which can be used to feed a fluidised filter can have a sponge on the intake to perform this function.

In an aquarium filtered via natural filtration (for example [tag-tec]saltwater live rock[/tag-tec]) then mechanical filtration can be accomplished via sponges/floss on the weirs of even via hermit crabs, snails etc. Hermit cracs, snails, starfish etc are natures mechanical filtration.

With a mechanical filter it is essential that it is cleaned often, for example if you combine a mechanical filter with a biological filter normally you would place the mechanical filter before the biological filter to prevent waste from entering the biological media chamber. Over time the mechanical media will become clogged and the water flow will be impeded. This slower water volume will mean that the filtration capabilities are reduced. Unless you clean the mechanical filtration media on a regular basis you are at risk from this.

Another problem is that sometimes the output from the mechanical filter is required to provide some of the water flow in the aquarium. If the media becomes clogged and the water flow reduces, the crucial water flow in your aquarium is lowered. It is not recommended to use mechanical filters to create in-tank water flow especially in a marine reef environment where water circulation is so important.

The water flow in a tank is crucial as it ‘blows’ detritus etc from the rocks into the water column and allows it to be caught by the mechanical filtration. (In a reef environment water circulation also provides corals etc with food and removes any mucus build up etc which may occur.)

A clean mechanical filtration system is a requirement. The media has to be removed regularly and cleaned otherwise the problems as described above can become evident.

Biological Filtration

Biological filtration is very important as it is the life support system. Without an efficiently functioning biological system the livestock would quickly become sick and potentially die. The process of biological filtration is known as the nitrogen cycle.

The reason it is called biological filtration is because it involves bacteria that feed on the wastes created. Probably the most well known wastes are ammonia and nitrite, both of which are toxic.

One set of bacteria breaks down ammonia when in the presence of oxygen. The result of this is nitrite which is dealt with by other bacteria again in the presence of oxygen, this time the product is nitrate. This is where the cycle ceases with several types of biological filtration. (Where the nitrogen cycle continues, the nitrate is converted into nitrogen gas, but this time in the absence, or nearly so, of oxygen.)

For successful biological filtration to occur you need to provide the following:

  1. Give the bacteria a suitable place to live
  2. Give them something to eat
  3. Provide oxygen

Now that seems straightforward doesn’t it. Actually it is!

At present there is no ‘absolutely perfect’ biological media on which to base your biological filtration. However, saltwater live rock does come very close. This is why systems based upon live rock are so popular at this moment in time. The filtration capabilities of live rock are excellent. Also, as a bonus, a tank with sufficient live rock will enable the full nitrogen cycle.

All biological media must be kept free from clogging. The majority of ‘off the shelf’ man-made filtration products cater for this, as an area of mechanical filtration is included. When using live rock as biological filtration the water flow in the tank is used to keep the system clean (as well as a clean up crew and the occasional manual clean).

The most likely neglected need of biological filtration is the supply of oxygen. It is essential that the tank water has as much oxygen content as possible. This will satisfy the requirements of the biological filtration, and will be beneficial to the other organisms, big and small, in the tank.

There are some filters which provide this oxygen by having the filter media “dry”. What this means is that the media is not submersed, but the water is passed through it before returning to the tank. A good example of this type of filtration is the trickle filter.

The other end of the scale is where the filtration media is entirely submerged in water, i.e. in canister based filtration, live rock, deep sand beds etc. The only oxygen available is that which is dissolved in the tank water.

A short note on the full nitrogen cycle. As already discussed, ammonia is converted to nitrite, which in turn is converted to nitrate. If biological filtration such as canister filters are being used, the nitrogen cycle does not proceed beyond the production of nitrate. Sufficient quantities of live rock will process nitrate as will a deep sand bed.

An aquarist using for example canister filters, can control nitrate with water changes. In addition, there are special filters available to process nitrate.

Chemical Filtration

Chemical filtration is an aspect of the aquarium filter where dissolved substances are removed from the water.

The most commonly used types are activated carbon and adsorbing resins. Adsorbing resins are very often used to remove phosphate.

Activated carbon traps particles from the water mechanically, though this is not its prime purpose. The prime purpose is to chemically bond some pollutants. These pollutants are dissolved organic compounds (DOC’s). These include proteins, fats, organic acids and other defensive/offensive chemicals that are sometimes secreted by marine life.

There is an issue with using activated carbon, this is that some good trace elements are removed. Regular water changes and the addition of supplements if necessary will replace these. The adsorption capability of activated carbon is limited, therefore it will need to be replaced at regular intervals, I would recommend at least every three weeks.

A good way to use activated carbon and/or phosphate removal media is to fluidise them. This increases the contact time with the water and improves efficiency. I have made my own fluidised devices in the past which I will post in the future about.

The decision as to which type of aquarium filter to use is a personal choice. Personally I use live rock in my aquariums, mixed with other nutrient export devices. My father uses canister filters as well as external nitrate/phosphate removal devices. Two completely different types of filtration, however both aquarium systems are deemed by us to be successful.

So that’s how filtration works in a nutshell - it may be worthwhile to understand how the nitrogen cycle works and the various different types of filtration devices which can be used.

I hope that this has been of some use and of interest to you.

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