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[Old Board Archive] octopuses and sand

tonmo

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octopuses and sand|kovu|
hey guys i have a 29 gal that i just added 4" of sand to about a month ago. and everytime i move rocks or dig in the sand about 1" or more deeper, this white cloud will go about the tank. im worried if its harmful because i know octopuses like to dig in the sand and id be worried about this white cloudy stuff. i used about 100 lbs of southdown and i am still working on seeding the tank with others' sand. ive added at least 5 lbs of seeded sand.

also now that im posting... ive read that sea stars and sea cukes are good octopus tankmates, but can they actualy tolerate the 72º-76º water?

thanks for any help
dave.


Re: octopuses and sand|octomonkey|
Hi Dave

i have never used Southdown sand before. Its not something commonly available in the UK. Could it be that the sand ws put in the tank still a bit dirty or dusty? Or is it coming off the sand since its addition?

Also, I am not convinced that a Deep Sand Bed like you have is actually much use at all with octopuses. Normally just a fine covering is enough for aesthetic species unless it is a burrowing species, but they are not seen very often for sale. However, if using it as a live sand bed it is probably best not to dig about in it very much.

DSBs do crash eventually. It is in their nature to do so. Do you have any other means of filtration and are you using a skimmer.

The cukes et al will be fine at those temperatures.

hope i helped a bit :smile:
C


Re: octopuses and sand|kovu|
Ya i know DSB's crash eventualy, i also heard you have to replace the live rock because it also crashes eventualy.

No im not ready for an octopus yet because i really dont even have filtration in the tank. It has a whisper 2 HOB with carbon. Im gonna buy a skimmer soon, and i am not sure if i will have a sump or wet/dry because of lack in plumbing knowledge.

do you think he will be safe in the tank with a skimmer and weekly water changes?


Re: octopuses and sand|beavis_kc|
I'm not a cephlapod keeper... yet. Just here trying to learn more about these creatures :smile:

I am, however, a reef keeper with a southdown dsb. It took my sand bed almost two months to really settle down. Give it a little more time. All the really fine particles end up at the bottom of the sand bed eventually. You might try a sand sifting star or a sand eating cuke, they'll help stir the surface without disturbing the deeper layers.

Colin's right about not over-stiring the dsb. It'll kill off the bacteria your trying to build up. There's a great article on dsb's at Rshimek.com is for sale | HugeDomains that you might find interesting.

Good luck with your new setup!


Re: octopuses and sand|bear|
is a dsb anything like miracle mud? i know alot of people like to use the mud for refugiams. expensive stuff though :/


Re: octopuses and sand|beavis_kc|
Deep Sand Bed's are usually made up primarily of dry, fine sand. The Miracle Mud is supposed to have trace elements and live bacteria in it, more like live sand.

The southdown sand you may have heard of is argonite sand packaged as play sand, says 'not for aquarium use' right on the bag. It's cheap, if you can find it, and works great. That's what I use, and most of the reefer's that I know. Most people add some live sand to the dry stuff as a starter culture.

As far as the Miracle Mud goes, I have no experience with it. I'll leave the subject to someone who knows. Some people swear by it, others swear at it.
 

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