Oolite sand & cloudy tank

[Bobbofin]

I feel like a newbie asking this question. I bought Carib Sea Oolite fine sand for my Nuvo 16. Two weeks later it's still cloudy? Thinking of taking it out and getting courser sand. Anybody have issues with Oolite sand?

 

[BigZ]

My 20 has some oolite. Mine was only cloudy for 2 days. I don't recomend fine grain sand. My filter and power head push the sand around like dust in the wind.

 

[Bobbofin]

Yup, just what I thought, big mistake. Suck it out at next water change and replace with something a little courser.

 

[higorc]

Yeah, that happens with Oolite sand... I didn't use it on my last tank for that reason. It gets tossed around easily and it takes a while for it to settle.

Just fyi, the Oolite sand does eventually stay put when the sand bed matures a little bit. It just takes a while, but eventually it stops being so loose and getting blown around so easily...

If you have a sump, I would use some fine polishing pads to filter the overflow water until it clears. That always sped up the clearing process for me.

Higor

 

[willray]

Eventually it will settle IMO.

 

[Bobbofin]

It's been a almost a month since I started the tank, I've had enough! I drained the Innovative Marine Nuvo 16 nano this morning, put corals and fish in a Rubbermaid tub, drained as much water out as possible, sucked out 100% the Oolite sand with a wet/dry vacuum. Replaced sand with CaribSea Special Grade Reef Sand (1 - 2mm). The tank was clear in two hours and the corals and clown fish are back in the tank and happy. I can't believe the tank would have been that cloudy due to the sand. I don't have crazy flow, I'm only doing LPS and Zoas. I'm running the spin nozzles, replaced the noisy stock 211 gph return pump with a Ehiem 1000 compact (267gph) and added a Koralia 425 nano. I want to get a couple of Catalina gobies, a Hi Fin Red Banded Goby w/pistol shrimp but if I had cloudiness with the sand now what would it be with a pistol shrimp?

 

[higorc]

Did you wash the Oolite sand before putting it in the tank? I've had 2 tanks with Oolite sand and never took that long to settle...

Sent from my Galaxy S4

 

[Bobbofin]

No I did not. I was CaribSea Arag-Alive reef sand so you are not suppose to rinse it. It comes with a packet of Bio-Magnet Clarifier. It says on the package not to rinse it. But I probably do not want Oolite sand if I'm going to have a pistol shrimp anyways.

 

[higorc]

I see. I never bought the live one's, just the regular one. I had a Yasha gobby Randall pistol shrimp pair in my 72G with Oolite sand with no issues. But I did get them when the sand bed had gotten firm and mature though.

I wouldn't do Oolite sand again anyways. I'm sure you will like the Carib Sea Reef sand better. I have it in my 120G now w 2 MP40s almost at 100% and it never moves...

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