Aquascape newbie needs help with first tank.

im going to have to agree, most people like it at first, then they start to regret putting it in the tank, go with live sand it will help cycle the tank faster, and gives you some good reef critters that your fish will eat down the line and things will thrive better. ive got black tahitian moon sand in my tank and ive been so happy with it! and it makes all my colors explode!

 

I happen to have a MJ1200 handy.

shackman23: I was thinking of black sand too but I wasn't sure if it was right. They say no soft belly fishes, no burrowers...

idk!

 

well ive got a LTA and it is doing fine, (as you know they are very delicate) and he burrowed right in my sand and hasnt moved since day 1! i also have some sand sifting starfish in my tank and they seem to be doing fine, i posted some pics up check it out, see if you like the look of the black sand!

 

Looks nice!!

 

ill take a better picture tomorrow, i have alot of light on my tank, cant see it the best but i love my sand, and it does not retain heat like most people think, ive got 2 digital thermo's and they both read the same, and i have one buried in my sand bed so i can monitor it.

 

I like the last rock setup best, especially that big pile. Maybe scatter the 2nd pile more? Dunno. Once you get it in your tank, you'll keep looking at it & moving things anyway!

And take my advice, skip the black sand. It looks really cool when you first put it in, but detritus isn't black and it shows like dandruff on a black shirt LOL. I put black sand in my first tank and regretted it after a month, it just looked horrible!

 

Nice, I haven't thought of that!

As for the small pile, I kinda like it higher, it's in the tank now and make a nice little cave. I will post pics when the sand settles down.

 

im going to have to agree with you! lol i loved it at first, and as my tank matured, not so much, so i took half out, and put 40lbs of oolite, and i love it mixed now!!

 

lol strange how you revived this thread after a few months. I didn't even exist on here yet lol. Unless you already put in a scape I'd go with the 2 island one