Nitrate Help

? if I stir up the sand bed, do I start a mini cycle? I don't have any sand stirers. but I stir the sand. Is this a bad thing?

 

By sand bed what type of sand bed are you stirring ? if its a Deep sand bed stirring is the single worse thing you could possibley do to it and is its a shallow like 1 inch to 2 inch then I'd still not stir it , I'd get me a dozen or so of Nassarius snails to keep it clean But don't add these to a DSB system.

 

It's only 2 to 3 inches---I have 2 Nassarius snails--will get more--Thanks so much. Will stirring the sand start a mini cycle? My basket star loves it, but I seem to be getting mini cycles--to small to register on my test kits, but enough to cause small algae blooms.

 

my nitrates run at a constant 5ppm, cant seem to get thm any lower...