[Sk8r]

Sandsifter stars are, again, usually too much for a small tank. If it shows signs of slowing down, go to a very small brittle star [black/white/brown]. It will get your detritus without stripping your sandbed of life.

Best sandsifter for a small tank is, in fact, the yellow watchman goby. 4" max, cigarshaped, more bluster than bite.

A refugium is always a big help with phosphates. It will not solve everything, but is such a benefit on several fronts, it will help your tank in general.

Re sandsifters: what is not generally understood is that copepods eat algae, and if you totally strip your sand of pods, you may actually be encouraging nuisance algae, possibly even of bacteria that are mainly responsible for diminishing nitrate/ammonia. Which is why I say don't overdo it on sandsifters: get the least amount of 'sifter' you possibly need to have---which in a small tank is not much.