120 gallon leaking, what 2 do with sand?

[gotfrogs]

Dr. Ron,

I woke up to my #1 nightmare this morning. My prized 120 gallon reef sprung a leak last night.
http://gotfrogs.com/images/120/leak
I had to tear down the tank and place everything in a 37 gallon tank and two large trash cans.
One of my big concerns is what to do with my sand bed. Right now I have my 120 pounds of CaribSea Seafloor Special Grade Reef Sand in a 44 gallon trash can covered by about a foot of aquarium water circulated with a powerhead. The sand is about 5 months old and has lots of goodies growing in it. The tank should be repaired in about 2 weeks tops.

What should I do to keep the sand alive/happy?
When I set the tank back up should I use all of the sand?

I am afraid that I will have to wait for the tank to cycle before I can add the live rock and corals. Please help!

[rshimek]

Hi,

Sand kept in buckets or deep containers generally goes bad in a hurry, even with powerheads blowing water over it. The problem is that the animals in it are specialized to live in the shallow upper layer and in a deep bucket they get smothered. They then decompose, and... lotsa nutrients into the sediments. :

In a situation such as this, your best option is to set up a new sand bed from scratch. Use some of the upper layer (top inch or two of the sand from the trash can) to seed the new bed and discard the rest. Then add starter kits, etc., to get the sand bed diversity going.

The only way to keep the sand in good shape is to put it in shallow pans from the beginning. Sorry.

[gotfrogs]

Can I thoroughly rinse the "bad" sand with fresh water and use it? I hate to waste all of this sand and spend even more money on replacement.

[revclyburn]

Hey

can you get some rubbermaid bins, and put it in there, with some powerheads? That will make it a lot shallower and may save you some money, time and some of your critters in the sand.

IMO, I would try and seal up the tank as soon as possible. Where exactly is the leak, and who's sealing the tank? If you're doing it yourself, it should take long to do. Spend a day doing it, and let it cure for at least 3 days. That should get you back in service sooner than you think.

Rev

[gotfrogs]

The tank is already out for repair. Universal (an aquarium manufacturer) is doing the repair. They are completely reassembling the tank. I should get it back on Friday.

[revclyburn]

Then go for with the sand. If you can get the bed to be shallower than the bucket and feed it, since you have snails in it. It should be okay. Yes you will have some die off, but, test the water before you put it back in the tank to see if it has high ammonia, a sign of die off.

Rev,

I think it will be ok. Also, change some water after a coupleof days.

[rshimek]

Hi,

The sand won't be okay. See my original post.

The only way the sand will be useful will be to clean it completely, dry it, and then set up the tank as if it were new. Sand's cheap. Buy new sand and start over.